MEET OUR MOMENTOUS LEADERS

LINDA SCHUYLER ’18 (HON)

Honorary Trent alum, Member of the Order of Canada, and iconic television producer

For almost 40 years, Linda Schuyler has been the co-creator and executive producer of the internationally acclaimed Degrassi franchise that has won numerous awards (the prestigious Peabody award, two international Emmys and 22 Canadian Screen awards).

In 1994, in recognition of her contribution to Canadian television programming, Schuyler was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada. In 2012, she was also appointed to the Order of Ontario.

Schuyler was named a Trent honorary alumna in 2018 and then went on to serve as the University’s media educator in residence in 2019. She remains active in the Trent community as a member of the University’s Philanthropic Advisory Committee and recently published her memoir The Mother of All Degrassi When thinking back to her first introduction to the University, through her husband and Trent Chancellor Stephen Stohn ’66, Schuyler says she was immediately impressed by the inter-disciplinary approach to learning, vibrant college system, and the honour and respect given to Indigenous ways of knowing. She says she has seen first-hand the respectful and collaborative dialogue between students and faculty, and has witnessed students being encouraged to be independent thinkers, develop leadership skills and offer peer support to one another.

“As we embark on this Campaign of Momentous Change, it is at a time when the world is changing at a more rapid pace than ever before,” she says. “Our young people need to be equipped to face both the opportunities and challenges of this change with hope and optimism. I can’t think of a better institution to shepherd students through this change than the momentous university called Trent.”

GAVIN MARSHALL ’76

Trent alum, businessman, and proud Trent parent

Gavin Marshall is CEO of Magenta, one of Canada’s oldest and largest mortgage investment companies. After graduating from Trent in 1979 with a B.Sc. in Economics, he went on to earn an MBA and achieve progressively senior positions within Canadian financial institutions before founding Magenta in 1994.

He has stayed connected with the University over the years by serving as the inaugural chair of Trent’s Philanthropic Advisory Committee and a member of the University Board of Governors External Advancement Committee. Gavin and his wife Susan Marshall ’76 are also proud Trent parents as their daughter Heather Marshall ’16 earned a B.A. in English Literature.

During the campaign launch at Symons Campus in March, Marshall told the crowd he feels blessed to have studied at Trent University to hone his intellect and nourish his soul.

“Perhaps because Trent is built on sacred ground, where one can hear the whispers of our First Peoples and heed their teachings,” he says. “Trent is synergistically a very ancient place and a very new place, and that is fateful as we collectively stand at this crossroads in human history.”

Marshall says he champions Trent, and was happy to join the campaign as leader, because he wants to invest in the young leaders, pioneers and architects of tomorrow.