Lara McClelland was in her early 20s and a sports medicine researcher studying rehabilitation for knee disorders when she was involved in two tough cases. Both patients had dashboard injuries from car crashes – when their cars stopped, their bodies didn’t, displacing the two long bones in their lower legs behind their knees.

The first patient had an interdisciplinary team entirely focused on his needs, his care and what it would take to get him back to work and walking. His outcomes were excellent. That was not the case for the second patient, who received care from solo practitioners who didn’t know one another or work together as a team. 

“The experience shaped how I think about leadership and teamwork,” says MacEwan University’s new vice-president of University Relations (VPUR). “A group of people who each care deeply about their common purpose and who they are focusing on can achieve exceptional things. It's not always easy, but it feels incredible when you get there.”

Getting there has been the focus of McClelland’s career ever since. For 25 years, she has led teams with the Government of Alberta, NAIT and the University of Alberta. 

A few months ago, she took the LRT across the river for the first time as MacEwan’s VPUR, joining the 20,000 students, faculty and staff who make their way downtown every day. Before then, her trips to City Centre Campus were as “Mom” – ferrying her two daughters to swimming lessons and dance recitals and, in 2022, attending the university’s Open House with her eldest daughter. 

“As I watched my daughter, who is now in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, navigate conversations with faculty and students, I knew this place was different. I could feel the professors’ passion when they talked about their classes. I could see humility and grit in the students here. There was a feeling of forward momentum – hope, optimism and growth.” 

That forward momentum is a big part of what drew McClelland to MacEwan, where she now leads the UR team, including community and government relations, alumni and development, and marketing, communications and website functions. 

“While other sectors are looking at recovery or even contraction or restriction, with Teaching Greatness, MacEwan has a strong vision of growth. We have the right president and executive leadership team, and a strategic Board of Governors that challenges us to be future-focused. We have academics who take their role in supporting students and translating research to the learning environment very seriously. We have a physical location that contributes to the vibrancy of downtown. I can’t think of any other institution in the post-secondary sector with all of those ingredients.” 

For the next six months, those ingredients will guide her in building the integration capacity of University Relations. She sees her relatively new team (UR has existed for less than five years) as an engine.  

“When all components of that engine are working together and firing just right, it’s like magic.” 

And, she adds, there’s already a lot of magic happening. The university received funding for its new School of Business building – the only post-secondary institution in the province to receive this magnitude of funding for a new capital project in the last Alberta budget (a nod to government relations). The Office of Communications and Marketing and the Web Services team are providing critical information, sharing stories and working on a new, edgy brand campaign (watch for it in 2024). Alumni Relations is fostering connections and building our alumni community. And MacEwan’s Development team is on track to have the most successful fundraising year in the university's history. 

That doesn’t mean there isn’t work still to do.

“We need to partner internally with academia in ways that inspire trust and create partnerships that amplify their work. We need to respect our place in O-day’min and build on the fact that this is a positive place where positive things happen. We need to increasingly be relevant and responsive to the needs of our community and open our doors to our alumni. These relationships have an integral role in the growth of our institution and in demonstrating the value proposition of Teaching Greatness.”

Because, at the end of the day, greatness resonates. We all aspire to be great in some way, says McClelland – whether it’s playing a part on a great knee rehabilitation team, as a great prof, student or administrator, or doing a great job spreading the word about Edmonton’s downtown university. 

“I see our University Relations team poised to become world-leading among post-secondary institutions, not only because we have a great product to offer and amazing stories to tell but because we have people who truly care about what they do. Our insight, edginess, passion, cohesion and integration will get us there.”