Office of the Vice-President, Research

The general role of the Office ot the Vice-President, Research is to coordinate and oversee all of the university’s research activities.

Reporting to Vice-President Lessard, the team is dedicated to research, and steering the Université de Sherbrooke among the ranks of the best research universities.

Professor Anne Lessard owns a PhD in education from the Université de Sherbrooke. She has also studied at McGill University, Queen's University, and Lakehead University. Her academic career is built at the intersection of education, natural sciences and recreology.

Professor at the Faculty of Education since 2004, she has held a research chair in partnership with the Centre de services scolaire de la Région-de-Sherbrooke, for more than 10 years. Her work has helped to raise the profile of practices that promote academic engagement and success. Her experience with Indigenous organizations and in the community has also nurtured her constant desire to link the university to the needs of the community.

Dean of the Faculty of Education from 2021 to 2025, Anne Lessard embodies leadership that is both rigorous and human, marked by an inclusive, collaborative and forward-looking vision. During her mandate, she has generated new momentum in research at the Faculty. Anne Lessard is a renowned researcher and she has actively pursued her work, particularly on the issues of student retention and intersectoral collaboration.

Since June 1^st 2025, she is the Vice-President, Research and Vice-President, International Relations, and responsible of the Research, Innovation and Creation Support Services, the Libraries and Archives Services, and USherbrooke International.

• View Anne Lessard's professional profile

Over the past three decades, Patricia Fournier has played a pivotal and mobilizing role in advancing research management and development. Her contributions span a wide spectrum—from overseeing program administration and coordinating grant and award competitions to preparing strategic documentation in support of funding applications and faculty nominations for prestigious awards and honours.

Through these diverse experiences, she has cultivated deep expertise in large-scale project management, risk mitigation, resource mobilisation, and process optimisation. In her current role, Patricia is fully responsible for driving initiatives that enhance the research capacity and impact of the Université de Sherbrooke. This includes leading the development of research programs and thematic clusters, as well as fostering strong, strategic communication with both internal stakeholders and external partners.

• Consult the contact details for Patricia Fournier

Holding a master’s degree in immunology and virology from the IRNS-Institut Armand Frappier, Dominic Therrien has over 15 years of experience in the private sector where he has participated in implementing solutions for analytical laboratories in the clinical, academic, and industrial sectors, on the North American continent and elsewhere in the world.

Prior to joining the UdeS, he was manager of a team of cytometry experts. In his early professional career, he also worked as the head of immunological testing at the Statens Serum Institute in Copenhagen, Denmark.

• Consult the contact details for Dominic Therrien