This message is sent on behalf of Board Chair, Dr. Gail Johnson Morris.
Dear students,
On behalf of the Durham College (DC) Board of Governors, it brings me great pleasure and excitement to share with you the appointment of Dr. Elaine Popp as DC’s next President, effective Friday, March 1.
Dr. Popp is an impactful, proven and strategic post-secondary leader; her skills, knowledge and experience will continue to drive innovative programming and build on our strong best-in-class reputation. Influencing purposeful change within the college and beyond, her creative solutions have garnered repeated requests for her to serve on sector-level boards and committees.
With more than 24 years of successful and progressive post-secondary sector experience in Ontario, Dr. Popp has been leading our core business of teaching and learning as Executive Vice President, Academic, for eight years. During this time, she has repeatedly demonstrated her passion for student success and her rare ability to leverage higher education’s emergent trends to create relevant programming that meets student needs and anticipates industry expectations.
Working with DC’s high-performing teams, Dr. Popp has spearheaded the launch of several successful strategic frameworks for DC, including the Academic Plan, Enrolment Management Plan, Internationalization and Global Engagement Plan and the five-year New Program Development Plan. These frameworks emphasize how she leverages the importance of systems thinking, effective planning and thoughtful resource management to achieve DC’s mission – Together, we’re leading the way.
Keenly attuned to provincial priorities, policy, needed advocacy, risks, and emergent opportunities, Dr. Popp is the right choice to build upon DC’s position as a post-secondary education leader today and as we evolve in the future.
Dr. Popp begins her new role as DC’s President on March 1, following the conclusion of President Don Lovisa’s tenure on Thursday, February 29.
