Miami Ad School Toronto has named Rethink partner and CCO Mike Dubrick as its creative chair as the school’s founders prepare to expand with a new campus in Vancouver.

In addition to his current role with Rethink, Dubrick will be the lead on sourcing instructors, supporting course content and portfolio reviews, connecting clients for student opportunities and leading the annual curriculum review.

Dubrick has previously led courses for the school, and helped establish a partnership with Rethink client Molson Canada for its live client pitching competition.

Along with Drubick’s new role, Miami Ad School Toronto has announced that dean Stephen Jurisic will be moving on from the school. Jurisic was Miami Ad School Toronto’s first creative chair when it opened in 2016. He later became its full-time dean in 2018 after leaving John St., an agency he co-founded in 2001.

“The opportunity to bring in and work with some of the best creative people in the country and to build a curriculum that is relevant was a challenge and a joy,” Jurisic said. “I believe in creativity and its ability to solve problems, entertain and move us forward. And of course there’s the students, whose passion and character inspire me everyday.”

Jurisic was not specific about his next plans, beyond that he would “play in the sand box, scare myself again by doing stuff I’m not good at” and find the same “spark” he saw in the school’s students.

Co-founder Muneet Dhaliwal says the creative chair role is slightly different than the dean role, as it is less involved in the day-to-day with students but more focused on making connections with the broader ad industry.

Dhaliwal and co-founder Aman Gulati opened Miami Ad School’s Toronto campus in 2016, starting its offering with account planning and strategy bootcamps. Today, it offers two-year diploma portfolio programs in art direction and copywriting; a one-year diploma program in creative strategy; ten-week classes in individual subjects like brief writing, idea conception and research; and new bootcamps for pitching and UX design tailored to those already working in the industry.

With its strong foundation in Toronto, Gulati and Dhaliwal are also planning to open a new Miami Ad School campus in Vancouver in 2023, working in partnership with agency 123w. Details about plans and programs for Miami Ad School Vancouver are still to come.