by Sherri Hogan

Scott Stevens, Chair of the Holland College Board of Governors is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Brian McMillan, as President of Holland College effective July 1, 2005.

"The Board is delighted to welcome Brian to this key leadership role at the College," stated Mr. Stevens. "Brian brings to this position an extensive background as an educator, innovator and administrator who has demonstrated a great commitment to the community college system in general and to Holland College in particular."

Dr. McMillan is currently the Vice President of Program Operations at Holland College. He has a PhD in Psychology and a Masters in Education from the University of Alberta and a Bachelor of Education and a BA from Mount Allison University in New Brunswick.

Dr. McMillan has held various leadership positions across all levels of education. Prior to his joining Holland College in 1996 as Executive Director of Program Operations, Dr. McMillan was an Associate Professor at Mount Allison for nine years where he was also Head of the Education Department. He also served for several years with the PEI Unit 3 School Board as Superintendent for Administration and later for Programs. A registered psychologist in the province of New Brunswick, Dr. McMillan has published extensively in the areas of curriculum development, entrepreneurship education, special education and teacher development.

At the national level, Dr. McMillan is very active with the Association of Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC) where he is presently the co-chair for the Vice President?s Network. He serves as the Canadian Chair of AHEAD (Association of Higher Education and Disability) and the National Chair and Atlantic Director of the Deans of Technology. Internationally, he directs ACCC?s Canadian Colleges Partnership Project, Enhance Rural Teacher Training in China, a major applied research project that will continue into 2008.

Closer to home, Dr. McMillan is currently an adjunct professor at UPEI in the Education Faculty and Board Chair of Junior Achievement PEI. He remains very involved in the life of his community having spent time as a youth counsellor and as a minor hockey and basketball coach. He, along with his wife Jane and their three children Amy, Megan and Matthew live in Charlottetown.

Holland College is the community college of Prince Edward Island, home to over 2,300 full-time and 9,000 part-time students in 11 Island locations including the renowned Atlantic Police Academy and Culinary Institute of Canada.