Arnold Steinberg named Chancellor of McGill
The McGill University Board of Governors is very pleased to announce its appointment of Mr. H. Arnold Steinberg (CM) to the position of Chancellor of McGill University, for a three-year term beginning July 1, 2009.
Mr. Steinberg is a distinguished Montrealer and Canadian, and life-long member of the McGill community. His career and volunteer endeavours, including significant involvement and contributions to the life of the McGill community, reflect a deep integrity and commitment to higher education and health care. A graduate of McGill University (BComm) and Harvard University (MBA), Mr. Steinberg is currently a senior officer with Cleman Ludmer Steinberg Inc, an investment holding company.
After his graduate studies, Mr. Steinberg worked in Corporate Finance for Dominion Securities, now RBC Dominion Securities. Mr. Steinberg joined Steinberg Inc. serving as both a member of the Board of Directors and its Executive Committee, and holding various senior management positions including Executive Vice-President, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Administrative Officer and Chairman of Ivanhoe Inc. During his business career, Mr. Steinberg served on the boards of various public companies, including Bell Canada International, Teleglobe Inc., Provigo Inc. and Banque nationale du Canada.
A leading and knowledgeable contributor to the health-care sector, Mr. Steinberg is Chair of the Board of Canada Health Infoway Inc., a Federal, Provincial and Territorial Governments’ initiative with a unique mandate to accelerate the development and adoption of electronic health information systems in Canada.
Mr. Steinberg has worked tirelessly for the Montreal Children’s Hospital (MCH), beginning with a joint project with Dr. Charles Scriver (BA, MDCM), working on the addition of Vitamin D to the milk produced and sold in Quebec and evaluating the childhood bone disorder of rickets. He was a senior executive at Steinberg Inc. at the time, and refused to purchase milk for the grocery store chain unless Vitamin D had been added. This relationship led to his co-chairmanship of the Capital Campaign for the Montreal Children’s Hospital and the founding presidency of the National Food Distribution Centre for the Treatment of Metabolic Diseases.
Over the past 40 years, Mr. Steinberg has been involved with numerous charitable, educational and cultural organizations. He was a founding Trustee of the Inter-Service Clubs Council Foundation (for funding pediatric research) and Founding Chairman of Canadians for Health Research. He served as a member of the Canada Council, including as a member of the Executive Committee. He was Chairman of the Board of Governors of the McGill University-Montreal Children's Hospital Research Institute for 19 years and a member of the Board of Governors of McGill University. He continues to serve McGill University as a Governor Emeritus, member of the Investment Committee of the Board of Governors, and as a leading contributor to McGill University initiatives, including most recently, the McGill Medical Simulation Centre. He also served for many years as an Officer of Federation CJA of Montreal.
In 1995, he was elected Chairman of the Interim Board of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC), comprising the Royal Victoria Hospital, the Montreal General Hospital, the Montreal Neurological Hospital and the Montreal Children’s Hospital. He was the Founding Chairman of the MUHC Board, member of the MUHC Research Institute, and serves as Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Faculty of Medicine of McGill. In 2005, Mr. Steinberg was appointed by Order-in-Council to the Governing Council of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and is currently Vice-Chair. He is a member of the Board of the Canadian Patient Safety Institute.
A member of the Order of Canada and a leading collector of modern art, Mr. Steinberg was awarded an honorary doctorate from McGill University in 2000. He is married to Dr. Blema Steinberg, Professor Emeritus, McGill University, and is the father of Margot, Donna and Adam.
A force of uncommon integrity and grace, Mr. Steinberg reflects his deep loyalty to McGill as constant ambassador, inspiration and friend.