Vancouver Island University is conducting the search for its next continuing President and Vice-Chancellor. Following the Board of Governors' decision on January 29, 2026 to initiate the recruitment process, a Presidential Search Advisory Committee was established and extensive consultation was undertaken with students, employees, Indigenous partners, local governments, community organizations and other members of the VIU community to help inform the candidate criteria. The Board of Governors approved the candidate criteria on June 24, 2026, and the search has now moved into the recruitment phase.
The opportunity profile for the position is now available, and applications are being accepted through VIU's executive search partner, Boyden.
Presidential search: latest updates
Following a recommendation from the Presidential Search Advisory Committee (PSAC), the Board of Governors approved the candidate criteria that will guide the recruitment and selection of Vancouver Island University's next President and Vice-Chancellor. The criteria were informed by extensive community consultation and feedback received from students, employees, Indigenous partners, local governments, community organizations and other interested parties.
With the criteria now approved, the search has moved into the recruitment phase. The opportunity profile for the President and Vice-Chancellor position is now available online:
The Presidential Search Advisory Committee (PSAC) met on June 10, 2026 to review the results of the community consultation conducted as part of the presidential search process. As outlined in the Presidential Recruitment Procedure, one of the committee's first responsibilities is to solicit the views of VIU constituencies regarding the criteria for selecting the University's next President and Vice-Chancellor.
To fulfill this mandate, the committee approved a community consultation plan at its April 14, 2026 meeting. The University Secretariat subsequently conducted a comprehensive consultation process, inviting community members to provide feedback on the qualities, experience and attributes they felt were most important in VIU's next president. Feedback was gathered through an anonymous survey, email submissions, formal submissions from community organizations and governments, and targeted outreach conducted by the committee.
After reviewing the consultation findings, the PSAC approved the proposed candidate criteria and recommended that the Board of Governors approve the criteria as presented. The recommendation was subsequently forwarded to the Board for consideration.
Community members were invited to help shape the search by providing feedback on the candidate criteria that will be used to recruit and select VIU’s next president. The consultation closed on May 15. Thank you to everyone who contributed thoughtful feedback and helped shape this importance stage of the search.
Feedback was collected in several ways, including an anonymous survey, individual email submissions, and the opportunity for formal submissions from community groups, local governments, and other organizations. In addition, the Presidential Search Advisory Committee (PSAC) conducted targeted outreach to VIU’s community partners, local governments, and Indigenous partners to invite their input.
We are encouraged by the strong level of engagement from across the VIU community and beyond. All feedback received will be carefully reviewed and synthesized into a consultation report, which will be posted publicly on this webpage once finalized.
The insights shared will play an important role in shaping the criteria used to recruit and select VIU’s next President, helping to ensure the process reflects the priorities and aspirations of the communities VIU serves.
If you have any questions about the search process, how to express interest in the position, or how to refer prospective candidates please contact us at presidentialsearch@viu.ca.
The PSAC launched the April 20 to May 15 public consultation on the criteria VIU’s community thinks are most important in the next University President. See above for more information on the community engagement.
View the criteria shared in the consultation process.
The Presidential Search Advisory Committee membership has been constituted in accordance with the terms of reference.
Membership, Presidential Search Advisory Committee 2026
Voting Members
(Updated Membership, July 9, 2026)
- Jamie Cassels, Chair of the Board of Governors (replaced by Sharon Torgerson)
- Nate Bello, Vice-Chair of the Board of Governors (replaced by Peter Behie)
- Peter C. P. Behie, Board of Governors (vacant position)
- Sharon Torgerson, Board of Governors (vacant position)
- Claire Grogan, Interim Provost and Vice-President Administration
- Carolyn Russell, Vice-President Students
- Rachel Moll, Dean, Faculties of Education and Academic & Career Preparation
- Sungchul Choi, Dean, Faculty of Management
- Patricia Elliott, Director, Employee Relations
- Bryan Tinlin, Director, Student Services
- Lillian Morton, Director, Office of Indigenous Education (replaced by Naomi Bob)
- David Hopwood, Vice-Chair of Senate (replaced by Sylvie Lafrenière)
- Gara Pruesse, President, VIUFA (replaced by Toni Smith)
- Quinn Ramsay, Lead Steward, CUPE (Delegate)
- Brad Jannaway, Chair, BCGEU
- James Bowen, Executive Director, VIUSU
- Michael MacKenzie, Professor, Political Studies
- Chris Jaeger, Professor, Management
- Buddy Wolfe, BCGEU Representative
Non-Voting Members
- William Boyte, General Counsel and University Secretary
- Kathryn Young, Boyden
Administrative Support
- Dorcas Nganga
At the March 31 meeting, the Board of Governors approved the draft criteria to forward to the Presidential Search Advisory Committee (PSAC) as per the PSAC’s Terms of Reference.
The PSSC completed its work and has referred documentation to the Board of Governors to initiate the search.
The Presidential Search Steering Committee (PSSC) has been constituted.
Presidential Search Steering Committee Members
- Chair, Board of Governors: Jamie Cassels
- Vice-Chair, Board of Governors: Nate Bello
- Immediate Past Chair, Board of Governors: Karen Bittner
The Committee completed its work as per the committee’s Terms of Reference.