Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) is pleased to announce the reappointment of Dr. George Melville as university chancellor.
A friend of the university for more than 25 years, Melville has been re-appointed by the KPU board of governors for another three-year term beginning Oct. 5, 2017.
Melville’s connection to KPU goes back decades and includes roles as the parent of a KPU student, a member of the university’s board of governors, and the recipient of an honorary degree.
“I’m excited about continuing my deep connection to KPU as chancellor, and I look forward to representing our students, faculty, staff and community supporters,” said Melville.
Melville believes that providing a meaningful and relevant education to anyone with the desire and the passion to learn is essential to all our communities, which aligns with KPU’s mission as an open access university offering all learners the opportunity to achieve success.
A long-time Lower Mainland resident, Melville was selected as Chancellor because of his professional and philanthropic achievements, commitment to community and valuable service to KPU.
Since being appointed chancellor in October 2014, Melville has proven himself to be a tireless and dedicated ambassador of KPU.
In 2012, Melville and his wife Sylvia donated $500,000—the single largest donation to KPU’s Richmond campus at the time—to create the Melville Centre for Dialogue. The facility, fitted with the latest technology, has provided student, research and community groups the space to discuss, debate and collaborate on important issues.
“We are proud to have Dr. Melville as our chancellor,” said KPU president and vice-chancellor Dr. Alan Davis. “He has a generous and unwavering spirit, and he shares our belief that everyone should have access to quality public education. It’s a belief that he turns into action.”
Melville was a member of KPU’s board of governors for six years, from 2003 to 2009, during which time he held various leadership roles. As chairperson of the audit committee, he helped guide KPU during its transition from a community college into a university—a designation that has given KPU students access to a broad range of programs and university degrees, has increased research opportunities and has given students greater access to graduate programs.
Melville is founding chairman/owner of Boston Pizza International Inc. Together with his business partner Jim Treliving, Melville set the corporate strategy for Boston Pizza and for several other businesses collectively known as the T&M Group of Companies, which brings in sales of over $1 billion per year.
Melville and Treliving founded the Boston Pizza Foundation Future Prospects (originally the Boston Pizza Foundation) in 1990, which has since raised and donated over $18 million to Canadian charities, including the Big Brothers and Big Sisters, Kids Help Phone, the Rick Hansen Foundation and other programs that help to engage youth in communities across Canada.
Melville’s reappointment is from Oct. 5, 2017 to Oct. 4, 2020.
Story by Corry Anderson-Fennell
For more KPU news:
@KPUmedia
kpu.ca/newsroom
Flickr
RSS