KAMLOOPS – Thompson Rivers University is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Martin Whittles as the new interim Dean for the Williams Lake campus, responsible for academic programs and issues. He replaces Dr. John Belshaw, who leaves later this month for a new position as a Dean at North Island College in Courtenay, BC.

Dr. Whittles brings to his new role a background of diversity that is in many respects the essence of what Thompson Rivers University has become over the past 36 years. His first career was as a fully qualified (Red Seal) journeyman carpenter, followed by five years service with the RCMP.

Turning to academics, he then attended the University of Lethbridge, the London School of Economics and the Scott Polar Research Institute at the University of Cambridge, and later taught at Red Deer College and the University of Lethbridge before coming to Kamloops as an assistant professor of Anthropology in 1998.

His research work and areas of special interest are focused on aboriginal issues, including community and economic development and indigenous education, and during his doctoral research program he lived and worked for two-and-one half years in the farthest north community in the Northwest Territories.

Over the next several months, Dr. Whittles will work with faculty and staff in Williams Lake in planning for the opening of the new campus in that community, while the university proceeds with finalizing the requirements and launching the search process for a new senior leadership position at the Williams Lake campus.

Josh Keller – Director
Marketing & Communications
Thompson Rivers University