As the senior academic officer at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, the Provost and Vice President Academic is responsible for the academic direction and stewardship of the university's programs. Reporting to the President, the Provost and Vice President Academic has a mandate to facilitate exceptional learning experiences for KPU students by providing leadership in the development and implementation of a comprehensive education plan that is relevant to students' needs as well as KPU's external communities. The Provost and Vice President Academic ensures the integrity of academic affairs through collaborative work with faculty, deans, other Vice Presidents, and the Senate.
Diane Purvey is the provost and vice-president, academic of Kwantlen Polytechnic University. She was born in the traditional, ancestral and unceded territories of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations (Burnaby). Dr. Purvey stepped into the position after more than nine years as KPU’s Dean of Arts. In that time she chaired several cross-institution committees and served on KPU’s senate.
Dr. Purvey earned her Ph.D. at UBC, where she also received her Bachelor of Arts degree. Her Master’s degree came from the University of Victoria. Along the way she had opportunities to study at Queen’s and Carleton universities as well. She has taught Canadian history in many provincial post-secondary institutions, including the BC Open University, Royal Roads University, and Thompson Rivers University. For several years she taught at Kwantlen! A historian who specializes in the history of education and childhood, she was Chair of the School of Education at TRU before joining KPU and was instrumental in developing that institution’s M.Ed. program.
Diane is co-author of three books on aspects of British Columbia history and the author of several scholarly articles pertaining to deinstitutionalization, gender, and educational leadership. She engages with KPU’s communities, having served on the City of Surrey Public Art Advisory Committee and currently as board chair of Richmond’s Gateway Theatre. Dr. Purvey is an avid reader of fiction, a runner, a cyclist, and a supporter of art galleries and theatres generally.
Diane looks forward to advancing KPU’s relationships in the communities it serves in the months ahead.