Christina Ionescu

Dr. Christina Ionescu is the co-founder and chief architect of the newly-established Visual and Material Culture Studies Program at Mount Allison University, Canada’s premier undergraduate university (Sackville, New Brunswick). Her creative vision for this unique and innovative program that targets visual and material literacy, intercultural communication skills, and global engagement has resulted in a thriving academic unit that equips students with a 21^st-century education. Established in 2019, this program has gradually grown by impressive increments (to over 1,400 course registrations in a small, liberal arts university with approximately 2,350 students in 2024–2025) – an extraordinary achievement in a post-secondary climate of dwindling enrolments in the Arts and Humanities throughout North America. Dr. Ionescu has a proven record of successful program development and implementation: a visionary in curriculum design and planning, she strategically led the accreditation of the one-of-a-kind Bachelor of Arts in Visual and Material Culture Studies (Minor/Major/Honours) by the Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission and designed an interdisciplinary Certificate in Visual Literacy and Culture that established Mount Allison University as the leader in visual literacy skillset training in Canada. Dr. Ionescu is a champion of cross-cultural understanding and effective communication across cultural boundaries, having initiated and managed several global partnerships and study abroad programs: she served as the Strasbourg Study Abroad Program Director, founded an inter-university partnership with the Institut d’Études Politiques (Université de Strasbourg, France), co-created and directed the popular Paris-Seville Spring Study Abroad Program, and acted as the former Chair of the International Programs Committee. As an academic leader, she embodies the keen ability to support colleagues in their vision, professional development, and desire to experiment. As a passionate educator, she is driven by genuine curiosity and respect for diverse worldviews and individuals, and inspired by innovation, creativity, empathy, cultural diversity, and community building.