It is our pleasure to announce that the UBC Board of Governors has accepted the President’s recommendation to appoint Dr. Jan Hare as the Dean of the Faculty of Education for a five-year term, commencing July 1, 2024.
Dr. Hare, an Anishinaabe-kwe scholar and educator from the M’Chigeeng First Nation in northern Ontario, is a professor in the Department of Language and Literacy Education of the UBC Faculty of Education. Since 2021, she has served as Dean pro tem of the Faculty of Education, while also holding a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Pedagogy.
Dr. Hare received a BASc in Child Studies from the University of Guelph; a BEd from Nipissing University; an MA in Educational Psychology from the University of Western Ontario; and a PhD in Educational Studies from UBC.
Dr. Hare is deeply committed to advancing equity, diversity, inclusion and decolonization in education. Her research investigates how Indigenous knowledge systems can transform educational practices and is anchored in robust Indigenous community engagement. She is both an advocate and supporter of Indigenous student success, demonstrated through her work in literacy learning in early learning contexts, pathways to post-secondary education for high school students, new models for Indigenous-led teacher education and the advancement of Indigenous graduate students through mentorship and research. Her current work is focused on ways of evaluating Indigenous knowledges and pedagogies in online learning environments, as well as establishing transformative Indigenous-settler relations by applying innovative educational methodologies.
As a leading international Indigenous scholar, Dr. Hare actively shares her findings not only through journal articles and books, but also popular Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) and other community platforms, further underlining her dedication to educational innovation and the integration of Indigenous pedagogies in educational spheres.
Dr. Hare has been a dedicated member of UBC’s leadership for several years, including her appointments as Dean pro tem (2021-2024); Associate Dean of Indigenous Education (2016-2022); and Director of NITEP – UBC Faculty of Education’s Indigenous Teacher Education Program (2016-2021). She also held the Professorship of Indigenous Education in Teacher Education (2014–2018) and was a Faculty Associate at the Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Social Justice (2013-2018).
We wish to acknowledge the President’s Advisory Committee members for their commitment of extensive time and energy throughout the search process. We also extend our thanks to students, faculty and staff for actively participating in the search process and providing valuable feedback to the committee.
Please join us in congratulating Dr. Jan Hare on this appointment, where her leadership will undoubtedly continue to inspire innovation and educational excellence.
Gage Averill
Provost and Vice-President, Academic, UBC Vancouver
Rehan Sadiq
Provost and Vice-President, Academic, UBC Okanagan
This article was originally published by the Office of the Provost and Vice-President, Academic.