New Board of Governors Chair, Deputy Chair appointed

The SFU Board of Governors has appointed Paula Martin as Board Chair and Michael McDonald, KC, as Deputy Chair, effective June 30, 2024.

Paula Martin joined the Board in January 2020 and was elected Deputy Chair in February 2022. She will serve as Board Chair for a one year term, and has previously chaired the Board's Governance and Nominating Committee and the University Relations Committee.

As former Advisor to the CEO of Vancity, Martin directly supported Vancity’s President and CEO in building networks of engagement and worked with the Global Alliance for Banking on Values, as well as other national and international organizations in the values-based banking, sustainable business and co-operative sectors. In addition to her order-in-council appointment to the Board, Martin works in governance and business advisory roles focused on advancing organizational leadership for social and environmental benefit.

Michael McDonald, KC, joined the Board in January 2022 and has previously chaired the Audit and Risk Committee as well as being a member of the Finance and Administration Committee. He will serve as Deputy Chair for a one year term.

Throughout his career as a business lawyer, McDonald was a leader and trusted advisor in Indigenous business, Indigenous law and governance, and environmental law contexts. A member of the Peguis First Nation in Manitoba, McDonald’s involvement with the B.C. Law Society’s Truth and Reconciliation working group resulted in the creation and implementation of an Indigenous Reconciliation Action Plan and mandatory Indigenous intercultural competency training for all lawyers in British Columbia.

The Board of Governors also thanks outgoing Board Chair Angie Lamarsh for her service throughout the years. First appointed to the Board in July 2018, she became Chair in February 2022. During her time in the position, Lamarsh oversaw major initiatives including a comprehensive governance review and presidential reappointment process. Having completed both her undergraduate and graduate degrees at SFU, Lamarsh has been involved with the university in a number of ways and is the current Managing Director and Head of Sustainable Finance, Business Finance Services, with the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC).

SFU operates under a bicameral governance system with two governing bodies: Senate and the Board of Governors. The Board is responsible for the “business” of the university, including property, revenue and policies, while the Senate is responsible for the academic governance of the university.  Learn more about the role of the Board and its members here.