Senior leadership team
Alex Clark
President
Dr. Alex Clark is an internationally known administrator, researcher, and advocate for well-being and effectiveness in academic work and workplaces. A complexity theorist and researcher of psychosocial aspects of heart disease, he has worked in post-secondary education for 20 years in Alberta. He has held faculty and executive roles at the University of Alberta for more than a decade, and, most recently was dean of Health Disciplines at Athabasca University.
View bioMatthew Prineas
Provost and Vice-President Academic
Dr. Matthew Prineas joined Athabasca University in early September 2017 and is in his first term as provost and vice-president academic. Before assuming his current role as provost at Athabasca University, Prineas served in a variety of influential leadership roles at the University of Maryland University College.
View bioPriscilla Campeau
Chair/Program Administrator, Nukskahtowin
Priscilla Campeau is Cree – Saulteaux. She is a member of Muskowekwan First Nation in Saskatchewan and has been a visitor on Treaties 6 and 8 territories for the past 25 years. She has been with AU, working in such disciplines as criminal justice, governance, law and management, and Indigenous Studies.
View bioShawn Fraser
Dean, Faculty of Graduate Studies
Dr. Shawn Fraser is the dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies and is a full professor of Health Studies. He previously served as associate dean, teaching and learning in the Faculty of Health Disciplines and as the Master of Health Studied/Master of Nursing graduate program director.
View bioMegan Hall
Associate Vice-President Learner Experience (Interim)
Megan Hall joined AU in 2012 as a member of Athabasca University’s innovative open-access scholarly publishing house, AU Press. In 2019, Megan became the director of AU Press. Since then, she has worked on numerous boards and committees in the university press and publishing community, including recently as the president of the Association of Canadian University Presses.
View bioDavid Head
Vice-President Finance and Performance Services and Chief Financial Officer (Interim)
David Head joined the AU team in 2013 as the director, strategic initiatives and performance services, overseeing the university’s enterprise risk management, emergency management, facilities, procurement and contract services, and strategic initiatives. He previously served as interim vice-president finance and performance services and chief financial officer on multiple occasions over this period.
View bioSteven Johnson
Dean, Faculty of Health Disciplines (Interim)
Dr. Steven Johnson conducts research around health promotion with a focus on healthy eating, active living, and sleep. He has worked with adults who have Type 2 diabetes and with workplace health promotion programs for men. Steven has numerous collaborative partners in Alberta, Canada, and Australia.
Manijeh Mannani
Dean, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
Dr. Manijeh Mannani (she/her) is a full professor of English and comparative literature. Since joining Athabasca University in 2007, she has led and co-led several major faculty and university-wide initiatives and served in various academic administrative roles.
View bioAlain May
Associate Vice-President Student and Faculty Relations
Dr. Alain May joined AU in 2006. Her research interests are enterprise systems, system implementation, and gender and information technology; she has also done work around user competency and IT outsourcing.
View bioGilbert Perras
Chief of Staff, Office of the President
Gilbert Perras joined Athabasca University in March 2019, as the chief of staff, Office of the President. Gilbert began his career at AU over 30 years ago holding various positions within the IT department and the Office of the Registrar. While working full-time he also completed his master of education at AU in 2001.
View bioAndrew Perrin
Associate Vice-President Research
Our culture, society, and communities need discoveries that matter, ideas designed for impact, creations that inspire, and innovations that go beyond the imaginable. As associate vice-president, research, Dr. Andrew Perrin is committed to cultivating a thriving research community at AU, leading research strategy and opportunity development, and overseeing the Research Office team.
View bioMelissa Sadownik
Chief Governance Officer/General Counsel (Acting for)
Melissa Sadownik is the director of policy, privacy, and records management, acting for the chief governance officer and general counsel. Melissa joined Athabasca University in 2018, providing strategic leadership and guidance for AU’s access and privacy, policy, and records and information management programs.
View bioSara Kunto
Chief Governance Officer and General Counsel
Sara Kunto joined AU in August 2021 in the inaugural role of Chief Governance Officer and General Counsel, leading a team of seasoned professionals in the Office of the Chief Governance Officer and General Counsel, responsible for providing legal, compliance, privacy, records management, and governance expertise to the university.
View bioJennifer Griffin Schaeffer
Vice-President Information Technology and Chief Information Officer
Jennifer Griffin Schaeffer joined AU in November 2017 and leads the talented folks in the cloud business, digital strategy and digital security offices of AU’s IT division. During her leadership, the AU IT team has led AU’s digital transformation to become the first university in Canada to move its entire operations into its secure cloud...
View bioPauline Smeltz
Chief Human Resources Officer (Interim)
Pauline Smeltz joined Athabasca University in 2019 as the deputy chief human resources officer and assumed the position of interim chief human resources officer in Dec. 2022.
She has been actively engaged in key strategic initiatives and operational transformation efforts to accelerate growth and strengthen our values-based culture, both internally within HR and across the organization.
View bioBailey Sousa
Associate Vice-President Quality, Planning and Assessment
Bailey Sousa, MA(HEAL) PMP, is passionate about higher education as an administrator, change agent, and advocate for excellence and inclusion in academic work and workplaces. Previously director of operations at the Peter Lougheed Leadership College, University of Alberta, she was most recently on a secondment to the Government of Alberta’s Ministry of Advanced Education to set up the new Minister’s Advisory Council on Higher Education and Skills and the Premier’s Council on Skills and their Secretariats.
View bioLisa Watson
Dean, Faculty of Business
Dr. Lisa Watson (she/her) is dean and associate professor of marketing. She taught her first university course at the age of 25 at Carleton University before spending 5 years in Australia pursuing her doctorate.
View bioKristine Williamson
Vice-President, University Relations
Kristine Williamson joined Athabasca University in October 2018 as the vice-president, University Relations. A recognized leader in fundraising, communications, marketing, and alumni relations for more than 20 years, Kristine has an extensive background in building effective and productive relationships in the private, public, and not-for-profit sectors.
View bioShauna Zenteno
Dean, Faculty of Science and Technology
Dr. Shauna Zenteno is the dean, Faculty of Science and Technology, and an associate professor, Biology at Athabasca University. She is the former program director for the BSc Human Science program and the former chair, Centre for Science.
View bioUpdated May 24, 2023 by Digital & Web Operations (web_services@athabascau.ca)