Trevor Young appointed U of T鈥檚 vice-president and provost
Trevor Young, dean of the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and an internationally recognized scholar on bipolar disorder and the molecular basis of mood disorders, has been appointed the 重口味SM鈥檚 new vice-president and provost.
, Young鈥檚 appointment is for a five-year term, effective Jan. 1, 2024 to Dec. 31, 2028.
Currently also serving as U of T鈥檚 , Young is a professor in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine鈥檚 departments of psychiatry, and pharmacology and toxicology, and a senior scientist at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.
He previously served as U of T鈥檚 acting provost from July to December 2021.
鈥淎s dean of the Temerty Faculty of Medicine, Professor Trevor Young has demonstrated exceptional leadership on many fronts, from launching transformational academic programs to developing important initiatives around equity, diversity and inclusion,鈥 said U of T President Meric Gertler. 鈥淗e also played a key role overseeing the university鈥檚 relationship with its health-care partners 鈥 and, as the university鈥檚 acting provost, helped lead the 重口味SM through a challenging period during the pandemic.
鈥淚 look forward to having Professor Young join the vice-presidential team and to continue working closely with him on advancing the university鈥檚 mission.鈥
Young, who will succeed current Vice-President and Provost , said his time as acting provost spurred his interest in taking on the role on a longer-term basis.
鈥淚t means a lot to me to be able to give back to the university, which has been like a second home for me in many ways,鈥 he said. 鈥淭he fact that I can contribute by making an impact as provost is really significant to me.鈥
Since being appointed dean at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine in January 2015, Young launched a new foundational curriculum for MD students, introduced several interdisciplinary education and research programs, advanced system-wide equity, diversity and inclusion initiatives with partner hospitals and other health sciences faculties, and led the renewal of medical sciences laboratory space.
He also advanced the Temerty Faculty of Medicine鈥檚 position as the lead contributor to Ontario鈥檚 regulated health professional workforce and made significant progress in areas of equity, diversity and inclusion through his support of curricular innovation and new initiatives such as the and the .
As vice-provost, Young has overseen the university鈥檚 relationships across the , a thriving research enterprise comprised of nine fully affiliated teaching hospitals and four associate member hospitals.
鈥淭emerty is a big, multi-departmental faculty, which has helped prepare me to take on a leadership role of this scale and complexity,鈥 Young said. 鈥淒uring my time as dean, I learned how important it is to make sure that you include a lot of voices and listen closely to seek out opportunities for solutions.鈥
The recipient of numerous awards, Young has led several large clinical programs, including the mood disorders program at Hamilton Psychiatric Hospital, which received the American Psychiatric Services Gold Achievement Award. In 2009, he was made a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.
Young received his MD from the University of Manitoba and his PhD at the at U of T, where he completed his residency training. He was a research fellow at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and has been a professor of psychiatry and behavioural neurosciences at McMaster University; professor and head of the department of psychiatry at the University of British Columbia; and professor and chair of U of T's department of psychiatry.
鈥淚've had the experience of being a U of T student, a faculty member and in leadership,鈥 Young said. 鈥淚've had a chance to see lots of different sides of the university and hear perspectives from the community 鈥 and that will serve me well for this role as provost, which has oversight over so many areas.鈥
In January, that Regehr, a professor and former dean of the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, planned to step down as vice-president and provost at the end of the year. First appointed to the role in 2013, her many accomplishments include improving U of T鈥檚 equity and outreach programs, supporting faculty diversity, excellence and leadership, securing enhanced supports for graduate students and advancing student mental health.
鈥淚 want to thank Professor Regehr for her exceptional leadership and dedication to student success and academic excellence,鈥 President Gertler said. 鈥淗er achievements in this integral role will continue to resonate at the university for many years to come.鈥
As provost, Young said he plans to build on Regehr鈥檚 work while drawing on his background in mental health and his role as chair of the .
鈥淚 really want to continue to work on student mental health and accessibility 鈥 I think we鈥檝e done a remarkable job of improving that, but I think we have to do even more,鈥 he said.
鈥淚 also want to look at how we approach AI in all the work we do in teaching and research, especially given the fact that we鈥檝e had such a remarkable impact on the field coming from and others here. And finally, I鈥檇 like to look at how the three campuses can work even better together.鈥