A Message from the Dean

Susan Knabe standing at a podium with a FIMS backdrop

July 2026

Dear Alumni,

Things here at FIMS have been busy as we wrapped up 2025-2026 and are preparing to welcome a whole new cohort of students to FIMS.  With the Summer term already past the halfway mark, there is lots to update you about on the twin themes of recognition and reconnection.  

In April, we selected the second annual recipient of our FIMS Alumni of Excellence Award. While last year’s winner, Brodie Fenlon, editor in chief of CBC News, hailed from the journalism program, this year we were thrilled to recognize an outstanding alum from the Library & Information Science side of the house. Dr. Mary Ann Mavrinac, MLS’84, exemplifies the type of candidate we’re looking for when selecting a recipient for this award; the academic, professional, and community impact she has made over her long career in academic and public libraries in multiple institutions and two countries made her nomination rise to the top in a very strong field. There was no shortage of testifiers eager to outline why Mary Ann deserved to win. She is also a star up north in her part-time home of Kirkland Lake, Ontario, and you can find out why by reading the award announcement on our website. 

Even though it is early days for FIMS in terms of our Alumni Award of Excellence, since Mary Ann is only the second awardee, I can say that we have been deeply gratified and made proud by the calibre of FIMS alumni who have thus far been put forward as nominees by their peers, friends, coworkers, former classmates, and in some cases, admirers from afar. The competition is fierce. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to assemble a nomination, and if you know a FIMS alum you believe should be recognized, please consider submitting a nomination for the 2027 award when submissions open later in the Fall. 

And we offer sincere congratulations to our newest alumni – those who joined the ranks on June 10 when they celebrated at their convocation ceremony at RBC Place in downtown London. FIMS hosted a morning reception in FNB that day, and we were delighted to see so many graduates and their guests, all dressed for the occasion. Photos were taken, snacks were eaten, and gold medals were awarded. We know that in time, these most recent FIMS graduates will be leading careers that are also worthy of awards and recognition. 

Looking ahead, we’re excited to announce that we will again host a FIMS alumni reception during Western’s Homecoming, on the morning of Saturday, September 26. Not only will we be celebrating Mary Ann, who will be on hand prior to receiving her award at a special evening reception, but we will also be welcoming back members of the BA in Journalism program from 1976 for their 50th anniversary! We’d love to have some reps from MIT (now MACS), Media Studies and our other programs, so if you fit the bill, come out to reconnect with us! You can register online.  

We’re also at work planning for the 2027 FIMS alumni reception in Toronto, timed, as always, to coincide with the annual OLA Super Conference. This event will be open to alumni from all FIMS programs, and we’ll take the time to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the graduation of our first cohort of MMJC students. We hope to see many of you there. The last few years, the receptions have been a blast, with more attendees and lots of memories. Registration will open in the Fall. 

Lastly, this summer we have embarked on an ambitious project to collect and organize the entire timeline and history of FIMS, as we approach our 30th anniversary. Because FIMS emerged from the merger of pre-existing schools (LIS and journalism), the complete history, which goes back to the 1920s, is somewhat fragmented. With the help of a team of capable interns, we are attempting to fill in the blanks, connect the dots, record people’s memories, and ensure a complete history will exist in the future for anyone who needs it. You’ll hear more about this project over the coming year, so keep an eye out for updates. The project will culminate in a year-long exhibition hosted in public spaces throughout the FIMS and Nursing Building to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Faculty in 2027-2028, as well as a more comprehensive digital archive. 

With that, I wish you the best for the remainder of the summer season and look forward to connecting with you again soon.

Susan Knabe
Acting Dean, Faculty of Information and Media Studies