Dear members of the McGill community,
It is my pleasure to announce the appointment of Professor Fabrice Labeau as the next Vice-President (Administration and Finance). Professor Labeau’s five-year renewable term will begin on June 1, 2024.
The Advisory Committee for the Selection of the Vice-President (Administration and Finance) conducted an extensive search within Canada and internationally, which benefitted from regular input from the McGill community. The Board of Governors accepted the Committee’s recommendation at its meeting on April 25, 2024.
Professor Labeau currently serves as Deputy Provost, Student Life and Learning, a position he has held since 2019, following a one-year period as Interim. He is a Full Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, which he joined in 2000. In addition to his current position, he has held several academic administrative appointments both within his Faculty and centrally over the last 15 years, including Acting Department Chair, Associate Dean, Acting Dean, and co-acting Provost.
Professor Labeau serves as the planning chief of the University’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and led the University’s management of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a member of the Task Force formed by the Provost following the Internal Audit report on the discovery of asbestos at Macdonald Campus, he has been working directly with the Facilities Management team to implement Internal Audit’s recommendations.
Professor Labeau also currently serves as chair of the Comité des affaires académiques within the Bureau de Coopération Interuniversitaire (BCI), an organization representing Quebec’s 20 universities.
On the academic front, Professor Labeau is involved in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), and in particular in the IEEE Sensors Council, IEEE Vehicular Technology Society, and the IEEE Montreal Section.
Professor Labeau was a recipient of the 2015 and 2017 McGill University Equity and Community Building Award (team category), of the 2008 and 2016 Outstanding Service Award from the IEEE Vehicular Technology Society, and of the 2017 W.S. Read Outstanding Service Award from IEEE Canada. He was recognized in 2018 as “Ambassadeur Accrédité” for the Montreal Convention Centre.
A member of the Ordre des ingénieurs du Québec, Professor Labeau holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering from the Université catholique de Louvain, as well as a Bachelor’s in electrical engineering and a degree of advanced studies in applied sciences, also from the Université catholique de Louvain.
Please join me in congratulating Professor Labeau on his appointment. I also take this opportunity to thank Diana Dutton for serving as Interim Vice-President (Administration and Finance) since September 2023. Finally, thanks are due to the members of the Advisory Committee and to everyone in the community who shared their comments and advice during the search process.
Appointment of new Dean of Education
On behalf of Provost and Executive Vice-President (Academic) Christopher Manfredi, I am pleased to also announce the appointment of Professor Vivek Venkatesh as the new Dean of the Faculty of Education. This follows an extensive, international search conducted by the Advisory Committee for the Selection of the Dean of the Faculty of Education. The McGill University Board of Governors accepted the Committee’s recommendation during its meeting held on April 25, 2024. Prof. Venkatesh’s five-year, renewable term will begin on June 1, 2024, and end on May 31, 2029.
Prof. Venkatesh is an internationally recognized researcher and research-creator who holds the UNESCO Co-Chair in Prevention of Radicalization and Violent Extremism. He is as an innovative educator, artist and applied learning scientist with nearly 20 years of service. He is currently a professor of Inclusive Practices in Visual Arts and Chair of the Department of Art Education at Concordia University, where he has also served as Associate Dean at its School of Graduate Studies for two terms. In addition, he is co-director of the Centre for the Study of Learning and Performance, a multi- and inter-disciplinary centre made up of over 50 researchers, over a dozen professional staff, and several hundred students.
Prof. Venkatesh has been awarded more than $10 million in external funding as principal or co-principal investigator and has published more than 70 peer-reviewed scholarly pieces. Among the most prominent of his pedagogical initiatives is “Project SOMEONE” (Social Media Education Everyday), a multi-media online platform devoted to the reduction of hate and violent extremism.
Prof. Venkatesh earned both a PhD and MA in Educational Technology from Concordia University and a Postgraduate Diploma in Education from the National Institute of Education at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, and a B.Sc. in Computer Science from the National University of Singapore.
Please join me in congratulating Prof. Venkatesh on his new appointment and welcoming him to McGill this summer. In addition, I would like to thank Prof. Victoria Talwar for serving as Interim Dean of the Faculty of Education since August 2023. Thanks are also due to the members of the Advisory Committee and to everyone in the community who shared their comments and advice during the search process.
Sincerely,
Deep Saini
President and Vice-Chancellor
McGill University