‘Concordia spirit prevailed’

Happy New Year 2021! It feels good to say that, given what we’ve all been through in the past 10 months. If you’re like me, I’m sure you were thrilled to see the back of 2020 – and are feeling hopeful now that vaccines are injecting some bright spots on the horizon.

Of course, we aren’t out of the woods yet. In Montreal, as in many places, we’re experiencing one of our most challenging stretches since the pandemic began. Which is why, at Concordia, we’ll continue to teach, learn and work remotely for the most part. Our libraries on both campuses will remain open for study as will our more than 200 labs which are such a big component of our contribution to society and so integral to our research mission.

If the public health situation permits in Montreal, we’ve drafted plans that will allow small groups of students to come to campus to spend time with each other, with faculty and staff. As you all no doubt recall, the social aspect of being a student is a big part of campus life which we all miss.  

Given the challenges we all faced in 2020, I’m extremely proud to report how the Concordia community spirit prevailed. Together, we:

• Raised more than $1M for the COVID-19 Emergency Student Relief Fund
• Inaugurated our incredibly successful CU Cares and CU@Home programs
• Smashed our annual giving record to the Centraide Campaign

Equally important, your alma mater racked up an impressive list of academic and research accomplishments to sustain the momentum Concordia has been building for several years. We:

• Opened our state-of-the art Applied Science Hub on the Loyola campus
• Established our Equity Office
• Launched the President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
• Placed nearly 200 more students in co-op internships this summer than in 2019
• Launched our Sustainability Action Plan
• Signed on to the University Global Coalition, binding us to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, which are entirely consistent with our mission and values
• Launched our Next-Gen Cities Institute
• Graduated more students than ever before

On the alumni front, I’m thrilled to welcome the Concordia University Alumni Association’s new board of directors and its new president, Linda Donnini.

As usual, our alumni also did us very proud:

• Eight Concordians were named to the Order of Canada, including Campaign for Concordia: Next-Gen. Now co-chairs Gina Cody, MEng 81, PhD 89 and Andrew Molson.
• Julien BriseBois, EMBA 07, helped guide the Tampa Bay Lightning to their second Stanley Cup as franchise GM
• Annie Murphy, BFA 10, won an Emmy for her role as Alexis Rose in the sitcom Schitt’s Creek
• Kitty Scott, BFA 90, became the first woman chief curator of the National Gallery of Canada
• Concordians received 4 META awards and 15 nominations for their outstanding contributions to Montreal theatre
• Our business grad Karen Hogan was appointed auditor general of Canada
• PhD grad Mohaned Chraiti won the Governor General’s Academic Gold Medal for his work on next-generation mobile networks

In so many ways, our grads also continue to inspire us:

• Read about how two alumnae cope on the front lines of COVID-19 care
• This short video features 12 grads at the top of their field offering their tips for success

Here you can read even more stories of how the entire Concordia community – alumni, students, faculty and staff – are helping counter the unprecedented challenges COVID-19 continues to present.

My best wishes to you and those close to you for a healthy and happy 2021!

Graham Carr
President and Vice-Chancellor