Rhonda Lenton
President & Vice-Chancellor
In 2022-23, York University took up the challenges associated with the realities of a new higher education landscape fundamentally impacted by three years of the pandemic. We did so with a renewed commitment to address persistent, global issues such as inequality, food security, and the climate crisis. And as a modern and progressive institution, we were determined to leverage what we had learned from adapting to an ambiguous, complex and uncertain future to continue advancing the priorities set out in our University Academic Plan 2020-2025: Building a Better Future (UAP).
We have made great strides this past year across all six priorities and we have responded to the call for action to advance our contributions to the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with an aim to support prosperity for people and the planet. In addition to establishing a Sustainability Framework for the University and announcing new goals for meeting net-zero sooner, York’s global leadership in advancing the SDGs has been highly noted by the prestigious Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, placing us in the top 40 universities worldwide.
Our accomplishments above all else reflect our ability to come together as a community to problem-solve and to collaborate on shared objectives as reflected in the myriad of initiatives and actions undertaken across the University – only a fraction of which are captured in this Report. Importantly, we continue to anticipate and respond to the needs of our students and the communities we serve by developing urgently needed new programming including microcredentials, experiential education, professional Masters’ programs and much more. We have retained high quality online and technology-enhanced learning programs that are accessible, flexible and designed to meet the needs of our diverse student population. Our new School of Continuing Studies, featured in this report, stands out as a shining exemplar of our commitment to those seeking to upgrade, reskill or enhance their education.
In 2024, the Markham Campus will officially open its doors, expanding Canada’s talent pipeline with a focus on entrepreneurship and technology. Similarly, our proposal for a School of Medicine submitted to government this past year is based on an integrated and community-based approach to health care, responding to the urgent unmet needs in primary health care. And our Glendon Faculty has undertaken a transformative revisioning initiative which will uniquely position it as an immersive, multilingual environment for talented and diverse students.
York also continues to expand our research and creative activities building on our historic strengths in interdisciplinary scholarship. In addition to a significant increase in our external sponsored research funding, York was awarded its largest ever research grant for the $318.4 million Connected Minds initiative. Launching a bold new Strategic Research Plan will accelerate the development of research, scholarship, creative activity and fuel innovation over the next five years to further propel this growth.
A welcoming and inclusive campus, we challenged ourselves to develop new programs and initiatives that provide students with the financial support, mentorship and career guidance they need to succeed. In addition, the new Decolonizing, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (DEDI) Strategy, will continue to ensure York’s leadership in creating access and success opportunities for equity-deserving groups across all stakeholder groups, and further embed the values of DEDI into the fabric of our institution.
We have begun to implement our new Global Engagement and Internationalization Strategy as a central component of our expanding network of local and global partnerships that continue to create unique opportunities for York including the UN CIFAL Training Centre and UNITAR Global Water Academy that we host.
I want to close by recognizing and thanking the exceptional students, staff, instructors, faculty, alumni, volunteers, community partners, and supporters of York, all of whom exemplify our institution’s pillars of connectedness, access, excellence and impact.
Rhonda Lenton
President & Vice-Chancellor