A high-ranking official at Capilano University resigned on Tuesday, April 7, following an investigation by the Squamish Reporter into a series of changes made to his official academic biography over the years.
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Toran Savjord, the University’s Vice President of Strategic Planning, Assessment, and Institutional Effectiveness, stepped down Tuesday afternoon. Savjord previously worked at Quest University as a Vice President and contributed to the design of the now-defunct university’s curriculum. He was also involved with Cornerstone Developments and the Squamish Clean Technology Association, and is on the board of directors at the local Coast Mountain Academy.
The University confirmed the resignation in a brief statement, thanking Savjord for his “eight-plus years of service,” but refused to address specific questions regarding its hiring and verification processes. The university declined to confirm whether Savjord had the bachelor’s degree in human kinetics he claimed on his bio.
A Narrative in Flux: Degrees change in 34 days
The Wayback Machine, which archives the internet, shows that Savjord’s official biography on the University’s website underwent a significant transformation in little over a month in 2019.
Archived records show that in September 2019, Savjord’s bio stated he began his post-secondary education at Capilano and “completed his graduate work at UBC.” The record in September made no mention of a completed bachelor’s degree. Thirty-four days later, in October 2019, the biography was updated to claim Savjord “went on to complete a bachelor’s degree in human kinetics and a master’s degree in business administration (MBA)” at the University of British Columbia.
His most recent biography, which has since been removed from the website, retained the bachelor’s degree but stated that he “continued on with studies at the University of British Columbia.”
MBA degree ‘website refresh’ issue: Savjord
When reached for comment last week, prior to his resignation, Savjord said it was a website refresh issue that led to the inclusion of the MBA in his biography.
“We did a website refresh a couple of years ago, and the person doing it listed incorrect info on the new page,” Savjord said. “When it was discovered, we reverted it back to the correct info that was there originally, which has my current credentials. Continued on with studies, refers to some not-for-credit courses that I took regarding coaching.”
In an email, Layne Christensen, the university’s Senior Communications and Government Relations Officer, said the MBA reference was inaccurate and was removed after it was reported. “The biography was updated in 2023 after an inaccuracy was reported,” she said in an email. However, the University didn’t specify the exact process it followed to verify educational credentials for VP-level appointments.
“Capilano University follows established recruitment and hiring processes aligned with academic and professional standards, which include qualifications being assessed against the requirements of the position. All current processes involve credential verification,” she said in her email.
When asked whether Savjord’s educational credentials were verified before or after his hiring, Christensen stated in the email that he met the requirements based on his prior executive-level experience and education. “A master’s degree was not required for the role at the time,” her email noted.
Capilano University: Evasion, then silence.
Finally, the University did not explain why a bachelor’s degree in human kinetics was added two years after Savjord started his position in 2017. And when asked to confirm whether Savjord had a bachelor’s degree in human kinetics and the year he received it, or whether the degree was verified when he was hired in 2017, the university chose not to respond, and said that Savjord had resigned.
“The university will not be providing additional details regarding Mr. Savjord,” Christensen said. “Capilano University confirms that Toran Savjord, vice-president, strategic planning, assessment & institutional effectiveness, has resigned from his role.”
Capilano University receives about $50 million in annual provincial funding. In 2023, Capilano University (CapU) announced it had reached an agreement with Primacorp Ventures and purchased its university campus property in Squamish. The Province paid $48 million for this purchase.
Savjord joined Capilano University in 2017 as Vice-President, Strategic Planning, Assessment & Institutional Effectiveness. According to the resume removed by Capilano University, he also helped create programs and developed certificates, diplomas, and degrees for colleges and universities throughout BC.
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