LEADERSHIP DIVERSITY MATTERS AT CANADA’S U15 RESEARCH-INTENSIVE UNIVERSITIES

Edmonton, 2018

Despite decades of employment equity statements, policies and programs in Canadian universities, women, racialized minorities, Indigenous peoples, and persons with disabilities continue to be underrepresented within the senior ranks of university leadership.
The latest study conducted for the Academic Women’s Association by Professor Malinda S. Smith, and presented in four infographics by Ph.D. candidate Nancy Bray, examines the leadership diversity of Canada’s U15 research universities. It examines social, disciplinary, and professional diversity among senior and mid-level university leaders: (i) board chairs and chancellors; (ii) university presidents and their leadership teams (on average 7-8 people); (iii) the three most senior academic positions (presidents, provosts and vice presidents academic, and vice presidents research); and (iv) the deans of major faculties and schools.
If the current leadership ‘pipeline’ does not change significantly then it is likely that the future will be no more diverse than the present.