Benoit-Antoine Bacon is a Canadian

neuropsychologist Neuropsychology is a branch of psychology concerned with how a person's cognition and behavior are related to the brain and the rest of the nervous system. Professionals in this branch of psychology focus on how injuries or illnesses of the brai ...

who has been serving as the 17th president of the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

since November 2023. He previously served as the 15th president of

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public university, public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to se ...

Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

, from 2018 to 2023.

Early life and education

Born in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, he graduated from

Concordia University Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

in Montreal, Quebec with a

B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...

(Honours) degree in

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...

in 1995. He received his Ph.D. in

neuropsychology Neuropsychology is a branch of psychology concerned with how a person's cognition and behavior are related to the brain and the rest of the nervous system. Professionals in this branch of psychology focus on how injuries or illnesses of the brai ...

from the

Université de Montréal The Université de Montréal (; UdeM; ) is a French-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university's main campus is located in the Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce on M ...

in Montreal, Quebec in 1999, and completed a

post-doctoral fellowship A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). Postdocs most commonly, but not always, have a temporary academ ...

at the

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

Career

His first academic appointment was in the Department of Psychology at

Bishop's University Bishop's University () is a small English-language Liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Lennoxville, a borough of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. The founder of the institution was the Anglican Diocese of Quebec, Anglican Bishop of Quebec ...

Sherbrooke, Quebec Sherbrooke ( , ) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional count ...

. Following serious labour strife at Bishop’s, he was asked to serve as Chief Negotiator for the union and led the settlement of several collective agreements. He later served as Chair of Psychology, Dean of Arts and Science, and Associate VP Research at the institution. In 2013, he was hired as Provost and Vice-President (Academic Affairs) at his alma mater

. In 2016, he moved to Ontario to serve as Provost and Vice-President (Academic) at Queen's University. On May 1, 2018 he was announced as the 15th President of

in Ottawa, succeeding interim President Alastair Summerlee. He began his mandate on July 1, 2018, at the same time as Carleton Board Chair

Nik Nanos Nikita James "Nik" Nanos (born 1964) is a Canadian public opinion pollster, entrepreneur, public speaker, author, and expert in political, business and social trends. Early life and education The son of Greek immigrants, he grew up in Trent ...

. Together they announced Yaprak Baltacioğlu as the 12th Chancellor of the institution in December 2018. On July 20, 2023, Dr. Bacon was announced as the 17th President and Vice-Chancellor of the

, with his term to begin on November 1, 2023. Bacon's term as President and Vice-Chancellor of Carleton University ended on August 31, 2023. He was succeeded by Jerry Tomberlin as interim President and Vice-Chancellor.

Personal life

To contribute to breaking down the stigma around mental health and substance use, Bacon has shared his difficult upbringing in a dysfunctional family and subsequent challenges in early adulthood

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bacon, Benoit-Antoine Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Place of birth missing (living people) Neuropsychologists 21st-century Canadian psychologists Presidents of Carleton University Scientists from Montreal Concordia University alumni Université de Montréal alumni Academic staff of Bishop's University Presidents of the University of British Columbia