by Lisa Caines & Owen Roberts,
University of Guelph

University of Guelph President Dr. Mordechai Rozanski extends a warm welcome to the 12th dean of the Ontario Agricultural College, Dr. Craig Pearson.

In the 1970s, Craig Pearson moved across the world from his native Australia, to earn a graduate degree from what he considered one of the planet’s top agricultural institutions – the Ontario Agricultural College at the University of Guelph. Now, some 30 years later, he’s back again…this time, as top dog.

Pearson, 55, was formally introduced in December to the university and agri-food community as the 12th dean of the 127-year-old institution, by university president Dr. Mordechai Rozanski. At the ceremony, Pearson pledged that the school would enthusiastically assume a leading role in the agri-food industry, through its commitment to teaching and research.

He says innovation, globalization and community linkages will drive the college’s agenda.
“Future generations – our children and their children – will judge the success of our generation according to how we meet the challenges of safe food and healthy regions,” he says.

According to Pearson, the farm community will see his commitment surface in ways that support each other. For example, he lists strong community linkages as one of his main priorities, while noting international development as another.

“The advantages Ontario derives from research which has strong international linkages will flow back in knowledge,” he says. “This will help drive innovation in the provincial economy, in rural communities and in regional development, where agriculture is the prime custodian.”

Pearson plans to involve the agricultural community in OAC’s voyage. At his welcoming ceremony, he announced plans to create an OAC advisory board.

“Innovation – a vital outcome from OAC’s activities – requires a real-world context and real-world partners,” he says.

To that end, members of the board, who will be announced shortly, will comprise the ‘best of the best’. They’ll be leaders who have contributed at regional, national and international levels, and Pearson says he’ll seek their guidance as he examines all aspects of OAC education and research.

“I’m reinforcing the need to refresh curricula periodically,” he says. “I think it should have a strong science and technology basis, while staying closely connected to the community’s needs and providing opportunities for the students to work with the practitioners.”

Pearson brings leadership, experience and an exceptional international presence to the dean’s position, having held several research, development and teaching positions in government and academia in countries such as Indonesia, Argentina, Thailand, Ethiopia and Australia. Most recently, he was chief scientist at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, in Canberra, Australia, while simultaneously serving as an adjunct professor at the Centre for Resource and Environmental Studies at the Australian National University. Prior to that, he was pro-vice-chancellor at the University of Queensland’s Gatton Campus, and executive dean of the Faculty of Natural Resources, Agriculture and Veterinary Science, where he had fiscal and academic leadership for a school of 2,800 students and 460 core staff. As an academic, he has authored or co-authored publications on topics such as crop productivity, grassland ecosystems and the ecology of tropical food crops.

Pearson believes the agricultural colleges must provide teaching and research so Canada can contribute enough safe, healthy food for an expanding global population. As well, he says, colleges should improve the social, environmental and economic well-being of rural and regional communities. Pearson believes the OAC’s reputation for excellence, and the connections with the three regional colleges of Alfred, Kemptville and Ridgetown, will help meet those challenges. He’s encouraging the regional campuses each to carve distinctive roles in research and innovation that address the agri-food industry’s and society’s priorities, building on Guelph’s leadership in plant and animal sciences, as well as their own community linkages.

“They’ll share aspirations for innovation and excellence,” he says, and ensure that the University of Guelph remains Canada’s leading agricultural research institution.

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