Dear colleagues,

I hope you have been enjoying your summer so far, and that you are making the most of your well-deserved vacations.

Time marches on, and as we begin to prepare for the start of the fall term, we have some important announcements and updates to share with the John Molson community.

It is with great pleasure that we announce the appointment of Li Yao, associate professor in accountancy, as the new director of the MBA program. I wish to thank Anne Beaudry for her steadfast leadership and hard work as the outgoing MBA director. She led the flagship MBA program through many important developments and advancements. Thank you Li for assuming this new role, and I look forward to working with you in this new capacity. As well, Nadia Vani joins the MBA office as the new MBA program assistant. She will be working closely with Dina Bakopanos’ team, and we look forward to working with her.

Reporting to Guy Barbeau, Kelly Hall joins us as the new permanent coordinator of special projects and events. She brings with her more than five years of experience as an events professional, and several more years in the service industry. We are excited to collaborate with her on all our unique endeavours.

We welcome Batoul Al-Sinan, who recently joined the CPA program as the new administrative assistant. We are fortunate to have her as part of our team!

Congratulations to Sarah Carey, who was recently appointed as the manager of John Molson’s Goodman Institute of Investment Management. Sarah has long been an influential member of the Goodman team, and will bring much experience and expertise to this new role.

Also, congratulations to Frederica Martin, who is now the permanent manager of programs, internationalization and sustainability within the Office of the Associate Dean, Accreditation and Faculty Relations. Her new role focuses on John Molson’s learning initiatives, and its internationalization and social responsibility and sustainability (including equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) and indigenization) endeavours.

Finally, Umit Aykut is now the permanent IT analyst in the Office of the Associate Dean, Accreditation and Faculty Relations. He plays a major role in the development and implementation of Academ, the software we use for collecting faculty members’ CVs and reporting to AACSB, EQUIS and AMBA. Dave McKenzie, founder and coordinator of the MBA program’s Community Service Initiative (CSI), is now part of this team.

As the Government of Quebec has requested all universities to resume their activities on campus for the fall term, and students were informed to be on campus as well, it is our turn be part of a ‘vibrant campus’ as President Carr has asked us to take part in welcoming our students.

Therefore, the John Molson community is working towards a safe and gradual return to campus. Staff members are expected to return to campus for a minimum of 2 days per week beginning September, with this increasing to a minimum of 3 days per week in early October. Faculty members can now have access to their teaching schedule via SIS and see if they are teaching in-person or remotely. More information about remote work for staff is available on Cspace here.

If you have reason to believe that you should not be returning to campus or teaching in-person classes during the fall 2021 term, please complete the COVID-19 Workplace Accommodation Form in the MyConcordia portal as soon as possible. You will find this form in the portal on the left-hand side menu, at the bottom. A designated officer in Human Resources or Environmental Health and Safety will evaluate your request. If necessary, they will reach out to you or to experts — such as medical professionals —to gather more information. After their evaluation is complete, the designated officer will inform you of their decision. Once a request is approved, the corresponding manager or academic unit head will be informed accordingly without disclosing any medical reasons justifying the accommodation.

This academic year, especially the fall, is a transition period and I invite each of us to be patient with each other as well as with ourselves. Our mission is to provide an engaging learning and research environment that empowers us to achieve our greatest potential for the betterment of business and society. Together, I know we can achieve this.

I truly look forward to seeing you all in the halls again in the Molson Building very soon.

Stay healthy, stay safe, and enjoy the rest of your summer.

Anne-Marie Croteau, PhD, CDir

Dean