Capilano University announces Tracy Penny Light as Interim Vice-President, Academic & Provost

Release date: August 6, 2024

Tag(s): News & Announcements

News release: CapU announces Tracy Penny Light as Interim VP Academic & Provost (PDF)

NORTH VANCOUVER B.C. August 6, 2024 – Capilano University (CapU) is pleased to announce that Tracy Penny Light, PhD, has been appointed interim vice-president, academic & provost, effective August 5, 2024.

Penny Light will be the executive academic leader and provides vision in the development and promotion of an academic environment consistent with the values and purpose of CapU considering future academic trends. She will be responsible for the overall leadership, administration, strategic planning and priorities, development, implementation, evaluation and effectiveness of a broad range of academic, managerial, administrative and operational activities related to the University’s academic plan and an executive collaborator with the University’s strategic plan.

Since joining CapU in February 2023 as dean, Faculty of Arts & Sciences, Penny Light has provided exceptional academic leadership and strategic direction, seeing continued growth through partnerships and collaborations and expanded experiential learning opportunities. Her tenure as dean is highlighted by bringing the Bachelor of Arts with a Major in Interdisciplinary Studies and Associate of Arts degrees to CapU Squamish as it starts programming this fall. 

“Combined with her passion to empower learners to ask critical questions and use research from multiple disciplines to understand the world, I am confident Tracy will work to provide a distinct university experience that supports a healthier and happier campus community for students,” said Paul Dangerfield, president of CapU.

Before arriving at CapU, Penny Light worked at St. George’s University, Grenada, West Indies, where she served as both a professor and director of the Leadership and Excellence in Academic Development division in the Department of Educational Services. Prior to that role, she served as a professor of history and the executive director of the Centre for Student Engagement and Learning Innovation at Thompson Rivers University, and associate professor at the University of Waterloo where she taught in both the sexuality, marriage and family studies and history departments and served as the director of women’s studies.  

With a PhD in history from the University of Waterloo and a Master of Arts in history from Laurentian University, her academic research has followed an interdisciplinary studies approach and focused on the social history of medicine and fostering deep learning in higher education. Penny Light has explored medical discourse on gender and sexuality in Canada and the United States in the 19th and 20th centuries, and the ways that portfolio practices and pedagogies can deepen student and faculty learning.

Penny Light also serves as president of the Association for Authentic, Experiential, and Evidence-Based Learning (AAEEBL), the international ePortfolio community of practice.

More information

• Capilano University's Executive Leadership team
• The University’s Envisioning 2030 strategic plan
• The University's Illuminating 2030 academic plan

Submitted by: Communications