Mayann Elizabeth Francis, (born February 18, 1946) was the 31st

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

of the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

Early life and education

Born in

Sydney, Nova Scotia Sydney is a former city and urban community on the east coast of Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada within the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. Sydney was founded in 1785 by the British, was incorporated as a city in 1904, and dissolv ...

and raised in

Whitney Pier Whitney Pier (2016 population: 4,612) is an urban neighbourhood in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada. Prior to the 20th century, this area was known as “Eastmount” or “South Sydney Harbour,” and had long been a fishing and farming district. It i ...

, she is the daughter of Archpriest George A. Francis and Thelma D. Francis, and is a graduate of Saint Mary's University and completed graduate studies at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

Career

She was the director and

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of the

Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission The Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission (the “Commission”) was established in Nova Scotia, Canada in 1967 to administer the Nova Scotia ''Human Rights Act''. The Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission is the first commission in Canada to engage ...

from 1999-2006. She also served as Nova Scotia's provincial ombudsman from December 2000 until December 2003, the first woman to be appointed to that post. Previously, she served in senior positions with the Government of

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Dalhousie University Dalhousie University (commonly known as Dal) is a large public research university in Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the fou ...

and the District Attorney's office in

Kings County, New York Kings or King's may refer to: *Monarchs: The sovereign heads of states and/or nations, with the male being kings *One of several works known as the "Book of Kings": **The Books of Kings part of the Bible, divided into two parts **The ''Shahnameh'' ...

Community involvement

She is a past member of United Way/Centraide, the Mascoll Foundation, the board of governors at University College of Cape Breton (now

Cape Breton University , "Diligence Will Prevail" , mottoeng = Perseverance Will Triumph , established = 1951 as Xavier Junior College 1968 as NSEIT 1974 as College Of Cape Breton 1982 as University College of Cape Breton 2005 as Cape Breton ...

), the general council of the

Canadian National Institute for the Blind The CNIB Foundation (french: Fondation INCA) is a volunteer agency and charitable organization dedicated to assisting Canadians who are blind or living with vision loss, and to provide information about vision health for all Canadians. Founded ...

and she sat on Nova Scotia's Voluntary Planning Board. Francis has been recognized for her outstanding achievements with a

Harry Jerome Harry may refer to: TV shows * ''Harry'' (American TV series), a 1987 American comedy series starring Alan Arkin * ''Harry'' (British TV series), a 1993 BBC drama that ran for two seasons * ''Harry'' (talk show), a 2016 American daytime talk show ...

Award, an award from the Multicultural Education Council of Nova Scotia and a Golden Jubilee Medal. She is a member of the

African Orthodox Church The African Orthodox Church (AOC), registered as the Holy African Orthodox Church, is an Episcopalian, primarily African-American denomination which was founded in the United States in 1918 by the joint collaboration of its first Patriarch George ...

, a church formed in the late 19th century mainly for the African American community in the United States.

As Lieutenant Governor

On June 20, 2006, she was appointed by

Governor General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

Michaëlle Jean Michaëlle Jean (; born September 6, 1957) is a Canadian stateswoman and former journalist who served from 2005 to 2010 as governor general of Canada, the 27th since Canadian Confederation. She is the first Haitian Canadian and black person ...

, on the advice of

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. Harper is the first and only prime minister to come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ...

, to the office of

Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia The lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia () is the viceregal representative in Nova Scotia of the , who operates distinctly within the province but is also shared equally with the ten other jurisdictions of Canada, as well as the other Commonwealt ...

; she assumed office on September 7, 2006. Francis is the first Black Nova Scotian and the second woman to serve as Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia. In May 2008, Lieutenant Governor Francis was awarded a Doctorate of Humane Letters from

Mount Saint Vincent University Mount Saint Vincent University, often referred to as the Mount, is a public, primarily undergraduate, university located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and was established in 1873. Mount Saint Vincent offers undergraduate programs in Arts, S ...

. On February 16, 2012, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the appointment of Brigadier General (Retired)

John James Grant John James "Jim" Grant (born January 17, 1936) is a Canadian politician and soldier who served as the 32nd Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia. Early life and education Born in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, Grant attended Mount Allison University, g ...

, CMM, CD as the 32nd Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia. Francis was succeeded on April 12, 2012.

After serving

In 2016, Francis spoke out in response to a recent case of racial profiling in a retail setting in Nova Scotia. She validated the complaint, stating that she herself was the target of racial profiling while shopping at least once a month.

Arms

References

External links

Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Francis, Mayann Living people Canadian activists Black Nova Scotians Lieutenant Governors of Nova Scotia People from Sydney, Nova Scotia Women in Nova Scotia politics Black Canadian politicians 1946 births Canadian women viceroys Saint Mary's University (Halifax) alumni New York University alumni Black Canadian women