Academic Vice-President & Provost

Photo of Dr Amanda Cockshutt

Dr. Amanda Cockshutt has served as the Academic Vice President & Provost at St. Francis Xavier University since May 1, 2021. She came to StFX from Mount Allison University where she served as the Dean of Science and Graduate Studies. Dr. Cockshutt served in several leadership positions during her tenure at Mount Allison, including as Head of the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry. 

Dr. Cockshutt has been described by her colleagues as visionary, effective, results-oriented, an extremely hard worker, an unwavering voice of support for students and an engaging leader.   

Amanda is an educator who engages and inspires students. She is the recipient of both the J.WE. A. Crake Teaching Award in the Faculty of Science at Mount Allison and the Herbert & Leota Tucker teaching award, Mount Allison’s highest award of teaching excellence. Amanda is a scholar of biochemistry with a research focus on the molecular biology of marine picocyanobacteria. Her research program has attracted funding from sources including NSERC and the Canadian Foundation for Innovation.   

In 2004, Dr. Cockshutt started a federally incorporated biotech company, Environmental Proteomics NB Inc., and was its founding CEO and Chief Scientific Officer. Through her career path, Amanda maintained an active research program with numerous publications and citations. She has served as the Academic Editor for PLoS ONE since 2014, and on the Evaluation Group for the NSERC CREATE program and on the Fulbright Canada Scholars & Scholarships Adjudication Committee.  

Dr. Cockshutt earned a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Western Ontario (1991) and a Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Biochemistry from McGill (1987). She held post-doctoral research fellowships at Institut National de la Santé et Recherche Médicale in Paris (1991-1993) and at Umeå Universitet in Sweden (1993-1994).

About the Role

The Academic Vice-President and Provost is the chief academic officer of the University and the principal advisor to the President on all academic affairs, serving as highest ranking officer reporting to the President. The AVP promotes the academic mission of the University by championing excellence and innovation in teaching, scholarship, and service to the community, facilitated by effective strategic academic planning and budgeting. The AVP works closely with other Vice-Presidents to attract and retain excellent students, and to promote the premier student experience for which St. Francis Xavier University is known. 

The Academic Vice-President is responsible for academic standards and the recruitment, retention, and development of faculty. Other responsibilities include program development and assessment, implementation of academic policies and procedures, and oversight of academic personnel including faculty, academic support professionals, and administrative employees. 

At StFX, three hundred faculty members within the University’s four faculties and 30 departments and schools provide educational programs for over 4000 students. The Deans of the four Faculties – Arts, Business, Education and Science, the Associate Vice President Research and Graduate Studies, Registrar, University Librarian, and the Directors of Internationalization and Continuing Education report to the Academic Vice-President and Provost. 

Contact

Academic Vice-President & Provost
@email

808 Nicholson Tower
2329 Notre Dame Avenue
Antigonish NS B2G 2W5
Canada