McMaster’s first trans academic leader reflects on five years as department chair

Professor Mel Rutherford made history when he became McMaster University’s first transgender academic leader in 2021.

For five years, Rutherford served as chair of the Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behavior (PNB). His term ends June 30^th.

Rutherford is an experimental psychologist whose research explores how people perceive, understand and lead one another.  He earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Yale University in 1992, a PhD in evolutionary psychology from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 2000 and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Denver before joining McMaster in 2002.

He is currently the executive director of the Council of Canadian Departments of Psychology, a partner in the Canadian Psychological Association and a member of the Canadian Consortium for Research.

You call being trans a leadership superpower – how so?

Anyone who’s chosen to transition is someone who’s done the work of self-discovery. We know who we are. Knowing yourself leads to authentic leadership and that’s how you build trust, strong relationships and greater collaboration.

Many trans individuals know exactly what it’s like to be marginalized, unseen and unheard. That leads to deep empathy – going beyond understanding how someone feels to an ability to feel with that person.  Empathy is how we strengthen our social fabric and build stronger relationships.

We’re also highly adaptable and resilient – transitioning takes a lot of courage and creative problem-solving. These too are essential leadership traits.

You transitioned in 2008. Compared to today, was that easier or harder to do?

There were definitely challenges but I’d say it was easier. My transition happened under the radar. Gender identity and expression weren’t yet part of the public conversation. That made it easier to blend in and maintain a measure of privacy.  There was less open hostility towards trans people compared to today. The world is much more polarized. When I transitioned, I was fully supported at home, in my church community and at work – a few colleagues apologized in advance for mixing up my pronouns.

Why did you put your name forward to become chair?

I’d been an academic my entire adult life – I never planned on stepping into a leadership role. I attended faculty meetings for 20 years and said next to nothing. I only spoke up when I thought I had something to contribute. My focus was on research, mentoring grad students and teaching in the classroom.

For my entire life, I’ve also been a member of the Unitarian Universalist Church. My parents discovered the First Unitarian Society of Salem, Oregon when I was two years old.

It’s a liberal religion with a commitment to inclusivity. The church has eight guiding principles that include respecting the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equity and compassion in human relations; acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth and the goal of world community with peace, liberty and justice.

Most of my leadership training and experience and the values that underpin my approach to leadership came from this community. I attended a leadership school offered by the church – I was encouraged to attend by an elder. She thought both the church and I would benefit if I had some formal leadership training. It was a three-day course delivered here at McMaster and I stayed in residence. It’s through the church that I first learned about values-based leadership. That was the style of leadership I wanted to bring to the department as chair.

I believed I could take all that I learned from Unitarian Universalism and from my experiences as a trans man and bring something unique to the role of department chair, bridging viewpoints and being a role model.

I also put my name forward to become chair because I love my department. I’m in awe of my colleagues and their compassion and support for each other. I wanted to do what I could to help strengthen both those bonds and the department’s foundation for research and teaching.

In your opinion, what’s the most important work that the department undertook during your time as chair?

We created a shared set of core values for the department. Four groups came together to do this work – faculty, staff, graduate students and representatives from the five undergraduate societies in our department. There were a lot of conversations.

We decided that our PNB community will be a compassionate, kind, supportive, safe, inclusive, courteous, transparent, accountable and empowering place to work and learn. We engage in research and scholarship with curiosity, rigour and inclusive collaboration. In teaching and learning, we value critical thinking, fairness and fun. Our decision-making is evidence-based, consensus-driven and thoughtful. And we approach conflict resolution with open-mindedness, perspective-taking and respect.

Why was it important to define a set of shared core values for the department?

Values serve as our compass both individually and collectively. The core values we developed together led directly to the other key initiatives we launched in our department.

We now practice compassionate accountability. It’s a values-based approach, rooted in relationship, trust and shared expectations. Instead of asking “who’s to blame?”, the focus shifts to “how do realign with our shared values?” We assume good intent, compare intentions with outcomes and invite reflection. You can feel this approach throughout our culture in PNB. People feel safe enough to listen to each other, we don’t shy away from difficult conversations and we aren’t afraid of personal and professional development.

We also adopted consensus decision-making. It’s a collaborative approach where the group works to frame issues and find solutions that best align with our values. Everyone knows they will have a chance to speak and be heard, to freely voice their concerns and propose different solutions. No one is silenced.

Does reaching consensus slow down decision-making?

It depends where you want to invest your time. Do you want to reach the best possible decision that everyone gets behind or do you want to push through a fast decision where not everyone is onboard?

Our department got more practiced with consensus decision-making over time. It doesn’t take forever and there aren’t endless debates and discussions. With our approach to decision-making, you can choose to stand aside and make way for the rest of the group and support their decision. I believe we’ve made far better decisions thanks to consensus decision-making.

Did you consider serving a second term as chair?

No – I took on the role with the intention of serving one term. The key work I wanted to do – introducing shared governance into the department – is done. I also focused on the leadership development of our associate chairs. We had three outstanding candidates come forward wanting to serve as chair. The department will be in very good hands.

I’m looking forward to getting back into my lab and eventually returning to the classroom.

Your best advice for the next PNB chair and anyone aspiring for a leadership role?

Listening is really important. Listen to your faculty colleagues, staff and students. Understand their viewpoints and incorporate what you hear into the decisions you make as a group. You need to know what people are thinking if you want to make impactful decisions. And you don’t need to be the first to express an opinion or share your viewpoint– if anything, be the last to contribute.