Recent announcements | Office of the Vice-President and Principal

Extension of Professor William A. Gough as Vice-Principal, Academic, and Dean

We are delighted to announce that Professor William Gough has accepted an extension of his position as Interim Vice-Principal, Academic, and Dean at U of T Mississauga from January 1 to June 30, 2026, as approved by Agenda Committee of Academic Board.

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UTM's fall semester

The end of term is in sight; so I’m writing to share some updates on progress this fall, plus a few things to anticipate in the months ahead.

Message from the Vice-President & Principal

I have received concerning reports of two antisemitic incidents on our campus at the beginning and end of last week. I wanted to let the UTM community know that these reports are under review by our Campus Safety team.

Appointment of UTM’s interim dean, student experience and wellbeing

We are pleased to announce that Tim Fricker has accepted the position as UTM’s interim dean of student experience and wellbeing for a one-year appointment, which runs until Sept. 30, 2026.

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Welcome and thanks - fall 2025

This week U of T Mississauga is welcoming 16,500 students to campus, many of them back for a new year, some joining us for the first time.

I’m writing with a heartfelt thank you to our faculty, librarians and staff for everything I know you are doing to support these students’ success — from completing a crucial infrastructure project under Outer Circle Road, to welcoming our students to residence and preparing the first week of classes.

Wellbeing and Belonging at UTM

I’m writing to introduce our wellbeing and belonging committee and to share some ways for you to shape its priorities. Thanks to Heather Hines for chairing this committee – and to Nader Boutros, Nythalah Baker, Tee Duke, Ravi Gabble, Mai Lu, Dina Moreira, Steven Suraci, Kathi Wilson, and Shahid Zafar for serving as its first members.

Committee Priorities

This committee came together around a shared belief in the power of connection at work. Our staff, faculty, and librarians do good for others when they have supports to be well themselves.

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Appointment of Dany Savard as Chief Librarian at U of T Mississauga

We are pleased to announce that Dany Savard has accepted the position as chief librarian at U of T Mississauga’s library (UTML) for a renewable five-year term starting on 1 January 2025.

Dany has served ably as UTM’s interim chief librarian since March 2024, during which time he has, among many other things, co-chaired the campus’ digital scholarship working group, developed UTML’s new annual team-wide workplan, and led proposals to re-design UTML’s special collections space. He continues to provide thoughtful, people-first advice as a member of the principal’s senior team at UTM and of the University of Toronto Libraries’ tri-campus executive committee.

Appointment of France Gagnon as Vice-Principal Research and Innovation

I am delighted to announce that agenda committee of academic board has approved the appointment of Professor France Gagnon as vice-principal, research and innovation, at U of T Mississauga for a two-year term – from 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2026 – which is eligible for a three-year extension.

Her research makes national and international impact: she has published 60+ peer-reviewed articles, including in Nature, Lancet, and Human Genetics; earned $9M+ in research funding, including grants from CIHR and the Heart and Stroke Foundation; and broken ground in her field as one of the first genetic epidemiologists in Canada.
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Launch of Continuous Improvement Program

I’m writing to announce UTM’s first continuous improvement (CI) program, which will launch the week of 16 September, as led by our campus-wide project management office (PMO).

The program realizes an idea raised during conversations about the strategic framework and academic plan. Our people – staff, faculty, librarians – are leading their fields; they’re also managing a lot of work. We can make that work easier by streamlining awkward, time-consuming processes we rely on every day.

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Celebrating Black at UTM

I’m writing to celebrate the recent progress of Black@UTM and to preview some ways you can get involved in this work going forward. Black@UTM – part strategic action group, part online community space, all parts amazing – works to promote Black excellence, empowerment and belonging on our campus. Its senior team reports into my office to match their connection to priorities of the Strategic Framework: Black belonging matters campus-wide; its leaders need a campus-wide platform.