Provost Named, Brain Regained

Shirley Neuman, professor of English and of women’s studies and dean of the College of Literature, Science and the Arts at the University of Michigan, has been named provost of the University of Toronto, effective July 1. One of the key priorities for the new provost will be to oversee the hiring of hundreds of new faculty over the next five years. Other priorities will include managing student recruitment, equity issues, student aid and services, enhancing the educational experience – especially for undergraduates – and overseeing expansion at the Scarborough and Mississauga campuses.


Prof. Ian Orchard, vice-provost (students) has been appointed principal of the University of Toronto at Mississauga (UTM) for a seven-year term starting July 1. A professor of zoology specializing in insect neurobiology, Orchard joined U of T in 1982 and became the first vice-provost (students) in 1998 after serving as associate dean of science and vice-dean in the Faculty of Arts and Science. Outgoing Provost Adel Sedra credits him with improving the university’s recruitment efforts and developing a highly accountable and effective student-aid program. Orchard will take over UTM as it embarks on a period of unprecedented enrolment and capital growth. “[The college] is about to go through an expansion that should revitalize the campus,” he says, “and I am excited about the prospect of leading such a major transformation.”