Chancellor

Ms. Anne Mahon is the University of Manitoba’s 14th Chancellor. Her spirit name is Waabishkaa Miigwanese Little White Feather and her clan is turtle.

She is a bridge-builder whose philanthropic ideals are matched by her demonstrated ability to bring people together to effect positive change.  She has built a reputation for lending her talents and spirit to the causes of the disempowered. Her work exists at the crossroads of storytelling, community-building, philanthropy and education. She creates meaning and change through volunteer work that supports the stories, lives and aspirations of those most in need.

Ms. Mahon is an oral history writer interested in people, their stories and making meaningful connections. Her writing focuses on stories of resilience and hope. She was nominated for the John Hirsch Award for Most Promising Manitoba Writer in 2018. Her latest book Overcome: Stories of Women Who Grew up in the Child Welfare System (2022) was shortlisted for the Manitoba Book Awards' 2023 Alexander Kennedy Isbister Award for Non-Fiction.  Her other books are The Lucky Ones: African Refugees Stories of Extraordinary Courage (2013) and Redemption: Stories of Hope, Resilience and Life After Gangs (2017).  All author proceeds from the sales of her books are donated to organizations that support the communities featured in each book. She enjoyed interviewing the participants of these books as much as she enjoyed interviewing Michelle Obama in 2019.

Ms. Mahon has spent over thirty years volunteering in the community.  She began working with the refugee community in 2007 at the Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization of Manitoba (IRCOM) where she spent nine years assisting new Canadians learning English. She is a founding board member of Humankind International, which built a school in the Dadaab Refugee camp in Kenya in 2014. She also co-founded and co-facilitates the Book Mates Book Club at the Women's Correctional Centre. A fundraising committee member of the United Way of Winnipeg, Ms. Mahon helped raise $14 million for inner city, grassroots, family support through the Family Resource Centre initiative. She is a member of UNICEF's Women UNlimited Initiative and The International Women's Forum. 

Ms. Mahon is a proud Winnipegger. She graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1987 from the faculty of Human Ecology with a major in Marketing of Apparel and Textiles.

Ms. Mahon's term as Chancellor commenced on June 1, 2019. She was re-elected to a second term starting June 1, 2022. Ms. Mahon can be contacted through the Office of the University Secretary.

The Vice-Chancellor is the President, Dr. Michael Benarroch.

The Chancellor is a member of the Board of Governors and the Senate. The Chancellor is also an ex-officio member of various committees, including:

• Senate Committee on Honorary Degrees (as Chair)
• Board of Governors Committees:
  • Advancement Committee
  • Executive Committee
  • Governance and Board Development Committee
  • Human Resources and Compensation Committee
  • Chancellor's Committee (as Chair)
  • Peter D. Curry Chancellor's Award Committee (as Chair)

• 1887-1904 - Bishop Robert Machray
• 1904-1908 - [ No successor was appointed by the Government ]
• 1908-1934 - Reverend Samuel P. Matheson
• 1934-1944 - Mr. John W. Dafoe
• 1944-1952 - Mr. Justice Andrew K. Dysart
• 1952-1959 - Dr. Victor Sifton
• 1959-1968 - Mr. Justice Samuel Freedman
• 1968-1974 - Dr. Peter D. Curry
• 1974-1977 - Honourable Mr. Richard S. Bowles
• 1977-1986 - Dr. Isabel G. Auld, C.M.
• 1986-1992 - Dr. Henry E. Duckworth, O.C.
• 1992-2001 - Dr. Arthur V. Mauro, O.C., O.M.
• 2001-2009 - Dr. William Norrie, C.M.
• 2010-2019 - Mr. Harvey Secter, O.M.