Wayne MacKay, President of Mount Allison University, and J. Robert Winters, Chairman of the Board of Regents, announced jointly today that Mr. MacKay will be leaving his position with the University, effective July 1, 2004. The date will bring the nationally renowned legal scholar and specialist in human rights to the completion of the full 3-year term to which he was appointed in 2001.
“I am deeply indebted to the students, faculty, staff and members of the Board of Regents and National Advisory Council who have worked with me. As a community of Allisonians we are all attached to the high ideals for which our university stands and each of us attempts to attain them in our own ways. I am passionately attached and deeply grateful to Mount Allison and to the Sackville community. For both Jo Ann and me, it it true to say that part of our hearts will always be here.
“The decision to leave is not one that I take lightly,” he continued. “Nevertheless, I feel that I have accomplished all that I can at Mount Allison and the Board and I have reached a mutual agreement that the most opportune time for a change is June 30, 2004, before embarking on a second term as previously announced.”
“My term at Mount Allison has been deeply rewarding and fulfilling. I have enjoyed it greatly. It is an experience from which I have learned much that I will carry with me as I move forward. Nevertheless, I made it clear from the outset that I did not view my appointment here to be the final step in my career. The time has now come for me to move onward,” said President MacKay, in making the announcement. “In the days ahead I will be exploring many career avenues, including a return to my original loves of law, teaching and human rights advocacy.”
Mr. Winters also expressed regret at Mr. MacKay’s departure. “Speaking both personally and on behalf of the Board of Regents, I wish to express our deep gratitude for the many positive contributions that President MacKay has made to Mount Allison. He has brought the attributes of civility, respect and leadership to his presidency.
“President MacKay has accomplished a great deal in his three-year term at Mount A,” he continued. “His enlightened and positive approach to human relations has fostered morale and contributed to the atmosphere of harmony that exists, not only among faculty, students and administration but also between the University and the wider community beyond the boundaries of the campus.
“He has overseen the process of strategic planning and has implemented important initiatives to renew Mount Allison’s physical plant and establish a student health clinic while, at the same time, being a champion for the maintenance and expansion of excellence in the teaching and research missions of the institution. The positive future of the University that has emerged under his guidance is one to which the Board is proud to subscribe.”
A. Wayne MacKay, B.A., B.Ed., M.A., Ll.B., was born in Pictou County, Nova Scotia and earned degrees at Mount Allison University, the University of Florida, and Dalhousie University Law School. He is the author of numerous books and papers, especially in the field of constitutional and educational law and has received many honours and awards for his excellence as a teacher and his commitment to human rights.
“We wish Mr. MacKay continued success in his endeavours,” stated Mr. Winters. “I have no hesitation in saying that, on this occasion, Mount Allison’s loss will mean a gain for Canadian jurisprudence.”