At the May 25 meeting of McGill’s Board of Governors, Suzanne Fortier, BSc’72, PhD’76, was appointed to a second five-year term as the University’s principal and vice-chancellor.
The appointment came on the recommendation of the Advisory Committee on the Reappointment of the Principal. Her second term will begin on July 1, 2018.
Board chair Stuart Cobbett, BA’69, BCL’72, made the news public in a message sent out to the McGill community on May 26.
“As outgoing board chair, I am delighted to be able to share this news, knowing the University will be in good hands for many years to come,” Cobbett said in his message. “Please join me in thanking Professor Fortier for all she has done for McGill to date, in congratulating her on her reappointment, and in wishing her all the best as she prepares for a future that includes McGill’s 200th birthday.”
In 2016, Fortier was appointed to the Canadian Minister of Finance’s Advisory Council on Economic Growth, as well as the World Economic Forum’s Global University Leaders Forum (GULF). She also serves on the board of directors of Montreal International, the Conference Board of Canada, Universities Canada and the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation. She is the vice-chair of the Science, Technology and Innovation Council, an independent advisory body that offers counsel to the Canadian government on policy issues related to science, technology and innovation.
Chancellor Michael Meighen, BA’60, LLD’12, will soon begin his second term as McGill’s chancellor on July 1. He was officially reappointed during a meeting of McGill’s board of governors on December 1, 2016. In an email sent to the McGill community after that meeting, Cobbett wrote that Meighen “has represented the University with warmth and grace at alumni functions and other events around the world.”
A former Canadian senator (1990 to 2012), Meighen served as co-counsel for the Deschênes Commission on War Criminals, and was the president of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada from 1974 to 1977. He was a co-chair of Campaign McGill, which raised more than one billion dollars.
Cobbett himself will soon be stepping down as board chair. His term ends on June 30, 2017.
His successor, as of July 1, will be Ram Panda, MEng’71, MBA’77.
Panda came to Canada – specifically, McGill – from his native India in 1968. After graduation, he stayed in Montreal, co-founding Invera Inc., which is now one of the leading software providers for the metal industry.
In recognition of “the hospitality I experienced and the level of acceptance I encountered [that] helped me to settle down quickly and integrate easily into Canadian life,” Panda says he is dedicated to giving back to the community. He is one of the philanthropic drivers of McGill’s Trottier Institute for Sustainability in Engineering and Design and has been a member of the Faculty Advisory Board for Engineering since 2007.
“Ram is passionate about sustainability and McGill’s role in the community,” noted Cobbett in his message. Panda has been a member-at-large of the board of governors since 2014.
Source: McGill Reporter
