Provost's Biography

Dr. Gwen Chapman
 

A distinguished researcher and innovative educator, Dr. Gwen Chapman joined the University of Guelph in 2016 as dean of the College of Social and Applied Human Sciences (CSAHS).

As dean, Dr. Chapman directed development of a transformative strategic plan that led to significant growth in Indigenization and internationalization as well as research and pedagogical innovation. Under her leadership, CSAHS expanded the depth and breadth of its interdisciplinary academic programming by introducing innovative and high-demand programs, notably a PhD in social practice and transformational change, a master’s degree in conservation leadership and a BA in justice and legal studies.

As one of Canada’s top-funded and leading experts in social science nutritional research, Dr. Chapman has authored or co-authored 70 journal articles and is co-author of the book Acquired Tastes: Why Families Eat the Way They Do. Dr. Chapman’s research provides in-depth understanding of how social determinants such as gender, age, class, ethnicity, and region lead to nutrition and health inequities.

Previously, Dr. Chapman was a professor and associate dean (academic) of the Faculty of Land and Food Systems and program director of the Food, Nutrition and Health program at the University of British Columbia. Her excellence in teaching was recognized by UBC through the awarding of the prestigious Killam Teaching Prize.

Dr. Chapman completed undergraduate studies at the University of Saskatchewan, a graduate dietetic internship at Victoria Hospital in London, Ont., and her MSc and PhD in nutritional sciences at the University of Toronto. Her interdisciplinary studies in applied human nutrition spanned various fields including biological sciences, social sciences, and management.