Last month, Cen Huang informed us of her decision to end her tenure as the U of A’s vice-provost and associate vice-president (International) at the end of June 2024. We are grateful to Cen for her tremendous contributions and dedication for the past 14 years to advancing internationalization efforts and the mission of the University of Alberta.
Since joining the University of Alberta in 2009, Cen has held several important leadership positions, including interim vice-provost and associate vice-president (International), executive director (International Partnerships) and associate vice-president (International Advancement), and executive director of International Relations and Recruitment and assistant vice-president (International). She was also an adjunct professor in the Faculty of Education.
As a respected leader and innovator in international education in Canada and globally, Cen consistently employs a collaborative approach to solving complex challenges with a focus on relationship-building outcomes. At the U of A, she has successfully led many international initiatives, including establishing strategic and meaningful partnerships, significantly enhancing international student enrollment and mobility, bringing leadership to international capacity-building projects, and successfully implementing the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings project. She has spearheaded and consolidated institutional efforts in relationship building with China and India, resulting in numerous successful collaborations.
Furthermore, Cen led the establishment of the Canada Learning Initiative in China (CLIC), a program implemented through a bi-national university consortium for Canadian students to study in China, and the Global Academic Leadership Development (GALD) program, which has provided training to more than 900 university administrators from over 200 international universities. During her tenure, international student enrolment has more than doubled between 2009 and 2022.
We are grateful to Cen for her many contributions to the University of Alberta community and her ongoing dedication to her portfolio. In the coming months, Cen will continue to lead the internationalization portfolio and focus on developing the new International Strategic Plan, which will align with and support Shape: A Strategic Plan of Impact. She will then take an administrative leave for a year before retiring in July 2025.
A search committee will be established to assist in finding a suitable candidate for the role.
Verna Yiu
Interim Provost and Vice-President (Academic)
Melissa Padfield
Deputy Provost (Students and Enrolment)
Kathryn Todd
Deputy Provost (Academic)