Chair
Dan Patterson, President
Niagara College

Dr. Dan Patterson has been Niagara College’s President since 1995.  Under his leadership, the College has doubled its enrolment to over 8,000 full time students in over 90 programs.

With an operating budget of over $100 million, the College is presently in the midst of a $90 million campus redevelopment project to further expand student capacity and provide new and renovated state-of-the-art learning environments at its Welland and Niagara-on-the-Lake campuses. Dan has played an integral role in establishing and strengthening partnerships with a variety of industries and public sector organizations - a key priority under his leadership. Prior to joining the college system, Dan held senior executive positions within the federal and provincial governments. Dan is known as a leader in the Ontario College system and is former Chair of the Committee of Presidents, which advocates on behalf of Ontario's 24 Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology. Dan lead the Committee of Presidents through a critical time for the College system which resulted in the introduction of baccalaureate degrees in Ontario Colleges  and a new provincial mandate.  Dan was appointed by Order-in-Council to serve on the College Compensation and Appointments Council, an agency established under provincial statute responsible for the appointment of governors to the 24 college boards, collective bargaining on behalf of the colleges, and for providing strategic advice to the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities on matters relating to colleges.

Dan has a strong sense of service and shares his knowledge and expertise on a number of Boards at the national, provincial and local level. This service has been recognized with various awards including the Canadian Red Cross Power of Humanity and Citizen of the Year for Niagara-on-the-Lake. He is a passionate advocate for the important role that colleges play in the economic life of their communities.

Dan received his B.A. in Political Science from the University of Windsor, his M.Sc. from The London School of Economics, and his M. Ed. from the University of Toronto. Committed to lifelong learning, Dan earned his Ph.D. from the University of Toronto in the field of higher education in 2005. In recognition of his achievements within the college system, Dan was conferred an Honourary Doctorate from Niagara University in 2003 and an Honourary Doctorate of Laws from Brock University in 2009.