Melanie Woodin

Professor Melanie Woodin is Dean of the Faculty of Arts & Science at the University of Toronto. She began her first term as Dean of Arts & Science on July 1, 2019, and was reappointed for a second term from July 1, 2024, to December 30, 2029. Beginning July 1, 2025, Professor Woodin will assume the role of President of the University of Toronto.
 
One of the most comprehensive academic divisions in the world, the Faculty of Arts & Science is a global hub for research, teaching and innovation. Under Professor Woodin’s leadership, the Faculty is leveraging its interdisciplinary strengths toward exceptional outcomes. During her tenure, the Faculty was awarded the largest federal research grant to a university in Canadian history, and pioneered pedagogical digital innovations to enhance teaching and learning. 

An accomplished scientist, Professor Woodin’s research focuses on understanding how the brain functions by studying the neuronal circuits that process information. She is the head of the Woodin lab. Her research group uses principles learned from the study of the healthy brain to uncover the mechanisms that lead to neurological disorders. She has received research funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Society of Canada, among others. 

Her neuroscience research laboratory investigates synaptic communication, which is fundamental to all brain function and underlies our ability to learn and remember. The Woodin lab then uses this understanding to identify targets for the development of therapeutics to treat neurodegenerative diseases, including Huntington’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Neurological conditions, including these devastating neurodegenerative diseases, affect more than 3.6 million Canadians. It is imperative that we identify ways to slow or prevent disease progression, and in doing so, improve patient quality of life and reduce caregiver burden. 

She completed her BSc and MSc at the University of Toronto and obtained her PhD from the University of Calgary. Following a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, Berkeley, she joined the University of Toronto in 2004 as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Zoology. She was promoted to full professor in 2017 in the Department of Cell & Systems Biology. 

Professor Woodin also serves on the Board of Directors at the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence. She is the President of the Canadian Association for Neuroscience, which is dedicated to advancing brain research and ensuring neuroscience remains one of the Canada’s greatest research and innovation strengths.