In the Community

Les Dickason wears a Nanaimo Museum shirt and leans on a car

Supporting the next generation of educators

February 26, 2024

Legacy donor Les Dickason shares his story When the opportunity to help set up a teacher education program at VIU (then Malaspina College) presented itself, Les Dickason left his job with the school district to be part of it. After his retirement in 1997, he established a bursary through the VIU Foundation. The fund has grown and now supports two students going into their second year of the... Read more


Season's greetings from the Senior Management Team

December 20, 2023

Members of the Senior Management Team share messages of gratitude and well wishes for the year to come with all VIU employees.   Read more


Gillian Robinson

Five questions with Gillian Robinson, Director, Strategic Communications

December 19, 2023

Gillian Robinson joined VIU in April 2022 as our Director of Strategic Communications. She oversees internal and external communications and institutional events for the university. Prior to VIU, Gillian was the Manager of Communications at the Resort Municipality of Whistler. She has worked in several corporate communications roles, from BC Hydro to Metrolinx, Ontario’s transportation agency but... Read more


Dr Anna Atkinson

Excellence in teaching with Dr. Anna Atkinson

December 19, 2023

Dr. Anna Atkinson believes that students learn best when they feel respected and safe.  Throughout her career, she has demonstrated a continuous and deep desire for all students to thrive, see themselves in the coursework, and push themselves to grapple with challenging concepts. Her passion and proven ability to lead her students to success was recently recognized with the West Coast Teaching... Read more


Brenda McKay Dr. Deborah Saucier Dr. Mike Quinn

The Senate's Outstanding Service Award - Brenda McKay

December 19, 2023

Known to almost everyone at VIU, Brenda McKay has served the institution for more than 28 years. Her entire tenure has been in Human Resources, which makes it safe to say that few know more about most employees than her. Since 2017, she has been the Director of Human Resources. Her hard work and loyalty were recently recognized at the 2023 President’s and Provost’s Awards with a rarely given... Read more


Dana McFarland

5 Questions with Dana McFarland

December 19, 2023

Dana McFarland has devoted her career to preserving and making a wide range of information more accessible while ensuring respect for cultural property is maintained. Through her current role as Librarian and Coordinator, eResources and Scholarly Communication at VIU, some of her best days are when she gets to help people “share outcomes of their scholarship, teaching or creative work... Read more


Three women stand with red balloons in support of Giving Tuesday

Fall 2023 semester photo album

December 19, 2023

It was a busy semester with a wide array of events and activities for students and employees alike. People came out to have fun, show support, and make their voices heard. Check out just a sample of events below.  Read more


Eliza Gardiner holds a bouquet of red roses and stands next to Joy Gugeler and a student during the 2022 vigil.

National Day of Remembrance vigil will “reaffirm commitment to fight against hatred and misogyny”

November 24, 2023

VIU community members unite to host events during the 16 Days of Activism campaign.  The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign asks people to take action to end violence against women, girls and 2SLGBTQI+ individuals. This year several organizations at Vancouver Island University (VIU) have come together in support of the movement. VIU’s Faculty Association Women’s &... Read more


VIU fun for Halloween 2023

October 30, 2023

VIU employees shared their favourite Halloween photos with us. Check out how our colleagues celebrated in the album below. Be sure to click on the images to see the entirety of each. Read more


Mike Quinn portrait photo

Dr. Michael Quinn: First year reflections

June 7, 2023

Dr. Michael Quinn, VIU’s Provost and Vice-President, Academic is completing his first year so we asked him to share his thoughts, learnings and insights at this important time for VIU. What were your first impressions of VIU? I can’t believe how fast a year has gone by! What really impresses me about VIU is the people. The team I work with on a daily basis is outstanding. It was important to me... Read more