Bonnie M. Patterson Appointed Distinguished Visiting Professor
Bonnie M. Patterson, former president and chief executive officer of the Council of Ontario Universities (COU), has been appointed distinguished visiting professor, academic leadership at Ryerson University. Patterson will join the Ted Rogers School of Management (TRSM) and serve as a special adviser to the Office of the President while taking an administrative leave from Trent University.
Patterson has a deep history with Ryerson, holding senior positions over the course of 15 years including chair, School of Administration and Information Management (later renamed Information Technology Management); dean, Faculty of Business (renamed TRSM in 2007); and special assistant to the president. She has an honorary doctorate from Ryerson.
President and CEO of COU from 2009-2015, Patterson represented the common interests of Ontario’s 21 publicly funded universities and their presidents to a variety of internal and external groups including provincial and federal governments. She was responsible for steering the core COU mandate in strategic advocacy and issues management, data and information analysis and policy research and development. From 1998-2009, Patterson was president and vice chancellor of Trent University where she led the development of a multi-year institutional strategic plan.
“With over four decades of experience in the higher education sector, Bonnie Patterson will be an asset to Ryerson academic administrators and leadership teams,” said Chris Evans, interim provost and vice president academic. “As part of this appointment, Bonnie will advise on academic leadership initiatives with a focus on succession planning, learning needs and academic leadership skills in order to support Ryerson’s academic goals.”
Over the course of her career, Patterson has implemented new governance structures and increased enrolment and research capacity, developed facilities renewal and capital expansion plans supporting the advancement of students, faculty and staff in their own learning and careers.
“As distinguished visiting professor, Bonnie will assemble leadership resources for academic administrators on topics such as strategic thinking and decision-making, change management, partnership development and diversity, equity and inclusion,” said Steven Murphy, dean, TRSM.
Patterson was appointed to the Order of Canada and Order of Ontario. In 2006 she was awarded with a Canada’s Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Award in the Trailblazer and Trendsetter Category by the Women’s Executive Network (WXN). In addition to her Ryerson honorary degree, she holds honorary doctorates from York University and Western University.
