Professor Bruce Kidd, a distinguished academic, accomplished athlete and experienced administrator, has been named the new principal of UTSC and vice-president of the University of Toronto.
The appointment, which was announced by U of T’s Governing Council earlier today, is for a three and a half-year term that begins on January 1, 2015 and runs until June 30, 2018. Professor Kidd had been serving as UTSC’s Interim Principal since March 1, 2014.
“I am deeply honoured to take on this role,” says Kidd. “UTSC is one of the most important, energizing educational and social experiments I've ever been a part of. It is a dynamic economic, educational, cultural, athletic and social hub of the eastern GTA and it exemplifies President Gertler’s priorities of city-building, innovative undergraduate education and internationalization.”
In his new role Professor Kidd continues his longstanding connection to Scarborough, his promotion of accessibility in sport through the Toronto 2015 Pan Am and Parapan American Games as well as his commitment to the U of T tri-campus system.
Professor Kidd has a demonstrated record of community engagement and a reputation for building effective partnerships. His involvement in UTSC’s 50th anniversary celebrations and the opening of the Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre has been a major asset in guiding UTSC through an important period of growth and legacy building.
“During my term I intend to give priority to the most immediate goals of the approved long-term strategic plan, namely enrolment growth, faculty recruitment and capital expansion,” says Kidd. “As we grow, I want to ensure that we maintain the sense of community that characterizes UTSC today.”
Prior to Professor Kidd’s interim appointment he served as Warden of Hart House since 2012. He was the Director of the School of Physical and Health Education from 1991 to 1998 and Dean of the Faculty of Physical Education and Health from 1998 to 2010.
A former Olympian and an Officer of the Order of Canada, Professor Kidd has earned degrees from the University of Toronto (B.A., Political Economy), the University of Chicago (A.M., Education), and York University (M.A. and Ph.D., History), and an honorary doctor of laws from Dalhousie University.
Professor Kidd teaches and has written extensively, having authored or edited ten books and hundreds of articles, reports, plays and scripts. He is currently Chair of the Selection Committee for Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame, Past Chair of the Commonwealth Advisory Body on Sport and a member of the Canadian Olympic Committee.