St. Jerome’s University is committed to a bicameral governance structure. Senate Council is composed of members of the University administration, faculty members, contract academic staff, student representatives, and a representative from the University of Waterloo. It is the governing body responsible for academic policy development and programs.
Senate Council recommends to the University of Waterloo Senate for academic matters pertaining to UWaterloo degrees, or to the St. Jerome’s University Board of Governors for academic matters pertaining to St. Jerome’s University degrees.
St. Jerome's University Senate Council Terms of Reference.
Members
2026 - 2027 Membership
All full-time members of the faculty holding academic rank
| Name | Department |
|---|---|
| Acton, Carol | English |
| Bednarski, Steven | History / Medieval Studies |
| Bonner, Kieran | Sociology and Legal Studies |
| Brabazon, Honor | Sociology and Legal Studies |
| Brophy, Susan | Sociology and Legal Studies |
| Burris, Chris | Psychology |
| Cauchi-Santoro, Roberta | Italian and French Studies |
| Connolly, Tristanne | English |
| Deman, Andrew | English |
| De Santis, Carm | Sexualities, Relationships, and Families |
| Desroches, Fred | Sociology and Legal Studies |
| Drysdale, Maureen | Psychology |
| Gregoire, Stephanie | Philosophy |
| Klassen, Norm | English |
| Kline, Scott |
Religious Studies
|
| Kolentsis, Alysia | English |
| Leroux-Demir, Carlie | Sociology and Legal Studies |
| McArthur, Jennifer | Psychology |
| Nicholas, Jane | History |
| Rempel, John | Psychology |
| Rodrigue, Carl | Sexualities, Relationships, and Families |
| Rye, BJ | Psychology |
| Sangalli, Yuri | Italian and French Studies |
| Seljak, David | Religious Studies |
| Serafini, Toni | Sexualities, Relationships, and Families |
| Spielmacher, Mark | English |
| Stumpf, Andrew | Philosophy / Religious Studies |
| Sutherland, Siobhan | Psychology |
| Tataryn, Anastasia | Sociology and Legal Studies |
| Terzian, Sylvia | English |
| Touhey, Ryan | History |
| Tremblay, Bruno | Philosophy |
| Vanin, Cristina | Religious Studies |
| Whitehead, Denise | Sexualities, Relationships, and Families / Sociology and Legal Studies |
| Williams, David | English |
| Wriglesworth, Chad | English |
| Zunic, Nikolaj | Philosophy |
Ex-officio Members
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Meehan, Peter | President and Vice Chancellor - Chair |
| MacGregor, Carol Ann | Vice President Academic and Dean - Vice Chair |
| Austen, Veronica | Associate Dean |
| Atkin, Michelle | Associate Librarian |
| Chaffe, Melissa | Director, Student Affairs (non-voting) |
| Dattani, Armaan | Manager, Outreach and Recruitment (non-voting) |
| Radcliffe, Karen | Director, Finance and Accounting (non-voting) |
| Hermiz, Jasmine | One Executive Officer of the Students’ Union appointed by the Students' Union Executive |
| Vacant | University of Waterloo Faculty Member (non-voting) |
Elected Members
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
|
TBA
|
Contract Academic Staff member elected by/for the Contract Academic Staff |
| Vacant | Student member elected by/for students registered at St. Jerome's University |
Recording Secretary
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Schwendinger, Christine | Academic Operations Manager |
Committees
Senate Council Committees
The St. Jerome's University Senate Council Standing Committees for 2026-2027 are as follows:
Governance Committee
-
Alysia Kolentsis (to August 31, 2029)
-
Carlie Leroux-Demir (to August 31, 2028)
-
Carol Ann MacGregor (Vice President Academic and Dean; ex officio)
-
Peter Meehan (President and Vice Chancellor; ex officio)
-
Carl Rodrigue (to August 31, 2027; on sabbatical July 1 to December 31, 2026)
-
Siobhan Sutherland (July 1 to December 31, 2026)
Academic Committee
-
Carol Ann MacGregor, Chair (Vice President Academic and Dean; ex officio)
-
Carol Acton (Director, Health Humanities; ex officio)
-
John Arnou (Student Advisor; ex officio; non-voting)
-
Michelle Atkin (Associate Librarian; ex officio)
-
Veronica Austen (Associate Dean; ex officio)
-
Steven Bednarski (Co-Director, Medieval Studies; ex officio)
-
Chris Burris (Acting Chair, Psychology; ex officio; to December 31, 2026)
-
Roberta Cauchi-Santoro (Chair, Italian and French Studies; ex officio)
-
Melissa Chaffe (Director, Student Affairs; ex officio; non-voting)
-
Armaan Dattani (Manager of Outreach and Recruitment; ex officio; non-voting)
-
Jasmine Hermiz (Student Representative; ex officio; non-voting)
-
Scott Kline (Acting Director, Master of Catholic Thought; ex officio; to December 31, 2026)
-
David Seljak (Acting Chair, Religious Studies; ex officio; to December 31, 2026)
-
Toni Serafini (Chair, Sexualities, Relationships, and Families; ex officio)
-
Anastasia Tataryn (Chair, Sociology and Legal Studies; ex officio)
-
Ryan Touhey (Chair, History; ex officio)
-
David Williams (Chair, English; ex officio)
-
Nikolaj Zunic (Chair, Philosophy; ex officio)
-
TBA (2nd Student Representative; ex officio; non-voting)
Research Officer
-
David Williams (to August 31, 2027)
Committee on Research and Scholarship
-
David Williams, Chair (Research Officer; ex officio)
-
Carol Ann MacGregor (Vice President Academic and Dean; ex officio)
-
Maureen Drysdale (to August 31, 2028)
-
Siobhan Sutherland (to August 31, 2027)
-
Sylvia Terzian (to August 31, 2028)
Library Advisory Committee
-
Michelle Atkin, Chair (Associate Librarian; ex officio)
-
Carol Acton (to August 31, 2027)
-
Sarah Brown (University of Waterloo Librarian)
-
Stephanie Gregoire (to August 31, 2028)
-
Laureen Harder-Gissing (Conrad Grebel University College Librarian)
Renewal, Tenure, and Promotions Committee
-
Carol Ann MacGregor, Chair (Vice President Academic and Dean; ex officio)
-
Steven Bednarski (to June 30, 2029)
-
David Seljak (to June 30, 2027)
-
Bruno Tremblay (to June 30, 2028)
-
Appointed member from the corresponding University of Waterloo department
-
Alternate: Nikolaj Zunic (to December 31, 2026)
Meetings, Agendas and Minutes
2026-2027 Senate Council Meetings
Fridays, 10:00 a.m - 12:00 p.m.
Meetings will be held in person
| Meeting Date | Meeting Agenda | Approved Meeting Minutes |
|---|---|---|
| October 2, 2026 | ||
| November 6, 2026 | ||
| December 4, 2026 | ||
| February 5, 2027 | ||
| March 12, 2027 | ||
| April 16, 2027 | ||
| May 14, 2027 | ||
| June 18, 2027 |
2025-2026 Senate Council Meetings
Fridays, 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Meetings will be held in person.
| Meeting Date | Meeting Agenda | Approved Meeting Minutes |
|---|---|---|
| September 26, 2025 | September 26, 2025 | September 26, 2025 |
| October 24, 2025 | October 24, 2025 | October 24, 2025 |
| November 28, 2025 | Cancelled | Cancelled |
| January 23, 2026 | January 23, 2026 | January 23, 2026 |
| February 27, 2026 | February 27, 2026 | February 27, 2026 |
| March 27, 2026 | March 27, 2026 | March 27, 2026 |
| April 24, 2026 | April 24, 2026 | April 24, 2026 |
| May 22, 2026 | May 22, 2026 | |
| June 19, 2026 | Cancelled | Cancelled |