Long-time member of provincial parliament and former Ontario deputy premier, Floyd Laughren, has been appointed as Laurentian University's Chair of the Board of Governors.
Laughren spent more than 27 years as a member of the Ontario Legislative Assembly, including five years as deputy premier and Minister of Finance. He later served as chair of the Ontario Energy Board. He received an honorary doctorate of law from Laurentian in 2000, and has served on its board since 2001.
“I'm looking forward to the opportunity to expand my role with Laurentian University,” Laughren said in a press release. “It is a university that has shown its commitment to providing its students with the best possible experience, while fostering an environment of collaboration, innovation and creativity.”
Dominic Giroux, president of Laurentian University, said he's excited to work with Laughren to reach the school's goals of national recognition, community responsiveness, student engagement, and being a university of choice while strengthening their regional, bilingual and tri-cultural mandates.
“We are extremely fortunate to be able to welcome someone like Floyd, with so much experience and integrity,” he said.
Laurentian University also added Greater Sudbury community leader Bela Ravi, and Jon Babulic, the Chief Administrative Officer of Barrie, to its board.
“There is much work to be done and I'm confident that Floyd, along with the additions of Bela and Jon, will give the kind of guidance and oversight needed to continue building the momentum at Laurentian,” Giroux said.
Laughren's two-year term begins June 19. He takes over from Carolyn Sinclair, who has served as chair for the last three years.
“It has been an honour to serve as the board chair and to see the progress that we have made,” Sinclair said. “I'm very excited to continue to be a part of the Laurentian University community, and to work with Dominic and Floyd to further the university's four key goals."
Giroux commended Sinclair for all her work.
“She has been a terrific leader for the university over the last three years, especially in supporting its bilingual mandate, and I look forward to her continued involvement,” he said. “Thanks to her advice and insights, she helped make my own transition to Laurentian and Greater Sudbury a smooth one.”
Laurentian also appointed Sara Kunto as university secretary and general counsel, as well as Dr. Sheila Cote-Meek as its first associate vice-president of indigenous programs.
