Dr. Ulrich Scheck, Provost and Vice-President Academic

Dr. Ulrich Scheck will be Thompson Rivers University’s new Provost and Vice-President Academic, TRU President and Vice-Chancellor, Dr. Roger Barnsley, announced Friday.

“Dr. Scheck has served Thompson Rivers University well as Dean of Arts and more recently Interim Provost,” said Barnsley. “We are extremely pleased that he will lead TRU’s academic programs and continue to bring his vision to our campuses.”

Dr. Scheck was originally appointed as TRU’s Dean of Arts in 2005 and was appointed Associate Vice-Provost in 2007.

Prior to coming to TRU, Scheck was the Dean of Graduate Studies and Research at Queen’s University in Ontario and had also held the positions of Professor and Queen’s National Scholar. He also served as the Director of International Programs for the Faculty of Arts and Science at Queen’s University.

“My vision for TRU has always been to move us towards becoming a distinct and open institution on the foundation of TRU’s long-standing tradition of welcoming a very diverse group of students,” said Dr. Scheck. “It is a truly exciting prospect to be part of the continued emergence of a new university. TRU has the potential to take on a leadership role in combining academic excellence with educational choice.”

Scheck envisions adding smart delivery, more dual and joint degrees and accelerated outcomes to the options for learners. He also anticipates that TRU will build innovative undergraduate and graduate programs utilizing the opportunities afforded by TRU’s new Faculty of Law and will leverage the growing interest of baby boomers to return to university and complete or add to academic credentials.

Dr. Barnsley, who led the national search for the new Provost, said the search committee realized that the best candidate of the 30 applicants was Scheck who has been serving as Interim Provost since June of 2009 when Dr. Mark Evered was appointed President of the University of the Fraser Valley.