In an interview with the Queen’s Gazette, Principal Woolf highlighted his primary areas of focus for the 2017-18 school year.

According to Woolf, the themes surrounding his goals for the school year include “faculty renewal and research prominence,” diversity, inclusion, promoting safe behavior and infrastructure strategy.

Specifically, the school will look at methods by which to alleviate $300 million in deferred maintenance costs over the next decade.

Due to a combination of retirements and new PhD graduates who will be able to bring a new approach to “pedagogy, community relations, and interdisciplinarity,” Woolf told the Gazette the school will see 200 new faculty hires by 2022.

He also honed in on challenges the school is currently facing, such as in the areas of health and wellness. The University Council — alongside student leaders and community members — are working to encourage safe alcohol consumption both on and off campus.

As well, the University will continue to work at tackling issues of sexual violence at Queen’s.

Woolf commented that the school’s international recognition has also improved, through the efforts of the admissions and international teams.

“Reputation is important. Apart from attracting fantastic students, it also has an impact on our ability to form international partnerships and secure international research funding,” Woolf told the Gazette.