Barry L. Craig

Barry Craig is a Canadian academic and Anglican cleric known for leading Huron University College, a liberal arts institution affiliated with Western University in London, Ontario. He became Huron's seventeenth President (also referred to as Principal) on July 1, 2016.^[1] Prior to this, Craig spent many years as a philosophy professor and administrator at St. Thomas University in Fredericton, where he ultimately served as vice-president (Academic & Research) beginning in 2010.^[2]

Craig was born and raised in Woodstock, New Brunswick, New Brunswick. He attended the University of King's College (Halifax) joining its Foundation Year Program in the late 1970s.,^[2] earning a Bachelor of Arts. During this time he served as sacristan in the King's Chapel. He later received a Master of Arts from Dalhousie University and completed a PhD in theology and religious studies at the University of Wales.^[2] During this period he became a member of the Anglican Church of Canada.

After ordination, Craig spent roughly 18 years in parish ministry in New Brunswick, serving as priest and rector in the Parish of Derby and Blackville (1985–1995) and in the Parish of St. Mary (York), Fredericton (1996–2003).^[3] In 2000 he transitioned to academia, joining the Philosophy Department of St. Thomas University in Fredericton. He taught philosophy there for about a decade and was later appointed Dean of Faculty and then vice-president (Academic and Research) in 2010.^[2]

At St. Thomas University, Craig led or helped develop several initiatives. He established an accessibility services office that increased enrolment of students with disabilities, negotiated an access agreement with New Brunswick's largest First Nation for liberal arts courses, and supervised creation of pre-law and pre-health arts programs.^[1] He also helped arrange collaboration agreements (e.g. offering Harvard Business School online courses to STU students) and authored the university's student code of conduct.^[1] He received multiple teaching and research awards while at STU.^[1]

On December 8, 2015, Craig was appointed the seventeenth Principal (now called President) of Huron University College, effective July 1, 2016.^[1] He succeeded Stephen McClatchie in this role. As President, he set forth a new strategic vision emphasizing "Leaders with Heart," a mission to develop students intellectually and ethically through rigorous academics and community service. Under this initiative, all Huron students are asked to undertake volunteer work and offered paid internships to cultivate empathy and leadership skills.

Since 2017, Huron under Craig's leadership has seen substantial growth. First-year enrolment roughly tripled and first-choice applications rose over 400%. Admission standards were raised to among the highest in Canada. Craig and his wife (a Huron faculty member) established new scholarships for Indigenous students, people of color, and economically disadvantaged students. He also oversaw nearly $100 million in self-funded campus development projects, including a 40,000 sq.ft. Frank Holmes Centre (Leadership, Ethics & Entrepreneurship, 2021) and a new 300-bed residence.^[4] During his second term, Craig led the drafting of a new five-year strategic plan for Huron (launched in 2023) and has continued to emphasize institutional diversity and accessibility.^[4]

In September 2023 the Huron Board of Governors unanimously appointed Dr. Craig to a third term, extending his presidency through 2031.^[4]

Barry Craig is the author or co-author of several books on theology, philosophy, and literature. His solo-authored work Apostle to the Wilderness: Bishop John Medley and the Evolution of the Anglican Church (2005) examines the history of the Anglican Church in Canada. He co-wrote four additional volumes with his wife, Sara MacDonald, including Recovering Hegel from the Critique of Leo Strauss: The Virtues of Modernity (2014), Recollecting Dante’s Divine Comedy in the Novels of Mark Helprin: The Love that Moves the Sun and the Other Stars (2015), Fate and Freedom in the Novels of David Adams Richards (2017), and The Coen Brothers and the Comedy of Democracy (2018). These works are published by academic presses (University of Toronto Press and Lexington Books/Rowman & Littlefield) and are cited in scholarly literature.

Craig is married to Dr. Sara MacDonald, a professor of political science at Huron University College; the couple have co-authored several books together. They have notably pledged and funded scholarships to advance Indigenous and minority student access at Huron. A practising Anglican, Craig holds the honorific “The Rev. Dr.” as a result of his ordination and service in the Church.