Announcement as 9th President and CEO

Posted on Friday, August 9th, 2019

The prepared remarks of President Claude Brulé.

Thursday, July 18, 2019
Nawapon, DARE District (C Building), Ottawa Campus

Thank you, Peter, for that wonderful and kind introduction.

Members of the Board, distinguished guests, colleagues and students: good afternoon, bonjour, kwe.

Before we begin I would like to note that the hall in which we are assembled is called Nawapon, and that stands for “Gathering for a Journey,” and the beautiful courtyard that we’re overlooking, is called Ishkodewan, and it means “There is Fire,” — there’s fire in our hearts, there is passion in our hearts. I find it quite an à propos setting for today’s event — as we embark on the next chapter of Algonquin College’s journey — our journey together.

I would like to thank the Board, its Executive, and in particular Peter Nadeau, our outgoing Board Chair, and Jim Brockbank, our incoming Board Chair, for the opportunity and privilege to serve as the 9th President of Algonquin College. I am truly honoured.

I would like to recognize and thank Cheryl Jensen, Cheryl I know you’re probably watching via our livestream, not only personally as a friend and a mentor, but also for her tremendous leadership over the past five years as President of Algonquin College. Her tireless work and contributions, as well as those of past presidents, including Presidents MacDonald and Gillett with whom I have had the pleasure to serve, have paved the way for the exceptional institution we enjoy today.

Algonquin College is an outstanding postsecondary institution, with an enviable reputation not only in the Ottawa Valley region and the province, but across the nation and internationally as well. This is something we can never take for granted or assume, for I know that together, we will continue to safeguard and enhance our college’s brand and standing in all of the communities we serve and beyond.

We are half-way through our 50+5 Strategic Plan 2017-2022, and our forward-thinking direction, which is as relevant today as it was two and a half years ago, will serve as a great foundation for the work ahead. Our mission (and this is where I need your audience participation…) — To transform hopes and dreams into life long success (never get tired of that) — is noble, compelling and elegant in its simplicity. I will continue to invite everyone not only to know it, but to embody it in their day-to-day work, for irrespective of where each employee works at the College, all of us can contribute to helping a student be successful and walk across the convocation stage.

I have long been passionate about education and training, fundamental values transmitted to me by my parents at a young age. You see, I was a first-generation student – my parents wanted my siblings and I to have a thriving future supported by education. I carried that passion while serving our country during my career in the Canadian Armed Forces, including time spent teaching at the Royal Military College of Canada, and being an instructor and an administrator for the School of Communications and Electronics in Kingston — something that put me in good stead when I joined Algonquin. Since then, and for the past twenty years, I have had the privilege to lead great teams and work on amazing projects such as the development of our T Building and the move from Rideau to the Ottawa Campus, and the development of our Algonquin Centre for Construction Excellence. These, and many other opportunities that I have experienced, have allowed me to stretch out of my comfort zone, to innovate, and to learn and to grow both personally and professionally. For that, I am grateful to my supervisors, my coaches and mentors who supported me along the way. I was a Department Chair, a Faculty Dean, and the Senior Vice President Academic and I have seen first-hand the positive and lasting difference that I and the teams I have worked with, have made in the lives of students as they went on to complete their studies, and achieve success in their chosen careers. I find this to be highly rewarding and I have made it my personal goal to make as broad a positive impact as I could — for our students, our employees and our communities — for I see the strength of Algonquin College is in our diversity, our inclusiveness, and in making Algonquin a highly accessible institution.

It’s true that I have been at the College a while and I know the institution well. I intend to conduct a listening tour of my own as I begin my mandate, to find out what matters most to our employees, and our employee groups, working in collaboration with our union partners. And what matters most to our learners, working closely with our Students’ Association, led by its president, Deijanelle Simon, and general manager, Jack Doyle.

This will help inform and refine the vision that will propel Algonquin into the future, an inspirational and aspirational future that uniquely defines and differentiates Algonquin, a future that includes:

  • Leading in personalized learning and personalized college experience through a strategy of flexibility and a focus on learning and teaching excellence.
  • Being an inclusive workplace, and a great employer of choice in our region.
  • Through meaningful engagement of our employees, a culture of continuous improvement, and our AC Way signature program.
  • Continuing to explore and advance our Indigeneity through our unique leading strategy in response to the call to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
  • Developing strong alliances and partnerships in order to thrive through creativity.
  • Bolstering our polytechnic education identity with a focus on experiential learning, skilled trades, apprenticeships and pathways to diploma, degrees and graduate certificates, and forming close linkages with industry in order to take applied research to next level.

With focus and superb execution I know we will make this exciting future a reality.

In closing, I would like to thank my family, my wife Carol and our daughter Véronique. Their unwavering support and belief in me every step of the way continues to this day to energize me and fuel my passion for dedicating myself to this wonderful College, one of the best in the country, and to our college system.

Thank you for being here today. I look forward to working with all of you.
Thank you, Merci, Miigwetch.


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