UBC is pleased to announce that Dr. Pamela Ratner has been appointed Vice-Provost and AVP, Enrolment and Academic Facilities for a five-year term commencing July 1, 2016. On the recommendation of Interim President Martha Piper, the Board of Governors approved her appointment at its meeting on June 14.
Dr. Ratner joined UBC in 1995 as a postdoctoral fellow with the Institute of Health Promotion Research. Subsequently, she was appointed as assistant professor in the School of Nursing. She was promoted to the rank of professor in 2004. Her academic contributions have been recognized with several awards, including the prestigious Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences, and Senior Scholar Award from the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research. Her research, based in socio-behavioural epidemiology and psychometrics, focused on heart disease risk reduction, particularly health behaviour. She has examined the role of gender and ethnicity in influencing those behaviours.
After several years as a researcher in the School of Nursing, Dr. Ratner held leadership positions at UBC in Nursing where she served on the School’s leadership team (2004-2006), then as the coordinator and graduate advisor for the doctoral program (2004-2007), and as Associate Director Systems and Strategic Development (2011-2012). In 2004, she was elected to the Board of Directors of the Registered Nurses Association of British Columbia (now the College of Registered Nurses of BC) and remained on the Board until 2012, having been appointed by the Government and then acclaimed President-elect and Chair of the Board. In that role, she led strategic planning exercises, chaired the finance and audit committee, and the search for a new CEO and registrar. Her commitment to academic leadership led her to serve on several advisory boards and national organizations, such as the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, the Canadian Nurses Association, and the CIHR Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health.
In 2013, Dr. Ratner was seconded to serve as interim Head in the Department of Educational Studies in the Faculty of Education and later accepted a position as Senior Associate Dean Administration and Innovation in that Faculty. In 2014, her professorial appointment was formally transferred from the School of Nursing to the Faculty of Education. As Senior Associate Dean, she was positioned to lead efforts related to budget and financial planning, faculty renewal, promotion and tenure, performance management and mentorship, and infrastructure support for departments. After 10 months in that role, Dr. Ratner was invited to serve the university in a pro tem capacity as Vice-Provost and AVP Enrolment and Academic Facilities.
In her short time as the interim Vice-Provost, she has used her creative analytical and problem-solving skills to enhance the portfolio. Dr. Ratner is an effective communicator who possesses strong leadership abilities, and a deep commitment to the stewardship of public resources. Her combined administrative experience, commitment to excellence in research, learning and service, and strong leadership skills have positioned her to provide strategic and operational leadership for UBC’s enrolment management, academic space and facilities planning, and the capital projects and budgeting process.
UBC would like to thank the members of the President’s Advisory Committee for their time and commitment, and for their deliberations that culminated in the unanimous recommendation to the President on this appointment.