U of L president walks toward community engagement

By Lethbridge Herald on July 4, 2023.

New university president Digvir Jayas, at front left, along with graduate students association president Jaxon Reiter and students union president Maleeka Thomas, lead a welcome walk during Jayas’ first day on the job Tuesday at the University of Lethbridge. Herald photo by Alejandra Pulido-Guzman

Alejandra Pulido-Guzman – LETHBRIDGE HERALD – apulido@lethbridgeherald.com

Incoming president and vice-chancellor of the University of Lethbridge Digvir Jayas’ first official day was marked by a welcome walk around campus Tuesday afternoon. 

Jayas spoke to reporters prior to the welcome walk and said he was excited to take on his first day on the job and was looking forward to meeting the community inside and outside of the university. 

“I certainly am excited to be at the University of Lethbridge, there are a lot of opportunities to take the university forward and build the relationship with the community,” said Jayas. 

When asked about his priorities for his new role, he said he would like to consult with the community both internally and externally before he can say what those priorities are, because they not only have to be his priorities, but the community’s priorities as well. 

“We need to work as a team to then accomplish those, but I certainly see a lot of opportunities. We are committed to liberal education on both Calgary and Lethbridge campuses, so we want to continue that commitment to liberal education, but at the same time expand what can be done with a liberal education and provide the opportunities for a student to get a holistic experience,” said Jayas. 

He said he wants to empower students to solve difficult problems – problems that don’t even exist today, as the students are the ones who will be helping to solve those problems in the future. And they need to be provided with the necessary tools to accomplish that, he added.

“We are very strong in many of the research areas, and we want to build on those strengths, and then develop some of the emerging areas,” said Jayas. 

He said he wants to develop very strong relationships with the community while also taking a look at the U of L’s academic programs and possibly look at the development of an engineering program focusing on agri-food sectors, sustainability and environmental sustainability, while considering the impact of climate change. 

“We are certainly looking at the opportunity to develop the South Woodlands or Southlands – the university had been given permission to develop those. We are also looking at physician training, so there are lots of opportunities, but what we get to do first I want to decide that with the community,” said Jayas. 

In regards of his background, Jayas said he was born in India, where he grew up on a farm and that is where he developed his interest in agriculture. 

“I spent a lot of time on the farm doing all sorts of things which farmers need to do including plowing, irrigating crops, harvesting and storing grains. After completing my high school education in the area I was born, a small town 150 kilometres southeast of Delhi, I came to University of Manitoba to do my Masters,” said Jayas. 

Jayas earned a Master of Science, agricultural engineering from the University of Manitoba and then a Doctorate in Agricultural Engineering from the University of Saskatchewan.  

After that he said he went back to the University of Manitoba where he began his career as an assistant professor, and continued to advance through the ranks of professor, department head, associate dean, research associate vice president, and vice president research and international.  

“I have a 25-year academic administration experience, and what brought me to the University of Lethbridge is because of the farm background and having a strong agricultural base, I certainly can make significant contributions,” said Jayas. 

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