The following is a message to the community from York University President and Vice-Chancellor Rhonda L. Lenton. The message was issued on Dec. 1:
I am delighted to announce that the search for Principal of Glendon Campus has reached a successful conclusion.
As you may recall, earlier this year I reconstituted a search committee comprised of members of Glendon Campus including faculty, staff and students, as well as a member appointed by me which was chaired by the Provost and Vice-President Academic and charged with undertaking a search for the next Principal. This is an important time in Glendon's development as it evaluates academic programs and delivery; establishes strategies to attract and retain outstanding students, faculty and staff; and looks to promote its research activity and increase its profile.
Marco Fiola, photograph by Jenna Marie Wakani
Following an extensive national and international search, which attracted a number of outstanding candidates, the search committee recommended the appointment of Professor Marco Fiola to the position of Principal. I am very pleased to announce that Professor Fiola has accepted our invitation to take up a 5.5-year term as Principal, commencing January 1, 2021. On my recommendation, today the Board of Governors concurred with the recommendation for the appointment.
Professor Fiola will bring dynamic academic leadership and development experience to the position of Principal of Glendon Campus. He will join York University from the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures at Ryerson University, where he held the position of Chair for eight years, during which time he led the unit through tremendous changes and growth.
He is a Full Professor at Ryerson University, an institution he joined in 2006. From 2001 to 2006, he held an appointment at the Université du Québec en Outaouais. Prior to embracing an academic career, Professor Fiola was a Senior Translator for the Government of Yukon, where he worked closely with the Francophone community, in addition to providing advice to the Government of Yukon on issues related to Indigenous language preservation and revitalization.
As Chair of Languages, Literatures and Cultures at Ryerson, he was responsible for all aspects of departmental leadership and administration. He led the broadening of the department's mission, the funding of endowed scholarships and the intensification of research activities. Under his leadership, the department witnessed a three-fold increase in faculty positions and a notable academic programming expansion. He laid the groundwork for the diversification of course and program offerings beyond French and Spanish by enhancing Mandarin and Arabic offerings, developing a course suite in American Sign Language, and successfully reintroducing Latin and Attic Greek.
Throughout his career as a translator, translation studies scholar and academic leader, Professor Fiola has been a strong advocate for equity, diversity and inclusion, specifically through his award-winning research-action work, publications and community work on intercultural and interlinguistic communication. His publications include a Tamil-English Legal Glossary and several chapters on medical and community interpreting. He is a published Italian-French translator, and the coauthor of an English-French translation textbook. He has published and lectured domestically and internationally, including in France, Italy and Spain. In 2017, he served as Academic Convenor for the Congress of the Federation of Humanities and Social Sciences a gathering of over 10,000 scholars representing some 70 scholarly associations who met at Ryerson University for the first time.
Professor Fiola holds a BA and an MA in Translation (Université de Montréal) as well as a DEA in Language Sciences and a PhD in Translation Studies (École Supérieure d'Interprètes et de Traducteurs Paris III Sorbonne Nouvelle). He is a Certified Translator and Terminologist (Association of Translators and Interpreters of Ontario) and a Certified Translator (American Translators Association). In 2019-20, he was awarded both the Ryerson Fellowship at Massey College and the Errol Aspevig Award for Outstanding Academic Leadership in recognition of his work within and outside Ryerson University.
I wish to express my deepest appreciation to Professor Ian Roberge for his outstanding leadership and service as Interim Principal this past year, and his dedication to Glendon and the University. I would also like to thank the members of the Search Committee for the Principal of Glendon Campus for their valued contributions to this important process.
I look forward to welcoming Professor Fiola to York University and to working with him in the coming years as he undertakes this key leadership role. I know that all members of Glendon and the University will join me in congratulating and welcoming him.
Sincerely,
Rhonda L. Lenton, PhD
President and Vice-Chancellor
This story was originally featured in YFile, York University's community newsletter.
