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I am pleased to announce that the Office of Advancement now has a vision statement. This completes the work of many months and, together, our new vision statement, our mission, and the values we have determined best epitomize our work will guide us in our ongoing efforts to advance Queen’s.

Two weeks ago, in ALTogether Now, Karen proposed a draft new vision statement and asked for feedback. We would like to thank everyone who participated in the survey; your thoughtful comments were very helpful as we refined the statement to create a vision that is concise and easy to remember.

The draft vision Karen presented was this: Our vision is to inspire unparalleled support from alumni, donors, and volunteers through industry-leading advancement practices.

A number of staff commented on the wording and the length of this statement, suggesting changes. We considered all the feedback and settled on this statement, which we feel captures the essence of the original statement and your feedback in a memorable way: We will inspire exceptional support through exceptional performance.

So, together, our mission, vision and values are these:

Misson –  To foster relationships that advance Queen’s and contribute to a better world.

Vision – We will inspire exceptional support through exceptional performance.

Values – Accountability, Collaboration, Inclusion, Integrity, Service.

On behalf of ALT, I want to thank all of you who participated in this important work, and we look forward to living our mission, vision and values with you going forward.

Values for an exceptional workplace

Over the past few weeks, ALT has been presenting the value statements that we all chose together to help guide us as we try to live our values. These are aspirational and serve as reminders about what we, collectively, have chosen to stand for. Today’s value statements are the ones Advancement staff picked for integrity:

• I don’t judge others when they ask for help or ask for what they need.
• I choose courage over comfort by facing difficult tasks and conversations rather than avoiding them.
• I always give others the chance to explain themselves, and move forward considering those other points of view.
• I choose to do the right thing, even when it’s hard.
• I lead by example.

Thanks from the Chancellor for exceptional service

Below is the statement Chancellor Jim Leech made at his final Board of Trustee’s meeting just over a week ago:

By Chancellor Jim Leech

I want to call out a number of people without whom it would have been impossible to serve the university for the past seven years. You likely know those at the tip of the iceberg, but there are many others for whom I represent a part of their responsibilities.

Secretariate: Chelsea Cusack, Terri Flindall; Karen Logan; Kathleen Julie- Michel; Chelsea Sissons – and of course Rebecca and Lon

Convocations: As you know, this is a big part of the job. During my time, over 43,000 students have graduated, and I have shaken approximately 27,000 hands.

The Convocation support team is extensive, but I want to recognize four who have been a huge support: Toni Easter and Suzanne Arnell. Toni, in particular, does it all from arranging VIP seating to schlepping my Convocation garb from event to event. Also, Bill Deadman who is responsible for audio at our two venues and “wires me up” for each ceremony. In the 174 Convocations over which I presided, there has never been a glitch. And finally, Bernard Clark, our photographer. When I am on stage, I can see him with a lens always trained on me – reminds me that it is always “show time.”

Benidickson House:  – Sandra Sobers, our housekeeper, and Laura and Chef Tony who kept me well fed. I drove them nuts when I switched to vegan.

On Campus Coordinator, Keith Gawronski-McNinch,– oversees Benidickson House bookings, meals, newspapers, special events, Hon Doc photos and dinners, and ensuring the Chancellor’s standard flies from Grant Hall when I am on campus.  I think that acts as an early warning system for Principal!

Administration: Peggy Shanks (and her predecessors, Patty McHenry and Nicole Remillard.) They organize my Queen’s calendar and attendance at all events on campus and at alumni branches, manage my Queen’s email account, and ensure I have all materials for Board meetings and Convocations. I am not sure that they knew what they were signing up for. Remember the time, late at night, downloading from your home a mega presentation I had forgotten in Toronto so that I could give a lecture the next morning -- or rescuing and couriering my favourite pen that I had left at Benidickson House?

Students: Four rectors (Mike, Cam, Alexandra, and Sam) – and seven AMS and GSPS presidents – I have kept in touch with many after their graduation and have enjoyed following their careers. I wish Sam all the best with his recovery.

Administration – All the deans and vice principals:  I think there is only one dean who was in place when I arrived – Rebecca Luce-Kapler and Kim Woodhouse. A special call out to Kanonhsyonne Jan Hill, who sought me out on my first day on campus and invited to me for breakfast at Four Directions, which became one of my favourite venues to visit. And I will miss my dinners and basketball games with Barbara Crow.

Principals – both Daniel and Patrick: Very different, but “the right person for their times” – two great relationships in my life.

Board:  During my seven years there have been over 55 different board members – that is a whole bunch of new friends in a short period! I think there are only four who predated me: Dan, Bob, Kelley, and of course Mary, who is one of three board chairs with whom I have had the privilege of rooming with at Benidickson House (Barb, Don and Mary).

University Council: It has been fun to watch the Council find its raison d’etre over the past seven years. This revitalized critical mass of committed alumni will have a significant impact as Queen’s ambassadors and advocates. Thanks to Terri Flindall for creating the communications vehicle that will keep University Council members relevant.

To My Successor, Justice Murray Sinclair: I could not be more excited about his appointment. He will be different from me, but that is good. I hope all communities at Queen’s will afford him the same support I received. I, in turn, will give him my full support including returning this fall (hopefully) as Chancellor Emeritus to help clear the backlog of convocations. As a start, I told him that, after his orientation session with Lon, I will meet with him to tell him how things really work.

When Barb Palk and Daniel Woolf approached me about becoming Chancellor seven years ago, it was in the middle of our major fundraising campaign, so I thought they were coming to ask for a donation. But I was wrong – they were asking for mush more.  

As they were pitching the idea, I was brought back to a discussion I had with my father in 1966. I was in third year at RMC. He had just retired as a senior military officer and was considering three job opportunities: Ambassador to Belgium, Ombudsperson for Alberta, and Registrar at Queen’s. He told me that he was leaning towards Queen’s. With all the wisdom of an 18-year-old, I said, “you must be kidding – the other two are meaningful, they have gravitas – Registrar, Really!” He responded: “I will be surrounded by the energy of young people, which will keep me young”. I just shook my head in disbelief.

Somehow, 45 years later, those works resonated with me!

After I was sworn in, the AMS President at the time asked me how I would measure success of my chancellorship. I said that I wanted to connect with students. She asked what the KPI would be. I was a little taken aback, but said if 40% of the students knew my name before they crossed the stage, I would feel a success. Unfortunately, COVID may have prevented me from achieving that goal, but we will never know as she forgot to set up exit interviews.

When I am in the Boardroom, I often gaze at the portraits of my 13 predecessors –  a very impressive bunch, which explains the success of the past 180 years. When I squint and see Chancellor Sinclair’s portrait in the starting position for the next 180 years, I know that Queen’s is off to a great start.

Let's try this together

This spring as we looked ahead to Homecoming 2021, we knew that we had to explore an innovative online events platform. We were looking for strong networking capabilities and engagement features and reliable vendor support. We wanted to ensure we could secure the platform as soon as possible so we could become familiar with its features before Homecoming. Fast forward a couple of months, lots of demos and consultations, and we have selected Hopin to deliver our virtual events for 2021.

We need your help to hone our skills with Hopin and understand its features. We will be using the Hopin platform and the Encompass Event Registration System for Advancement Enhancement Day. This will give the Communication and Events Team an opportunity to run a complex event with various different offerings, and all of Advancement staff a chance to engage with the platform and provide our team with candid user experience feedback before Homecoming 2021. Over the summer we will be in touch with training opportunities to ensure we are all comfortable with the platform well in advance of Homecoming 2021. Thanks in advance for your help!

Exceptional work awarded Prix d'excellence prizes

Our Canadian professional association, the Canadian Council for the Advancement of Education (CCAE) handed out its annual awards this week. Last year Queen’s set a record with six awards. This year I’m proud to announce that we beat that record, taking home four bronze awards and three silvers for a total of seven awards.

This year’s winners:

• Bronze, Best Alumni Event, SmithConnect Live Goes Virtual
• Bronze, Best Volunteer Initiative, Arts & Science Student Outreach Initiative
• Bronze, Best Report to Donors, 2020 Fund Reporting/Endowment Report
• Bronze, Best Fundraising Materials: Isabel Bader Art Conservation Chair Proposal
• Silver, Best Donor Relations Initiative, Mitchell Hall Anniversary Videos
• Silver, Best Advancement Services Initiative: Briefcase Report Initiative
• Silver, Best Feature Writing – English: This is what nurses do

Congratulations to everyone who contributed to these projects! Next up are the CASE Circle of Excellence Awards on June 9. We look forward to sharing more good news with you then.

Jobs with Advancement

We need your recruitment help. Know great talent that would be a good addition to our team? If so, please promote the vacancies below with your networks and let’s find some amazing new team members.

Applications (including a cover letter and résumé) must be submitted through CareerQ. For additional information on this posting, please reach out to either Carla or the hiring manager for the position you are interested in.

Available Position: