Feb 24, 2013- 6:13 PM
The university's board of governors approved a second five-year term beginning July 1, 2014 and ending June 30, 2019 at their Feb. 15 meeting.
The re-appointment was recommended by an evaluation committee of 10 people, including members of the board of governors, administration, faculty and students, and was endorsed by the university’s senate.
“Dr. Sawyer is very highly regarded within the university community. We received positive feedback about his leadership throughout the renewal process,” said board of governors vice-chair and Northern Life president Michael Atkins.
“He has also earned the respect of his peers, as shown by his recent election as vice-chair of the Ontario Council on University Research (OCUR).”
“Dr. Sawyer brought a 2012-2017 Strategic Research Plan to Senate last year, and won unanimous support for this vision of our research objectives,” said Dominic Giroux, president and vice-chancellor.
“With his reappointment, the university will continue to build on the momentum we’ve created in setting out our strategic plans for the next five years.”
“I am grateful for the vote of confidence from the Board of Governors, the Senate, and the review committee,” Sawyer said.
"I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues, students and external partners as we direct our collective efforts toward the ambitious targets set by the University community for research and francophone programs.”
During the course of Sawyer’s first term in the post, Laurentian’s position relative to other Canadian universities has improved in several measures, a press release from the university said.
Since 2008, Laurentian has recorded significant increases in total sponsored research income, research income per full-time faculty member, number of publications, number of publications per full-time faculty member and impact of publications.
The university’s proportion and value of funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research has increased since 2008, and the university has been particularly successful with recent research funding applications in mining and occupational health and safety.
Sawyer also championed the creation of the Board’s Research Ethics Board Liaison Committee and led Senate’s revision of the Policy for Responsible Conduct of Research.
He has been an active member of the boards of directors of Health Sciences North and of the Advanced Medical Research Institute of Canada. In 2012, Laurentian submitted a request to seek a partial designation under Ontario’s French-Language Services Act.
