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LGP Faculty
Full-Time Faculty
Martin Horak, PhD (Toronto)
Associate Professor
Dr. Horak specializes in Canadian and comparative urban politics. His research and publications address a range of related subjects, including multilevel urban governance, urban transit and housing policy, local political institutions, public opinion on municipal issues, local election candidates, and the possibility and practice of self-governing cooperation in cities.
Joe Lyons, PhD (Western)
Assistant Professor
Joe Lyons has taught in the LGP since 2013 and was Director from 2017 until 2026. He has a strong appreciation for its unique and important role in training local government administrators. Joe's teaching and research interests are in the areas of local government institutions and management. He is especially interested in special-purpose bodies and has published research comparing their performance with general-purpose governments.
Zack Taylor, PhD (Toronto)
Associate Professor
LGP Director
Dr. Taylor specializes in urban political economy and Canadian and comparative politics and policymaking, with an empirical focus on historical and contemporary multi-level governance of cities. He also pursues parallel interests in municipal campaigns and elections, local public finance, political geography, immigration policy and politics, and the historical Census. Professor Taylor was the founding director and current associate director of Western’s Centre for Urban Policy and Local Governance. He is a Fellow at the Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance in the University of Toronto’s School of Cities and a non-practicing Registered Professional Planner. Since 2024, he has served as Editor-in-Chief of the journal Territory, Politics, Governance. Before returning to doctoral studies, Professor Taylor worked as a graphic designer and urban planner, experiences that have generated ongoing interests in place and space, as well as also data visualization and cartography.
Part-Time Faculty / Lecturers
Kale Brown, MPA (Western), MSc (Durham), BComm (Saint Mary's)
Email: kbrow262@uwo.ca
Kale is the Director of Finance and Administration for the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO) and teaches finance and accounting courses part-time in Fanshawe College's Lawrence Kinlin School of Business. Prior to joining HEQCO, Kale held senior leadership positions in local government both as the Director of Corporate Services for the town of Aylmer and as the Director of Economic Development with the town of Ingersoll. Kale is a graduate of the Master of Public Administration program at Western and holds an MSc in finance from the University of Durham in the U.K. and a Bachelor of Commerce from Saint Mary’s University in Halifax.
Kane Faucher, PhD (Western)
Email: kfauche@uwo.ca
Kane Faucher initially specialized in metaphysics before shifting to information theory and political economy. He currently teaches in the Local Government Program in addition to several courses in the Faculty of Information and Media Studies, and workshops for the AMCTO. His current specialization is communications, organizational behaviour, and strategic planning (particularly for small and rural municipalities) where he also works as a consultant. His most recent research activities include an upcoming book, Social Capital: Accumulation and Alienation (Westminster University Press) and a co-authored book on strategic planning to appear in 2018, The Cost of Doing Nothing (Municipal World Publishing). He is a managing editor of Semiotic Review, and during his spare time he enjoys going on fossil digs in search of trilobites.
Kate Graham, PhD (Western)
Email: kgraha@uwo.ca
Kate Graham studies, teaches and writes about urban politics in Canada. She has more than a decade of experience working in local government, most recently as the Director, Community & Economic Innovation at the City of London where she was responsible for government relations, economic partnerships, culture and strategic initiatives. Her PhD research focused on the role and power of big city mayors in Canada (see: mayorsproject.ca).
Shanon Kalra-Ramjoo, MPA (York), PMP
Email: skalrara@uwo.ca
Shanon Kalra-Ramjoo has a wide range of experience in provincial, regional, and local levels of government in various sectors including health, education, social assistance, public works, public health, and corporate strategy. Shanon is currently a Director of Parks, Forestry and Horticulture Operations and Business Excellence and Operational Performance at the City of Vaughan. Shanon has a degree in Public Policy and Administration from York University and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Toronto.
Shanon has taught program evaluation and brings a passion for evidence-based decision making, data and analytics, program management and strategic planning. She is currently a member of the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA) and volunteers her time on various committees including York University’s Executive Advisory Board in the School of Public Policy and Administration and has volunteered on the Institute of Public Administration of Canada’s (IPAC) Toronto Regional Board of Directors.
Jennifer Kirkham, MSc (Guelph)
Email: jkirkha@uwo.ca
Jennifer Kirkham started her career working in local government. In her position of Director of Community Programs and Strategies with the City of London she managed a diverse portfolio which included such services as Ontario Works, child care, homelessness, social research, community capacity building and funding. She currently operates her own company, Mischevious Cat Productions, which provides strategy and management consulting to local governments and nonprofit organizations. She also is a co-founder of Charitability - a company focused on designing tools, dashboards, and frameworks so organizations can move from complex information to clear action.
Stephanie MacKenzie-Smith, MPA (Western)
Email: smacke53@uwo.ca
Stephanie has more than 18 years of public sector leadership experience across municipal government, healthcare, and policing. She also works as a consultant, supporting local governments and public sector organizations with communications strategy, on‑call crisis communications, and digital strategy. In addition to her role at Western, Stephanie has served as a contract faculty member in the School of Public Policy and Administration at York University and has taught communications and sociology at Seneca Polytechnic and Conestoga College. She holds an MPA, a BA degree in Journalism, a diploma in Communications and Public Relations, and a microcredential in Awareness of Indigenous Values, Identity, and Spirit. She is currently completing her PhD in Communication and Culture, where her research focuses on agenda setting and policy change within the reproductive justice space.
Dave Taylor, J.D., Law, MPA (Western)
Email: dtaylo33@uwo.ca
David Taylor is the Deputy Chief Administrative Officer for the Municipality of Chatham-Kent. Before taking on this role, he spent the majority of his career as legal counsel for Ontario municipalities and related boards. He holds a Bachelor of Social Sciences Degree from the University of Ottawa, a Juris Doctor from Western and is a graduate of the Masters of Public Administration program at Western.