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Ontario Tech acknowledges the lands and people of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation.

We are thankful to be welcome on these lands in friendship. The lands we are situated on are covered by the Williams Treaties and are the traditional territory of the Mississaugas, a branch of the greater Anishinaabeg Nation, including Algonquin, Ojibway, Odawa and Pottawatomi. These lands remain home to many Indigenous nations and peoples.

We acknowledge this land out of respect for the Indigenous nations who have cared for Turtle Island, also called North America, from before the arrival of settler peoples until this day. Most importantly, we acknowledge that the history of these lands has been tainted by poor treatment and a lack of friendship with the First Nations who call them home.

This history is something we are all affected by because we are all treaty people in Canada. We all have a shared history to reflect on, and each of us is affected by this history in different ways. Our past defines our present, but if we move forward as friends and allies, then it does not have to define our future.

Learn more about Indigenous Education and Cultural Services

Office of the President

Portrait of Steven Murphy

Dr. Steven Murphy joined the university as its fourth President and Vice‐Chancellor on March 1, 2018 and has recently been reappointed for another term beginning July 1, 2023.  He envisions the university as an active space to reinvent learning while championing why diversity in all forms is important.  He believes experiential and co‐operative learning opportunities are fundamental training for successful careers.  Dr. Murphy strives to reimagine higher learning as an ongoing pursuit that will fuel Canada’s knowledge economy.  He encourages students to embrace a collaborative approach that champions diversity and strives to make society and our planet a better place.

Throughout his first term, Ontario Tech has strengthened its research capacity through further academic collaborations with industry, community and government partners, relationships that showcase the university’s leadership as a critical hub of expertise anchoring the eastern Greater Toronto Area.  One example, Ontario Tech’s recently launched Brilliant Energy Institute, positions the university as a national leader in interdisciplinary clean energy, environmental sustainability, and climate-change research.

Dr. Murphy is renowned for his organizational and human behaviour expertise across business and industry.  Even more notably, his dedication to equity, diversity and inclusiveness underscores every facet of how he lives his life.  Beyond the lens of race and gender, he believes firmly in the diversity of thought and ideas that underpins universities.

Dr. Murphy’s vision for positive change influenced Ontario Tech’s Strategic Research Plan, supported the creation of the Integrated Academic Research Plan, the establishment the President’s Equity Taskforce, and reaffirmed the university’s commitment to Indigenous Reconciliation.  Dr. Murphy also rapidly guided the university’s evolution toward a distinct and bold new identity, a process that included renaming the university, and refreshing the brand and accompanying university and spirit logos.

He earned a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) in Human Resource Management, a Master in Management Studies (with Distinction) in the Management of Technology and completed his Doctorate in Management, Organizational Behaviour, at Carleton University.

Dr. Murphy currently serves on the Board of Directors of the National Research Council of Canada; as the co‐Chair of eCampus Ontario; as Chair of Council of Ontario Universities Audit and Budget Committee; as Vice‐Chair of Ontario University Athletics; and as a member of Universities Canada Education Committee.