Michael DeGagné is the President & CEO of Indspire, an Indigenous national charity which supports and invests in the education of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people across Turtle Island.  

He was appointed Nipissing University President and Vice Chancellor in 2013, becoming the first Indigenous president of a Canadian public university. He later served as the first President of Yukon University, a new hybrid post-secondary institution in Whitehorse, Yukon. He is currently Professor of Sociology at University of Toronto Scarborough.

In 1998, Dr. DeGagné became the founding Executive Director of the Aboriginal Healing Foundation, a national Indigenous organization dedicated to addressing the legacy of Canada’s Indian Residential School System.  

He holds a PhD from Michigan State University, focussing on Indigenous post-secondary success, and Masters degrees in Administration, Law, and Public Ethics. He has co-edited and co-authored several publications in Canada and Australia on reconciliation and healing, including the “Speaking My Truth” series.  

He serves on numerous boards of directors including The Global Centre for Pluralism, the collegium of the University of St Michael’s College, and is co-Chair of the National Council on Reconciliation. He is a recipient of the Order of Canada, the Order of Ontario, and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal.  

Dr. DeGagné is a member of the Animakee Wa Zhing 37 First Nation.