March 17, 2021

Dr. Florentine Strzelczyk departing UCalgary for appointment at Memorial University

Celebrating nearly 25 years of service to the University of Calgary
Florentine

It is bittersweet that I share with you that Dr. Florentine Strzelczyk will be leaving the University of Calgary as she has been appointed provost and vice-president (academic) and pro vice-chancellor of Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN) effective Aug. 16, 2021. While we are sad to see Florentine depart UCalgary, we are excited to see her take her next step forward in her career.  

After completing her MA in Germany and PhD at UBC as an international student, Florentine joined Queen’s University as an assistant professor in 1995 and then came to our institution in 1997. She was promoted to associate professor in 2003 and then full professor in 2011. Florentine is widely recognized for her scholarship in film and cultural studies and has been funded by SSHRC and DAAD and recognized with a Killam award.

She held a series of roles with progressive responsibility in the Faculty of Arts including serving as vice-dean from 2014 to 2018. As vice-dean in the Faculty of Arts she led a number of initiatives including an internal restructuring, the development of both the Faculty of Arts’ Strategic Plan (Energizing Arts 2017-22) and Internationalization Strategy (Engaged Citizenship in a Changing World 2017-22), as well as a task force on Indigenous initiatives that resulted in the hiring of a cluster of Indigenous scholars. 

In 2018, Florentine was appointed deputy provost of the University of Calgary. During her time in this role she has demonstrated exemplary leadership skills and work ethic. Highlights of her accomplishments in the last three years since joining the provost’s team include chairing the campus strategic initiatives group; successful negotiation of several collective agreements including the inaugural agreement with postdoctoral fellows; co-leading a committee that has created new policies and criteria for academic appointments, tenure, promotion, and merit; serving as a member of university’s budget team; streamlining quality assurance processes; implementing a university-wide agreement on pluralism with Aga Khan University; co-leading the tri-council-sponsored national Dimensions EDI Pilot; and co-chairing the committee that oversaw the response to academic issues that arose as a result of the COVID-19 global pandemic. More recently, Florentine also co-led the the future-focused program delivery pillar of Growth through Focus, University of Calgary’s new plan to ignite our entrepreneurial spirit to turn challenges into opportunities to improve the world around us.  

Florentine is a trusted leader and adviser and will be deeply missed. 

Although we are sad to see Florentine leave, we are excited for her to take on this new leadership challenge and inspire her future colleagues at MUN. Florentine will be taking a well deserved holiday from May 17 to June 30, and will officially end her term as deputy provost on June 30. 

Please join me in congratulating Florentine on her new appointment. 

Dr. Dru Marshall 
Provost & Vice President (Academic)