Alan Shepard (academic)
Alan Shepard (born c. 1962)[1] is a Canadian academic and the current and 11th president and vice-chancellor of Western University in London, Ontario, effective July 2019. He previously served as the president and vice-chancellor of Concordia University in Montreal.
Alan Shepard | |
---|---|
President of the University of Western Ontario | |
Assumed office June 30, 2019 | |
Preceded by | Amit Chakma |
Personal details | |
Born | 1962 (approx.) Iowa, United States |
Citizenship | Canadian, American |
Domestic partner | Stephen Powell |
Children | 2 |
Education | PhD (English) |
Alma mater | St. Olaf College University of Virginia |
Occupation | University academic and administrator |
Biography
Shepard was born in Iowa, and is a dual citizen of both Canada and the United States.[2] He has a background in Early Modern English literature, and attended St. Olaf College and received a PhD in English from the University of Virginia.[2][3]
Shepard served as the chair of the English department at Texas Christian University from 1998 to 2002.[2] He moved to Canada in 2002, where he began working as a visiting research fellow at the University of Toronto.[2]
Shepard was hired as an associate vice-president academic at University of Guelph in 2005.[2] In 2007, Shepard became the provost and vice-president academic at Ryerson University, where he worked until 2012.[2] At Ryerson, Shepard led the development of a business incubator called the Digital Media Zone.[4]
In 2012, Shepard became the president and vice-chancellor of Concordia University in Montreal.[5] His two predecessors, Judith Woodsworth and Claude Lajeunesse, were both removed midway through their terms due to scandals.[6][7]
In November 2018, Shepard announced he would be leaving Concordia on 30 June 2019 to become the president and vice-chancellor of Western University in London, Ontario.[5][6] In July 2019, Shepard replaced Amit Chakma to become the 11th president of Western.[4][8]
Shepard has served on the board of directors at Universities Canada, Stratford Festival, and the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal.[9] He is currently chair of the Canadian Research Knowledge Network.[3]
Personal life
Shepard has two children with his partner Stephen Powell, an associate professor at Concordia University.[10]
References
- "Queer Concordia hosts Dr. Alan Shepard". The Concordian. 21 January 2014. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
- "Alan Shepard named as Western University's next president - London | Globalnews.ca". globalnews.ca. 29 November 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
- University, Department of Communications and Public Affairs, Western. "Introducing Western's 11th President & Vice-Chancellor". president.uwo.ca. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
- "Western names Alan Shepard as new president". CBC News. 29 November 2018.
- "Concordia President Alan Shepard leaving Concordia for Western". The Concordian. 15 January 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
- "Concordia President Alan Shepard leaving for top job at Western". CBC News. 29 November 2018.
- "Concordia University president to leave in 2019 | CTV News Montreal". montreal.ctvnews.ca. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
- Editor, Emily Tayler News. "Chakma honoured for global efforts at farewell luncheon". The Gazette • Western University's Student Newspaper. Retrieved 5 July 2019.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
- University, Department of Communications and Public Affairs, Western (29 November 2018). "Western names Dr. Alan Shepard as 11th President and Vice-Chancellor". Media Relations. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
- "Stephen Powell". Retrieved 9 July 2019.