Kathleen Wynne and Sunil Johal Appointed to Professorships

(L-R) Kathleen Wynne, former premier of Ontario and Sunil Johal, special advisor to the deputy ministers at Employment and Social Development Canada.

Victoria College is excited to announce that Kathleen Wynne and Sunil Johal have accepted appointments to named professorships with the College. Wynne and Johal will be joining our faculty as the Hon. Newton W. Rowell Professor, and, the David and Ann Wilson Professor in Public Policy and Society, respectively.

As a former premier of Ontario and current MPP of Toronto’s Don Valley West, Wynne will be bringing her extensive leadership experience to the Chambers Stream of the Vic One Program, a stream for students interested in commerce, leadership and policy. “Public policy issues are all around us. They help to shape our world; they make news; they determine the future and build on the past. I am so looking forward to my new role at Victoria College in the Vic One program as the Hon. Newton Rowell Professor. I know that working with Vic One students will give me the opportunity to engage with fine, curious young people. I look forward to sharing my experience with them, learning from them as they prepare for leadership roles in their own lives,” says Wynne.

Sunil Johal is currently the special advisor to the deputy ministers at Employment and Social Development Canada, where he plays a strategic coordination role advancing key files related to Canada’s labour market, social policy and service delivery. Johal’s involvement with the Vic One Pearson Stream, for students interested in history and politics, will provide students with invaluable exposure to his considerable expertise. “The importance of thoughtful public policy has never been more apparent. I am excited to engage with the Vic One community through this professorship to develop a robust dialogue around the pressing societal challenges facing Canada,” says Johal. He will also teach a course on social innovation in the Creative Expression and Society Program.

Wynne and Johal are the newest appointments to the seven, named professorships established at Victoria College through gifts and endowments. “Thanks to the generosity of the donors, we are able to offer students unique learning opportunities with outstanding professors and community leaders,” says Principal Angela Esterhammer. The current holders of Victoria College’s other named professorships are Jonathan Hamilton-Diabo (June Callwood Professor of Social Justice), Albert Moritz (Blake C. Goldring Professor of the Arts and Society), Angus McQuibban (James and Anne Nethercott Professor), Anne Urbancic (Mary Rowell Jackman Professor), and David Wright (Kenneth and Ann Taylor Distinguished Professor of Foreign Affairs).