Michael Pountney

In 1992 Wycliffe administration was effectively divided between two persons eminently qualified to give the College the leadership it needed, Archdeacon Hilchey being appointed Acting Principal and Prof. Hayes being named Academic Dean. Led by their Chair, James Kennedy, a distinguished Toronto lawyer, Chancellor of the Diocese of Moosonee and an active Wycliffe trustee for many years, the trustees formed a search committee which went outside the Wycliffe community itself fix their sights on a person with no previous relationship to the College, but with the ability to focus on its needs and opportunities. He was the Reverend Dr. Michael Pountney, Ontario director of the Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship, who had come to Toronto from a pastoral ministry in Montreal. Michael Poutnney became principal of Wycliffe College in 1994. Since then, student enrollment has increased by more than 10 per cent, a new accredited degree program has been introduced and the budget has been balanced.