Former Quebec Premier Pauline Marois appointed Chancellor of UQAM

Former Quebec Premier Pauline Marois has been appointed Chancellor of the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), the first woman to ever hold the position.

“I am very proud to be able to carry the voice of UQAM, which has been able to combine accessibility, quality of teaching and the advancement of knowledge,” Marois said in a statement issued by the university. “For 55 years, UQAM has made a remarkable contribution to Quebec’s growth and is now nurturing major projects that I will enthusiastically support.”

Her five-year term will be honourary and she will act as an advisor to the university, participating in board meetings and representing the university externally.

The first woman to be elected Premier of Quebec in 2012, Marois has held many key positions during her political career, including Minister of Education, Minister of Health and Social Services, Minister of Finance, Minister of Research, Science and Technology, and Chair of the Treasury Board. In fact, she has headed the most ministries in Quebec’s history.

Since her retirement from political life in 2014, the 75-year-old has continued her commitment to serving Quebec society, for example by serving as president of Forces Avenir since 2023, and as president of the Fondation de la langue française’s fundraising campaign from 2019 to 2022.

The former Minister of Education and Minister of Families and Children has reportedly said she is concerned about the labour shortage that is affecting both daycare educators and teachers, two professions that are not recognized at their true value by Quebec, she believes.

A long-time advocate for public education, Marois says more efforts are required to better recognize the funding of our universities and education in general.

She also says she believes that an improvement in the working conditions of daycare educators would encourage the return of those who have left the network in recent years.