Installation of incoming Vice-president and Principal to be held Oct. 20

Vice-president and principal Hargurdeep (Deep) Saini will be formally installed in office at U of T Mississauga Wednesday, Oct. 20 at 4 p.m.

The ceremony, which will be held in the gymnasium of the Recreation, Athletics and Wellness Centre, will feature an academic procession, speeches and a reception to welcome Saini to U of T Mississauga and the Mississauga community. Platform guests will include Her Worship Hazel McCallion, Mayor of Mississauga; U of T President David Naylor and Chancellor David Peterson.

Students, faculty, staff, alumni and Governing Council representatives will also be participating in the ceremony.

This is a historic occasion in the history of U of T and U of T Mississauga, says Andrew Stelmacovich, executive director of advancement at U of T Mississauga. We will be welcoming our 8th principal, Professor Deep Saini, into our midst with all the pomp and circumstance that defines our great institution. It will be a momentous event.

Saini, whose five-year term at U of T Mississauga began July 1, 2010, formerly served as dean of the Faculty of Environment at the University of Waterloo. Prior to joining Waterloo, he taught at the Université de Montréal where he also served as director general of the Institut de recherche en biologie végétale (Plant Biology Research Institute). He began his Canadian academic career at the University of Alberta.

Saini has also held leadership roles in various organizations in Canada including president of the Canadian Society of Plant Physiologists and president of the Federation of Canadian Plant Science Societies. He holds a doctorate in plant physiology from the University of Adelaide, Australia; and an MSc (Honours) and BSc (Honours) in botany from Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana, India. He is fluent in English, French, Hindi and Punjabi.

Saini succeeds Professor Ian Orchard, who served as vice-president and principal at U of T Mississauga for eight years.