GRAND WALKS Episode 2: Hitting the Trails with Western President Alan Shepard

Daniel Bennett

[ethereal background music]

Hi, I'm Daniel Bennett and welcome to the Grand Walks. I work as the Technical Director at the Grand managing the backstage crew to bring magic to our stage. Since the pandemic is preventing us from making theatre, I am focusing the spotlight out into the community to learn more about some London locals, their favorite places and what makes them London Proud. By now, hopefully you are standing at the starting place of this Walk which is right in front of the University College building on Western's campus.

University College

Listen for either me or Alan giving his pup Meisha directions. And that's how you'll know where you are in relation to us. Feel free to give us a pause and walk at your own pace if we get ahead. If you're ahead of us, you can slow down so we can catch up or charge right ahead, you'll get further into the off-trail pass that way which will no doubt be exciting.

Today, we are walking with President and Vice Chancellor of Western University, Alan Shepard. I will let you know when it is time to start walking but for now enjoy the sights around you while listening to Lacie George who will start us off with a land acknowledgement.
 

Lacie George

[nature sounds]

Waase’aabinokwe N’dizhnikaaz

Anishnaabe kwe niin daaw

Kikonaang miinwaa Zaagiing doonjibaa

Mzhiikehn Doodem

Maandaawkwe daansan

Jigjigneshiikwe Ooshenyan

Zhaawnannkwadokwe tkobdoonsan

Hello friends, my name is Lacie, also known as Waase’aabinokwe – I am the daughter of Maandaawkwe, the granddaughter of Jigjigneshiikwe, and the great-granddaughter of Zhaawnaankwadokwe. I am an Anishnaabe woman of the Turtle Clan. My Mother’s family comes from the Saugeen First Nation in the Bruce Peninsula, along the Saugeen River. My father’s family is from Kikonaang (Kettle Point First Nation) as well as Aazhoodenaang (Stoney Point First Nation), both of which are on the shores of Lake Huron. My ancestors have lived, loved, laughed and wept on this land for many many generations. I honour those who came before us, cared for us, and loves us so that we could be here right now, living in a good way.

This walk was recorded in London, Ontario, the traditional lands of the Attawandaron (also known as the Neutral) people and territories associated with various treaties of the Anishinaabeg, Haudenosaunee, and Lunaapewak. Locally, there are three First Nations communities. They are the Chippewas of the Thames First Nation, the Oneida Nation of the Thames and the Munsee Delaware Nation. We would also like to recognize the urban Indigenous urban populations, comprised of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit people. We acknowledge the traditional lands upon which we operate, as well as all the sacred waterways.

[swoosh and bell sound]
 

Daniel Bennett

So, can you tell me a little bit about where we're standing right now?

The group stands in front of University College before setting out on their walk.

Alan Shepard

As I understand it, this was the first building constructed on the campus. So, it's kind of the kind of the roots - the physical roots - of what's now a sprawling campus … many, many buildings across many acres. And part of what I love about this space is all the green space here, and it's an assembly space, and as you can see with the students behind us who are practicing some dance routine, it's kind of it's kind of an informal spot of gathering where people come and hang out and they have picnics, and they read books, they talk to their friends. I've seen the occasional smooching. People do like, like they run sprints back and forth, and it's just it's kind of almost like a commons or a greens for the university.

Today, we have the resident Canadian Geese. Some people are more thrilled by those than others. And, and you look down towards the east, and you can see, you can see the bridge over the Thames River, which is where we're headed over the tributary.

Daniel Bennett

That's great. Well, let's, let's start our walk. Okay. Yeah, that's great. And so, so tell me about how you got here to London.

Getting started

Alan Shepard

My very first visit to London came in about 2005, I was editor of an academic journal, and the campus here was hosting the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences, which is a big deal in Canada. And I was coming to give a presentation. I got lost immediately on the campus trying to find visitor parking. That was my like, you know, memory of it. I remember thinking, like, what a spectacular and beautiful place it was.

This summer, we were supposed to actually host that same conference again, but of course, the pandemic changed everything.

And I had been president of Concordia in Montreal for seven years by the time I arrived in London. And I do think that having been a President for some years before has made it, has been an advantage let's say in the pandemic, for sure. And I'm kind of back to my roots. I grew up in the American Midwest, this feels very much like that, you know, you drive a couple of kilometres north on Richmond Street, and you're back in the … back in the cornfields and soybeans and all that. And I love the tradition of these great public universities. They're so awesome.

Daniel Bennett

They are. What prompted the move from Concordia to here?

Alan Shepard

I had been President there for seven years, and I felt like I had done what I what I was able to do and I'd made my contribution, and I'd found that I was ready for my next challenge. And so, the way these things go like you get contacted by people who are executive search firms, like headhunters, commonly called, they don't like that term, but that's what everybody else calls them, and they started speaking to me about the opportunity. I'm sure there were speaking to many great candidates. And then you go through a fairly long process of multiple interviews, meeting members of the Board, members of the faculty, students, and staff. And then like, magically you get a phone call. And that's always a surprise, because a lot of great people out there who could you know, who I'm sure are interested in the job.

Alan Shepard

Daniel Bennett

How did you land in academia as a career?

Alan Shepard

I didn't, think I was going to, I mean, no one plans to be a university president. It's kind of a weird job. And I didn't really think I'd be in academia. I started out - I was first in my family to go to university back in Minnesota. And I didn't even really know what that meant, other than it was going to be a different life than the one my family had had. For generations, they had been doing a mixture of farming and my father did white collar work, but my mother dropped me off at my undergraduate liberal arts college in August of 1979, a long time ago, and within about three or four hours, I was like, I felt like I was sort of like, Alice in Wonderland. I kind of like jumped in a hatch and gone to another universe. It was a world I didn't know. I didn't know about books, ideas I never heard of. And I was super excited.

Meisha is rolling in some substance, which is not good for her. Come on Meesh, let's go.

Meisha getting a final roll in before the walk begins.

Daniel Bennett

I know Meisha looks so comfortable right now.

Alan Shepard

Maybe if I wave this bag of treats at her she'll cooperate? Meisha!

Daniel Bennett

This is the cutest ID tag ever. It's the Ontario license?

Daniel and Meisha

Alan Shepard

Come on. Let's go. Come on. Come on, let's go.

Yes, well, this is you know, this is the charm of the green spaces. People just hang out and they sun themselves, which is what Meisha is doing. So I wasn't really planning a career in academia, I thought I wanted to do emergency room medicine. I had been working for an ambulance service, I'd been working in hospitals and nursing homes all the way through high school and into university. And then I got to my second year of university, and I thought, "Oh, I want to be a university prof." And so that was the path.

Daniel Bennett

Yeah. And so, it was the new ideas and the wanting to...

Alan Shepard

It was the ideas and the people and the conversations. And you know what? I haven't lost that. I'm still excited by all that.

Daniel Bennett

And so, you've been doing this? You've been a president for quite a while?

Alan Shepard

Yeah.

Daniel Bennett

How many years in total?

Alan Shepard

I'm starting my ninth year. I know it seems like a long time.

Daniel Bennett

What philosophy do you hope to pass on to your students, or to students?

Alan Shepard

Oh, that's a hard question. So, some Presidents are quite obsessed by their legacy, and so forth. I don't see it that way. I think I was given this amazing opportunity to lead a public institution, and I'll do my best job. And when I'm done, I'm done.

And then somebody else will come along, and you hope they'll do the best job they can do. In terms of like philosophy for students, really, I see Presidents as servants; as servants of the community. I have access to resources and opportunities, and I try to share those and make the best use of Western's resources that I know how to do, and create opportunities really. And I would say that's for students, as well as like staff and for faculty, and alumni too. And part of my responsibilities are to protect and sustain the value of the university's degrees and its academic community.

You're really, you're like a steward, really. It's a great job. It's complicated job, but it's great job.

Daniel Bennett

And so, turning to London for a second, what's your favorite spot in London, Ontario?

Alan Shepard

Well, we're headed there now, which is this little tributary of the Thames that runs through the campus. And my family and I are big hikers and nature lovers. We spend a lot of time traveling around you know, going hiking, no mountains in this area, but I knew, that I'm a Midwesterner. But we like tromping along like rivers or tributaries and just seeing what animals you can find and, and so forth.

Alan pauses on the pathway

Daniel Bennett

Yeah, I found during the pandemic so interesting how we've all turned to nature as we can only go outdoors now.

Alan Shepard

Yeah.

Daniel Bennett

And I'm so excited by, you know, gophers and beavers and weasels that I never thought I'd be so excited by them.

Alan Shepard

I think there's been, I mean, you're reading all this stuff in like The New York Times and elsewhere about and also The Globe and Mail, about, the movement out of urban environments or people that kind of rethinking, kind of a back-to-nature movement, kind of a Henry David Thoreau movement in the American context, but I think we're all our lives are a little bit quieter.

Like, I know that my life is definitely quieter. Because as President, I'm traveling a lot, I'm on the road, I'm entertaining, and none of that's really been possible. So, everything I've been doing is by Zoom - Meisha, come on - so my own life has been very quiet. I'm home, you know, almost every evening with the dog and the kids and the partner. And that's, that's unusual for university president.

Daniel Bennett

And so, with all of this free time, or a little bit of a quieter, quieter moment in your life, what have you been thinking about?

Alan Shepard

Well, I've been trying to read books. I try to keep somewhat current in my own academic areas, so that I don't like lose some of my engagement and investment. I've been thinking a lot about, like, what really matters in life - Meisha, come on, let's go. Come on.

And about quality of life, right? The quality of food, quality of like, recreation, time to read books. Like we're in such a digital world now with, I read all my newspapers online, most people probably do. But I'm not sure like, where that's all going and I miss reading a book, having a conversation with a friend, having a glass of wine, kind of in a kind of quiet way, so that's good. Meisha is very keen on there's some kind of an animal that's over there, and every time we walk by there, she's very keen on what's under those bushes.

The pathway

Daniel Bennett

Mm hmm.

Alan Shepard

You'll have to edit this all out, I guess. Sorry. Or you could just leave it in. It's like, it's like real life! Meisha, come on, sweetheart. Let's go. Come on. You're a good dog. Yes, you are.

Daniel Bennett

And so then, yeah, so we're kind of circling around talking about, you know, a return to a quieter time. Maybe a time that feels like the past, yeah. Is there something that you hope from that quieter time comes to the forefront in the future?

Alan Shepard

Well, there's been a lot, you know, there's a lot of armchair prognosticators in any kind of pandemic. A lot of people would, you know, sort of, it's a tsunami, that kind of, you know, exaggerated assessments. There's a lot of discussion about whether you know, the whole world would be changed by the pandemic, I'm kind of one of those people things not so much, that we're just craving to get back to our old busy lives. I suppose some things will be changed, but it will probably take a while before we figure out what that is. And I'm not sure if it'll be what we think it is. So for example, okay, Meisha, we may have to just go and we can go, come on. Let's go. Come on. Let's go.

Daniel Bennett

Come here, Meisha. We've just got to cross Perth Drive here.

Alan Shepard

Good girl. She has this unpleasant habit of lying down in the middle of intersections. Once we get going, we're going!

Daniel Bennett

Yeah, she looks like she has a clear mission right now.

The group approaches the bridge along University Drive

Alan Shepard

She does. She's on her way to the, to the banks of the river, which she likes. There's a lot of discussion about how things will change. I'm not, I'm kind of a skeptic about, you know, massive change. I think social change happens more gradually. I'm reading about how people don't want to live in you know, tall buildings, elevators. I think the minute there's a vaccine, you know, the charms of the tall buildings, elevators will come back. That's my sense. But I do think it has been an opportunity to rediscover nature and a bit of the quieter, simpler life. And I have to say, I've really enjoyed that.

Daniel Bennett

Yeah, it's interesting that you bring up like the vaccine will probably lend itself to return to the tall buildings, because I think what we're seeing now is a little bit of a Toronto flight, you know, maybe to London.

Alan Shepard

Yeah. Yeah.

Daniel Bennett

And so, I'll be curious, once the vaccines introduced, what does that mean, for the people who have bought space here in this city.

Alan Shepard

Right, my perception is that London's having a bit of a renaissance, it's like on the rise, and all environments, you know, have their ups and downs, and I think it's been tough on London, as the manufacturing sector, you know, left and so forth. We're getting, these days, we're getting these days more of a high-tech sector. The university plays a really key role in the local economy as well as nationally and internationally, and it's sort of like one of those moments where if you're local, people kind of take it for granted. And so I think one of the things I would hope for … for Western as I start my Presidency is that the … the Western community and London, Middlesex, Southwestern Ontario communities, get to know each other a bit better. There's a lot of amazing things happening here, and sometimes it's you know, what's in your own backyard, you don't really pay attention to or you don't really know. And so that's an opportunity for us all.

Daniel Bennett

Yeah. So, I love the idea of have, you know London, Middlesex and Western getting to know each other a little bit better. I know, I think it's by the end of next year, the School of Continuing Studies is going to be coming out of downtown. What prompted that move?

Alan Shepard

Well, they'd been there about 20 years, and mostly what we had was our offices down there, and we had a couple of classrooms. It was actually a sign of revitalization of the downtown that other businesses wanted our space and made leases for it. And so, our lease wasn't renewed, and that gave us a prompt to think about, well, where else are we going to go, what else we're going to do. For now we're going to have our permanent staff from the Continuing Studies Program return to campus.

We have various ideas, like things like pop-up offices, pop-up classrooms, I've been wondering whether we could have classrooms in malls, for example, great parking, you know, one of the challenges of Continuing Studies is always like, "Is there a place to park that's easy?" Because people come rushing in after work, or whatever. There's a bigger question about what's the role of Continuing Studies? So, we're in this kind of knowledge economy, and everyone says, "Well, we need to upskill everybody, employers want people with more skills, the employees want more skills, maybe they've been laid off, or maybe they just want to change careers." You know, we're in a very fluid world now, so you don't do the same thing for 40 years. So, one of the big challenges for us is going to be what's the future of lifelong learning. And when I was in Montreal, I wanted to call it like, Advanced Professional Development, because that's basically what it is. It's not the old-fashioned notions of Continuing Studies, something you do when you retire, and you're, you know, at loose ends for you know, some activities, we have that too.

But for people who are kind of mid-career, they want to like, just make sure they are au courant, they want to make sure they're like up to speed or, you know, get new skills. What we're seeing across Canada, and really across North America is everybody says that, but there's … there's not a lot of action yet, in online in Continuing Studies, really, it's still an area that needs more development, Western and everywhere. It's not just Western.

Daniel Bennett

And is that more development from the university end or from the employer end?

Alan Shepard

I think it's both actually. For sure, from the university, and which is what I'm most familiar with it, that we can be more creative and more aggressive. I was talking to a President of another Canadian university, I won't say which one just today, and she said, they were expecting in the in the pandemic, that their enrollments in Continuing Studies would rise sharply, which is what you typically expect. This time that's not happening.

So is it that people are Zoomed out, they don't want to do more and more Zoom, or something else is going on, I just want to make sure that we offer programs that really meet the needs of people in the community, and that community might be far and wide if it's online, it doesn't have to be just in London.

But I'm really committed to the idea that learning is something that happens across your whole life. It isn't like you're 22, you get your undergraduate degree, and you're done. Thank you very much. There was a time when that was probably the model. But I don't think that's the model now. Yeah, I would love to go back to school myself. And I agree, and when you touched on, you know, people don't stay in one career, they are constantly like, moving around, that requires a little bit more lifelong learning. It does. It's a very fluid world, now, and that's got its charms and also its risks, right for all of us, right?

Daniel Bennett

So as a theatre artist, I'm always looking at how to get people into the theatre. I think we do some great work downtown. But I constantly I go into the theatre, and I don't see anyone my age, 30, or younger.

Alan Shepard

Yeah.

Daniel Bennett

How do you think we can cultivate getting some younger folks into the theatre?

Alan Shepard

Yeah.

Daniel Bennett

And cultivating some Western students maybe to get there?

Alan Shepard

That's a great question. And I'm also on the Board of the Stratford Festival. I've been on the board and I've just gone on again, and that's a question we asked too - Meisha we're going to the right here. Going this way, come on. C'mon sweetie we are going down here, come on. Alright, requires another treat.

So, this is a challenge also for like, symphony orchestras, any of the arts right? One of the big, one of the big challenges for all of us, will be the digital world, digital media, games. So for example, one of the things, I'm obsessed by airplanes and all things aviation, and now Microsoft is coming out with this new like newly revised flight simulator game, which I can hardly wait to get for the Xbox that my kids own. And there was a world when people would have only done live theatre, live music, because this kind of virtual world didn't really exist other than the novels, which they still do. So how are we going to compete against that?

And I suspect that some of it will be pyrotechnics by the theatre programs, right... some of it'll be like very flashy stuff, some of it will be maybe, I don't know, campaigns to kind of remind people of like the incredible pleasures of live theatre, live music. Not everything is a mediated virtual digital world. But... but we're gonna have to compete hard. It's gonna be tough, I think.

Daniel Bennett

Okay, Meisha, we're just gonna make a couple of rights here to go down into the Thames Valley Parkway. Yeah, I always agree. And I'm really happy that you know, we right now at the Grand have this $9 million renovation we're doing and upgrades to our technical capacities, because hopefully that will add a little bit more flash to the stage that will maybe draw some younger folk in.

Alan Shepard

Well, it's a beautiful facility too, it's beautiful in its own right, and now, you know, you're investing for the future too. Right? Okay, here we go. We're going on to this footpath along the tributary. Is this okay with you guys? We have to like, we have to make our way through here in a way that like, preserves all the wiring. You go this way, sweetheart. Yeah. Meisha, come on, baby. Come on. Let's go. Come on sweetheart. Let's go. You can go in. She's a very, um, well, you can see she's sniffing like crazy. She's very hesitant, doggy.

Daniel Bennett

A little tepid.

Meisha, ready to walk

Alan Shepard

She is - she grew up on a farm where there were no leashes and she could kind of do whatever she wanted. Come on. Let's go. Come on. Let's go. Yeah, good dog. Hang on. Hang on, hang on. And now. Hey, Meish, can you come this way? Come this way. There you go.

Yeah, so your question is a very important one about how are we going to, how are we going to preserve all these great traditions, and also make it real for the next generation? And that's always a challenge for art, right? That's always a challenge. But it's going to involve technology somehow, it seems like.

Daniel Bennett

You're Western's first openly gay president?

Alan Shepard

I am. Yes.

Daniel Bennett

Is there any responsibility you feel that comes with that?

Alan Shepard

Yeah, that's a great question. Um, I've been out since 1984, so it's a long time now. I came out in my first year of graduate school. I did not come out when I was living in my parents in the rural Midwest, nor did I come out as an undergraduate because it didn't feel safe. And it was, that's a very different time, you know, it's the early 1980s, so different now. And when I got to graduate school, I just felt this compulsion to like, deal with this part of my life, and I did, and it was a really positive, wonderful experience.

I mostly don't think about it day to day, honestly, I have a partner of 26 years, long suffering. We have two kids that we adopted here in Ontario. I had a conversation with one of my sons, several years ago, he was probably 11 or 12, at the time, and I was trying to make sure that he wasn't getting bullied at school for having two dads. And so I said something along those lines to him. And he said, Daddy, don't you get it? It's like, my generation, we don't care about this stuff. Like, I know you're like all wound up and you're worried, but you know, I'm not being bullied. No one cares. All they want to know is can they come in and have pizza and like, watch a movie? And since they can do that, they don't care?

Daniel Bennett

Yeah.

Alan Shepard

And that was really a refreshing moment. I found it hasn't made too much of a difference in my professional life. There are a couple of moments where I think I had an adverse experience simply because of people's prejudice. But it's quite rare actually.

Daniel Bennett

It's so great that we're in a, you know, in a moment where we can have this conversation and your son can be like, yeah, it's not an issue.

Alan Shepard

Yeah, it was really, it was a startling moment, because of course, we were torturing ourselves with, "are they okay? Are they okay? are they safe?" And then they were like, yeah, we're fine.

Daniel Bennett

So, I think, the student body is, you know, obviously focused a little bit here, north of, in the north end of the city.

Alan Shepard

Yeah.

Daniel Bennett

How do we get the student body integrated into downtown or into the downtown life a little bit more? Do you think it's necessary?

Alan Shepard

So, this is the challenge for all universities that have historically been a bit separated from the, from the larger community that they're set in. If we were talking about University of Toronto, or McGill, or Concordia and so forth, they were always set right in the centre of the city. Western was built a bit separate a bit apart, right? I think there are many ways in which we are already in the city, but it isn't always recognized.

So, for example, we have hundreds and thousands of students every year doing internships, practicums, training programs, in the hospitals, in the schools, and so forth. And we know that the Western students are downtown for, you know, a pint of beer. The question is like, how else are they engaged? And I think it is a good idea to work towards deeper engagement that's, you know, beyond the pint of beer, and not to minimize the practicums in the internships that happen today, but can we integrate that even further? That would be a good thing, I think.

I think it’s okay that some students come to London and to Western, they get a great education, and they leave for other parts, that not everyone's going to stick in this economy. Some people are going to go back to Toronto, Vancouver, we actually have alumni all over the world. And that's the sign of a great institution, right is that your alumni are so sought after and such experts and so highly qualified, that they're attracted to jobs, and they're hired literally across the globe. That's a good thing. And while they're here, if they can practice some engagement in the local community, and some of them will stick.

Like we have, I think I saw the number of 70,000 alumni who live in Middlesex, right? It's a big number. It's a surprisingly big number. And that's a good thing, too. You just want, you want both sides of that equation.

Daniel Bennett

Yeah. Lauren here is actually one of our Western alumni.

Alan Shepard

Oh, yeah?

Daniel Bennett

Who is still in the city.

The group pauses on the pathway

Alan Shepard

Yeah. Awesome. Awesome. We have a guest coming along here.

Meisha, wait, Meisha, wait, Meisha, wait. Yeah, I don't know what's down there that you're smelling. Something. Something very exciting like a beaver maybe. Maybe a groundhog? Come on.

Daniel Bennett

So, in the context of the, you know, Black Lives Matter movement that happened, there's been a global shift towards, you know, access to institutions and breaking down barriers. What's Western currently doing to ensure a diverse and safe environment and reduce barriers to access?

Alan Shepard

Well, it's a great question. It's a fascinating cultural moment, and I'm hoping we can make hay while the sun shines to use a farm metaphor. I think there are a lot of things that have been happening at Western already on this score.

We have a lot of faculty members who do research in this area, who teach in the area of equity and diversity, and particularly around Black issues for Black communities and for all of us. But there's more to be done. We started last fall with a working group called the Anti-Racism Working Group that I set up, I guess it was maybe November. They started meeting in early in the new semester, and they gave me a report, at the end of that semester, talking about the community here, and the experiences that both racially diverse students and faculty and staff have, but also the larger community, and I've accepted that report. It includes some structural changes, like we're going to create a new senior role reporting to me, about equity, diversity, and inclusion, which I think will be helpful, will give visibility to these challenges and opportunities.

We're going to start in an alumni group that will help us understand some of Western's history and context. And we're reaching out to current and prospective students, so, to make sure that we have really robust programs, a financial aid in place for those who have all these talents and don't have the resources to make it to Western. But I think there's a broader kind of engagement with by the faculty and staff and students of the university and these big, big questions, sort of philosophical debates.

I expect to see curriculum changing as a result. I do expect to see more, more focus on the data, like, historically Canadian universities don't collect data around race. American universities do. I was trained in the American tradition. So, I was very surprised when I came to Canada to find out that we don't actually know how many members of various visible minorities we have on campus. It's always voluntary to give it but, it's helpful to kind of track our progress. So, I think we'll see that kind of focus. My goal, of course, is to make the most equitable and fair Western we can have, and I do think and I'm deeply committed to this idea that a diverse community is really a strong community. And strong for the people who are here now but it's also when they leave here, if they're students, and they go elsewhere, they bring that with them. And there's a lot of actually a quantitative research and evidence on how companies that are racially diverse, how they perform, how they make decisions, and the numbers are really good. They really show that having multiple voices and perspectives at tables when you're making decisions, changes the decisions you make, and creates opportunities. So, I'm super keen on this project.

A view of some plants growing along the pathway

Daniel Bennett

Sounds really great. I'm curious, I was talking to a friend last week, actually, and he had applied for a job and he said, "Why do they ask me about my race on this application?" And he felt offended by the question.

Alan Shepard

Yeah.

Daniel Bennett

How do you, because I agree, it's important to collect that information. How do you go about doing that in a way that is, that seems far?

Alan Shepard

Yeah. I think if you can, yeah, I've heard I've heard this too, where people say like, "why are they asking me this?" If you can talk to the broader world about what your goals are for making a fair and just world, the data are important because if we don't have the data, there are kind of these unconscious biases that can come right into your experience, and you might not even notice. Well you might not notice, if you're in a majority position, if you're visible minority, you might well notice that nobody else noticed. Right? So, it's one measure, it's not the only measure, but it's … it's important.

Usually when I walk this, it's uh, all the weeds and brush and so forth aren't really there. So it's, it's a different experience today.

Daniel Bennett

So, you've been in your job for one year?

Alan Shepard

Yeah.

Daniel Bennett

What's the thing you're most proud of at Western?

Alan Shepard

I really, well, what I'm proud of about my team's performance over this first year of my time at Western is how we have steered the institution to a really, really complex, historical moment that no other university leaders have faced for the last like hundred years, which is the pandemic.

The Western team has just been fantastic, and our plans for reopening safely, and all of that which are now in an almost 100-page document, are the envy of other institutions across Canada. And I've had repeatedly people say to me, can I have a copy of that, you guys are way ahead. So, the care that the team has shown for the community, the way the community has also responded, has been really a plus. So I gotta say, I'm really proud of that.

I hope that I don't spend my whole time like dealing with pandemics because I do have other, other opportunities ahead of us. We're going to start a new strategic planning process this fall, and often in academic communities, people go like strategic planning, oh like please, you know, like, don't bore me. But strategic plans are just, they're just conversations with the whole community about what does Western stand for? Where are we going? And what do we need to do to get there? So I'm looking forward to that, and that's going to start this fall.

But you know, it's a giant, complex place. We have thousands of students and thousands of faculty and staff. And many people are doing these awesome things that, you know, they may not make it on the CBC News, but they're like doing great stuff every day all the time.

The group walks along an unpaved pathway

Daniel Bennett

Where do you believe London has the most room to grow?

Alan Shepard

That's a great question. I'm on the London Economic Development Board since I arrived here, and now it's been a great way to like kind of get the lay of the land understand what the opportunities are. I do think that the high-tech sector is an interesting workplace to go. There's probably still room for the manufacturing sector, and I'm fairly optimistic about, communities the size of London for future growth, like I think, you know, I lived for some years in Toronto, I think there's a strong sense that it's kind of gotten so big that it's really hard to navigate, and the traffic is crazy and all that. I think we have good opportunities here. I'd love to see more, in terms of helping our students in our community, I'd love to see more cycling opportunities. I've ridden my bike to work a couple times, and I'm trying not to do that because I didn't feel that safe on the roads to be honest.

Daniel Bennett

Where do you want to see a bike line?

Alan Shepard

Oh, gosh, that is a highly political question. I'm not going to even touch that as I walk along the Thames River. That will get me into trouble.

Meisha– time for a dog treat, I think.

Daniel Bennett

Is there a story, a little story, you can tell about Western or, your involvement in London?

Alan Shepard

Yeah, the story I was thinking of was how Western is more than 140 years old, and how every September, every August and every September, as people arrive back some old stories are closed up, and new stories are open, right? So we graduated this year, virtually a lot of people in June. And for people who are arriving either physically or virtually for September to start their academic lives at Western or maybe their careers as faculty members or staff members, each of those has their own story, right.

And I often, one of the things that I love hearing from alumni is their story; how they got here, who they met, who they interacted with. Many times they've met a spouse here, or they had a really meaningful relationship with a staff or faculty member who, whose advice and guidance like spur them on to a great career. I just love those stories.

And I was thinking, I was looking back actually through the history, history books about Western all the way back to Bishop Hellmuth, who started it, he was apparently quite a controversial character, and every leader of Western since then they bring their stories, I brought my story. You know, I brought my kids, they have their story, and so there's just this rich, rich tapestry of many stories.

And knowing as many of them as I can, is a fun part of the job, and people want in other stories. Like alumni, it matters to them that they're able to tell the university about, like their experiences in London and their experiences at the university. And for a lot of like undergraduates, in particular graduate students too, it's just his most powerful time in life, right? It's just this magical four years of intense, intense growth, personal growth, personal transformation, and intellectual transformation, all wrapped into one package. It's a very, very, very, very striking moment in somebody's life.

Daniel Bennett

I'm loving that, you know, you're talking about the kind of the past, the present, and the future story Western, and the storytelling of that, which is, you know, obviously in the theatre, we're always storytelling.

Alan Shepard

Always storytelling.

Daniel Bennett

The past, present, and the future as well.

The Thames River, as seen through the trees

Alan Shepard

Right. I even think about like the walk we're doing now along the Thames River here. You know, people have been walking this river for probably thousands of years, I don't know, a long time, a lot longer than we'll be here. And I always think, even like, since the days of the university, you know, they had this vision of putting this building up on the hill, very classical vision. They knew the river was here, I'm sure the bridge went in shortly after, and think of all the people who have walked this path, right. 100 years ago, 150 years ago, us people 100 years from now, probably people will be walking it. They'll be going to Western, they'll be leaving Western, whatever.

I love that, like you're kind of immersed in history, you cannot really see you know, it's there.

A clear view of the Thames River

Daniel Bennett

That's awesome. Thanks so much, Alan.

Alan Shepard

Oh it's a pleasure, yeah, it's been great. Thank you very much for inviting me.

Daniel Bennett

Thank you. Thanks for coming on a Grand Walk with me. I feel so fortunate to speak with Alan to gain some perspective on Western. It is such a large part of our city, employing thousands of locals and educating the minds of tomorrow, that it is an integral thread in London's tapestry. I reflect on our conversation about having the time to invest in what really matters in life. Although Alan believes we will scurry back to the way things were, I hope we can dream and advocate for a relaxed and quieter future where we have time to invest more in each other, thereby investing more in London and strengthening the tapestry of stories that will make our future. The Grand Walks would not be possible without our lovely team here at the Grand including Dennis Garnhum, Lauren Rebelo, Jen Matthews, Aaron Oulette, Suzanne Lanthier, Deb Harvey, Lyndee Hansen, Britt Duncan, Lacie George, and Megan Watson. Special thanks to friends Rob Novakovic, Jesse Potter, and Frank Donato for brainstorming with me. Thanks again and looking forward to getting some more steps in with you soon.

Alan Shepard

Okay, you know what I'm gonna have to do, I'm going to have to pick her up. It's gonna be horrible.