The Max Bell School continues to grow and expand in a myriad of ways, and that includes our teaching faculty. We're pleased to welcome Manuel Balán as our new Associate Director, Programs, joining the School's leadership team with Director Jennifer Welsh. Also joining the core faculty is Talita Dias from the University of Exeter. Our two new McConnell visiting faculty members for 2026-2027 are James Van Loon as McConnell Professor of Practice, and Matthew Chiasson as a J.W. McConnell Visiting Scholar.
"We are thrilled to be welcoming Manuel to the Max Bell School, as he brings significant teaching and leadership experience as well as global connections," says School director Jennifer Welsh. "As a key part of our core team, he will enhance our flagship MPP program and help us branch out into exciting new programming." Manuel has been a professor at McGill since 2011 in the Department of Political Science, serving as Director of the Institute for the Study of International Development and then Associate Dean in the Faculty of Arts. Along with his role at Max Bell, Manuel is also the University's Academic Lead in Global Engagement in the Office of the Provost, and as Strategic Advisor to the Dean of the Faculty of Arts.
Talita is also new to the School, joining as an Associate Professor in Law and Public Policy at the Max Bell School of Public Policy as well as a Senior Research Fellow at the University of Exeter and a Senior Fellow at the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence. Before joining the School, Talita was the International Policy and Government Lead at the Partnership on AI, where she led research on global AI governance and government affairs, and a lecturer in international law and policy at the University of Oxford. Director Welsh highlights the various contributions Talita will make: "As a leading researcher in public international law, particularly in the fields of armed conflict and technology regulation, Talita will strengthen the Max Bell School's global expertise and help our MPP students understand some of the toughest issues where the world needs new forms of cooperation. Her deep connections to practitioners - both in Canada and internationally - will also ensure that the School's knowledge is mobilized to enhance the quality and impact of public policy decisions in fields such as Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence."
James and Matthew, in their visiting faculty roles, will conduct research, coach Policy Lab teams, and share their careers with our MPPs.
James joins the School following a distinguished career in the federal government, most recently serving as Director of Operations and Director General for the Artificial Intelligence Secretariat within the Privy Council Office and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada.
Matthew also comes from government, serving as a Senior Policy Advisor at Canada’s Competition Bureau. In 2025, Matthew received the King Charles III Coronation Medal for significant contributions to competition policy in Canada and won the Hunter Prize for Public Policy for his paper, Clean the Ice: A National Competition Agenda for Economic Growth.
