Presidential Review

Dr. Gillian Siddall is the 10th President of Emily Carr and is currently serving under an initial five-year contract with the ECU Board of Governors (2018-2023). The Board has assembled a Review Committee to oversee a review process and make recommendations to the Board, informed by the president’s role and responsibilities and feedback from the ECU community.

The Committee will aim to complete its work in the Fall of 2022. The Committee includes members from across the University. This process aligns with the ECU Policy on Presidential Review for Reappointment, approved by the Board of Governors and Senate.

The Board has engaged an external consultant Higher Thinking Strategies Limited, to support this work. The consultant is actively conducting one-on-one interviews with key internal and external stakeholders and stakeholder groups.

How to participate

All members of the ECU Community should have received an individual email invitation and unique link to participate in the confidential Presidential Review for Reappointment survey. Emails were sent on Monday, Oct. 24, 2022 and on Oct 31, 2022.

If you received the invitation on Oct. 24 - the survey will close on Nov. 6. If you will have received the invitation on Oct 31, your survey will close on Nov. 13.

If you did not receive the email and link, please check your junk or spam folder, and if it is not there, please reach out to the Interim University Secretary, Heather Sanford (hsanford@ecuad.ca).

Your unique survey link is for your use only and can only be used once. It allows you to make a confidential submission. An external consultant at Higher Thinking Strategies Limited will receive your responses. The Board engaged this external firm to support this work. The consultant will analyze, collate, and summarize raw survey data and answers for the Review Committee and the Board.

The survey is open for two weeks and closes on Nov. 6, 2022. You will receive two reminders from Survey Monkey if you have not submitted a response. It should take about 5-10 minutes to complete, depending on the detail you wish to provide.

Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FIPPA) Notice

The survey and responses will be used only for the purposes specified. Please do not forward the survey email, as this link is specific to your email.

Completing the survey is optional. You are free to stop answering the survey questions at any time. Only authorized personnel from Higher Thinking Strategies Limited will view responses. Higher Thinking Strategies Limited is the external consultant firm engaged by ECU to conduct stakeholder interviews and assist with the surveys. To protect your confidentiality, your responses will be combined with other responses, for reporting, in groupings of 10 or more. Any personal information collected will be collected under the authority of Section 26(e) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

If you have any questions or comments about this survey, please email the Interim University Secretary at hsanford@ecuad.ca with the subject line “Presidential Review for Reappointment.”

The Review Committee

The Review Committee has been assembled with the following members:

Board Chair + Chair of the Committee

  • Keith Kerrigan

2 external board members, appointed by the Chair

  • Lorcan O’Melinn
  • Mary Macaulay

1 Dean, appointed by the Provost

  • Kyla Mallett, Faculty of Art

1 Vice-President, Associate Vice-President or Vice-Provost elected by that group

  • Trish Kelly

Dir. of Aboriginal Programs + Special Advisor to President on Aboriginal Initiatives

  • Brenda Crabtree

3 faculty members: 1 elected by the members of each Faculty*

  • Hélène Day Fraser, Faculty of Design and Dynamic Media
  • Cameron Cartiere, Faculty of Community + Culture
  • Daphne Plessner, Faculty of Art

2 students: 1 undergraduate and 1 graduate, elected by students

  • Parnian Amani, undergraduate student, Visual Arts
  • Leea Contractor, graduate student, MDes

2 (non-faculty, non-executive) Staff Members (1 unionized and 1 excluded) elected by those employee groups

  • Gaye Fowler, Foundation Program Advisor
  • Angeles Hernandez Correa, EA to the AVP Research + Dean, Graduate Studies

Alumni Association President or designate

  • Patrick Christie, Alumni Association President

Committee Resource/Support


    *The Faculty of Graduate Programs and Research does not elect a faculty member to the Committee, as all faculty members at ECU are assigned to one of the Faculty of Culture + Community, Ian Gillespie Faculty of Design + Dynamic Media, or; Audain Faculty of Art.

    The Associate Vice-President, Human Resources and the University Secretary will support the work of the Committee, and the University Secretary will work with each of the groups identified to confirm appointees to the Committee.