New Mahon ON CAMPUS ON OCTOBER 15, 2010, DR. MICHAEL J. MAHON WAS OFFICIALLY INSTALLED AS THE SIXTH PRESIDENT AND VICE-CHANCELLOR OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LETHBRIDGE. READ ON TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE NEW PRESIDENT, THE ACTIVITIES THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE SINCE HE TOOK OFFICE IN JULY AND HIS VISION FOR THE FUTURE OF THE U OF L. Once a week, a young Mike Mahon (pronounced Man) would catch the bus in his hometown of Winnipeg, Man., ride across the city and head to the swimming pool or gymnasium to work with people with intellectual disabilities. The volunteer experience was part of a community-service expectation mandated by his high school, but Mahon wasn’t there simply to earn credit. Having grown up in a household that valued community engagement, the idea of volunteerism was second nature, and he took to it innately. “Growing up, that was just what I was exposed to, so the whole idea of volunteering just became a part of who we were as a family,” says Mahon. “There was this fundamental belief that
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volunteering was an important part of living in a community.” Mahon had no idea at that time this early community service opportunity would have such an influence over his future career. It would shape his graduate studies, research and now, as the new president of the University of Lethbridge, it continues to resonate. Born in Manitoba, Mahon grew up with four siblings in a house that teemed with activity. A self-described sports junkie, he played a little of everything and eventually was a two-sport (football and track) student-athlete at the University of Manitoba. After completing a bachelor’s degree in physical education, he moved on to the University of Alberta (MSc in Physical Education) and then
the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (PhD in Education) for his graduate and doctoral studies respectively. “When I started thinking about what I would do with my master’s degree, I did look back to that first experience,” says Mahon. “It had a tremendous amount of influence from a career perspective.” His research, which focuses on adapted physical activity with an emphasis on older individuals and persons with intellectual disabilities, has garnered a number of honours, including: Fellow of the Academy of Leisure Sciences (2001); Award of Distinction from the Canadian Centre on Disability Studies (2000); the University of Manitoba Rh Award for Outstanding Contributions
S AM | So u t h e r n A l b e r t a M ag az i n e | U n i v e r s i t y o f Le t h b r i d g e
to Interdisciplinary Scholarship and Research (1995). Mahon has since become a vigorous proponent of physical activity for people of every age and ability. Most recently, he has been working on several projects that bring a research focus to how sports and play can help children in developing countries. In that context he has been involved with Right to Play as well as Play Around the World, groups that supply sports equipment and programming support to children in developing countries. He says the opportunity to conduct research with these organizations, as well as become involved on a volunteer basis, is particularly rewarding. “The people I’ve known who have become volunteers have really, in the end, got more out of the experience themselves than they feel they’ve given,” says Mahon. His academic career has virtually mirrored the path he took as a student, beginning at Manitoba before transitioning to the U of A where he spent two terms as the dean of the