Root
The
The UTS ALUMNI MAGAZINE • SPRING 2012
An Interview with Jim Fleck ’49
The Art of the Teacher • 2011 Annual Alumni dinner • REmembrance Day
5:00 p.m. – Junior Café Bleu 5:30 p.m. – Annual Art Exhibition and Reception 6:30 p.m. – Junior Music Night
Saturday, April 28, 2012 5:30 p.m. – Annual Art Exhibition and Reception 6:30 p.m. – Senior Music Night 9:30 p.m. – Senior Café Bleu For more information, contact Judy Kay (music) at jkay@utschools.ca or 416-978-6802 or Charlie Pullen (art) at Charlie.Pullen@utschools.ca
President John B. A. Wilkinson ’78 416-947-5010
Vice-President Mark Opashinov ’88 416-865-7873
Past President Peter Neilson ’71 416-214-5431
Treasurer Bob Cumming ’65 416-926-0944
Secretary
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
UTSAA Annual General Meeting 6:00 p.m. in the UTS Library Contact: alumni@utschools.ca
Saturday, June 9, 2012
337 Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps Centennial Celebration 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at Varsity Arena, Toronto Alumni, veterans, students, and staff are invited to attend as the Annual Ceremonial Parade returns to Varsity Arena for the first time in 40 years! For more information, contact Captain Warren Ralph ’71 at warrenralph71@rogers.com or 416-901-8123.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
UTSAA Golf Tournament
Nina Coutinho ’04 647-284-3701
Contents
Honorary President Rosemary Evans 416-946-5334
Mark Your Calendars
2
Honorary Vice-President
Bits & Pieces
4
President’s Report
8
Directors
Principal’s Message
9
Don Ainslie ’84 416-910-9360
UTS Board Report
10
Jonathan Bitidis ’99 416-703-7918
Advancement Report
11
Annual Alumni Dinner
20
Remembrance Day
31
Rick Parsons 416-978-3684
Don Borthwick ’54 705-436-3452 Aaron Chan ’94 416-788-5566
Aaron Dantowitz ’91 416-465-4827
Photography: Cover, Jim Fleck interview, and Branching Out, Jamie Day Fleck; Remembrance Day and Annual Alumni Dinner, Victor Yeung.
Robert Duncan ’95 416-809-2488
Looking Back background: © iStockphoto.com/Peter Zelei
Alumni Dinner and Awards
Peter Frost ’63 416-867-2035
Special Anniversary Year Celebrations 1937, 1942, 1947, 1952, 1957, 1962, 1967, 1972, 1977, 1982, 1987, 1992, 1997, 2002, 2007 All years are welcome! UTS Hall of Fame Inductees will be honoured. The fourth H.J. Crawford Award will be presented and the recipient honoured. Guests will also have an opportunity to visit the UTS Open House during the day. More information TBA. Location TBA. 5:30 p.m. – Reception; 6:30 p.m. – Awards Ceremony and Dinner. Registration will open in April at: www.utschools.ca/rsvp Contact: email alumni@utschools.ca or call 416-978-3919
Penny Harbin ’78 416-691-9793
Our thanks to this issue’s contributors: Don Borthwick ’54, Alex Chung ’12, Nina Coutinho ’04, Martha Drake, Rosemary Evans, Bob Lord ’58, Michelle Liu, John Lynch ’59, Michael Macaulay, Joseph B. McArthur ’46, Lily McGregor, Tom MacMillan ’67, Maria Niño-Soto, Warren Ralph ’71, Jane Rimmer, Diana Shepherd ’80, Lindsay Stollery, Tori Stollery, Ian Sturdee ’59, Tibor Szandtner ’59, John Wilkinson ’78, Marilyn Verghis ’12, and Carole Zamroutian.
Join us at St. Andrew’s Valley for our 17th Annual Tournament. Tee-offs from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Contact: alumni@utschools.ca or call 416-978-3919 for more information.
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Oliver Jerschow ’92 416-691-5725 Emily Rix ’96 416-447-6340
Editor: Diana Shepherd ’80
Jennifer Suess ’94 416-654-2391
Printed in Canada by Colour Systems Inc.
Philip Weiner ’01 647-262-6247
Design: PageWave Graphics Inc.
An interview with Jim Fleck ’49: entrepreneur, professor, and philanthropist.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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The Art of the Teacher We asked alumni who had become teachers to share their stories: here’s what they had to say. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Alumni News All the latest in the lives of your classmates, including In Memoriam and tributes to the lives of five distinguished alumni. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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University of Toronto Schools Alumni Association
TORON OF TO
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On the cover: Jim Fleck ’49 in the Rotman School of Management’s Fleck Atrium
A Serendipitous Life
LU VE
George V. Crawford ’72 416-499-0090
Jim Slotta
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Friday, April 27, 2012
Board of Directors
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Art and Music Nights
UTSAA
UNIVER SI
Mark Your Calendars
AR RA BOR ITA
371 Bloor Street West, Room 121, Toronto, Ontario M5S 2R7 Phone: 416-978-3919 Fax: 416-971-2354 E-mail: alumni@utschools.ca Web: www.utschools.ca/alumni Published Spring and Fall, The Root is available to all alumni, parents and friends of UTS. Contact us at the above addresses to receive a copy or to change your address. The issue is also available at: www.utschools.ca/root
Bits & Pieces A Compendium of Noteworthy UTS Tidbits
A Walk in the Rainforest
Welcome to the new Root! You may have noticed there’s something different about the magazine you’re holding in your hands; it has been redesigned by PageWave Graphics, the design firm that created University of Toronto Schools 1910–2010, the centennial book written by Jack Batten ’50. Designer Kevin Cockburn says that the main focus was to achieve a fresh new look and feel for the magazine. “A combination of modern sans-serif fonts for headings and a humanist font for the articles makes for easy reading and navigation,” he explains. “For the cover logo, we’ve used the typeface Trajan – which has a certain timeless strength and elegance that is appropriate in representing the past, present, and future UTS.” As always, this Root is packed with interesting information and updates about alumni as well as news from and about the school. In these pages, you’ll also find an interview with powerhouse Jim Fleck ’49 and an article about alumni who chose to become elementary or secondary-school teachers. If you have some news to contribute to the next issue, please drop us a line at alumni@utschools.ca – we’d like to hear from you! I started editing The Root in 2008, and I can honestly say that I’ve loved working on every single issue. Like you, I want to keep up with what’s happening at our alma mater – a place that played such an important role in defining the people we are today. I only hope you enjoy reading this issue as much as we enjoyed working on it! n – Diana Shepherd ’80
For the past year, UTS science teacher Dr. Maria Niño-Soto worked with OISE Ph.D. candidate Michelle Lui, Michelle’s advisor Dr. Jim Slotta, and a dedicated team of researchers to develop interactive technology-based activities to support the grade 11 biology curriculum. After more than a year of design and planning, the EvoRoom fully came to life in the UTS SMART classroom: a room equipped with SMART Boards, which are interactive whiteboards that act as large touch-screen computers. In the EvoRoom, three large screens on each side of the room combined with sounds of the rainforest (including rain, bird calls, a burbling stream of water, etc.) mean that students are immersed in a simulated environment that engages them in collaborative inquiry activities. Using digital tablets and QR scanners – which allow them to know where they are in the program and where to go next – the students record information that is aggregated on the SMART Board
Root
THE
THE UTS ALUMNI MAGAZINE • SPRING 2012
An Interview with Jim Fleck ’49
THE ART OF THE TEACHER • 2011 ANNUAL ALUMNI DINNER • REMEMBRANCE DAY
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THE ROOT • Spring 2012
if we could be surrounded by interactive images and, working with teammates, be given the chance to explore and use our own experiences to create a knowledge base. This is the idea at the core of this project, and it’s one that allowed us to take a walk in the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra, beginning 200 million years ago through to the present day!
and then shared and discussed with the entire group. Maria and Michelle faced challenges with the technology and with the process of bringing the experience to life, but Maria points out that: “the possibilities are endless and the potential, incredible. We are very fortunate to have the opportunity to explore these new directions here at UTS.” Below, Maria and Michelle reflect on the experience. Dr. Maria Niño-Soto: In 2008, I left behind my days as a postdoc researcher at the University of Guelph to pursue a career as a high-school teacher. Little did I know I soon would be carrying out research again, this time in education! The learner-teacher connection in high school allows for a great deal of collaboration. Nevertheless, we are limited by our resources – especially the time we can invest in activities that foster critical thinking and collaborative learning. So imagine what would happen Jim Slotta
Letter from the Editor
Michelle Lui: In June 2011, with the help of eight dedicated UTS student volunteers, we launched EvoRoom; we quickly determined that the goal for the next version should be to improve understanding of the interrelationships within the ecosystem and environmental effects on the biodiversity of various species. Groups of students became “experts” in a certain species (e.g., primates), created scenarios, and made predictions about the effects of various factors on the ecosystem over five years. From four different versions of the rainforest ecosystem, they determined which could be the result of their manipulation. This immersive activity kept the students highly engaged and they were excited to find out if they had picked the correct rainforest for their prediction! “This is still a work in progress,” says Maria. “As with much of research, we don’t know if it will be feasible to do it again or not. The long-term goal is to create technology-supported teaching tools for the future – but how the research gets inserted into our everyday teaching today is another matter.” n
UTS Student Wins Governor General’s Award Dr. Maria Niño-Soto uses a tablet and a SMART Board in the EvoRoom.
It all began last year with an assignment in Paul Harkison’s F2 (grade 8) “Canadian History since WWI” class.
His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, presented UTS student Divya Santhanam with her award in Rideau Hall.
The students were asked to create a WWI Learning Portfolio, and this proved to be the catalyst for Divya Santhanam’s award-winning short story “A Long Forgotten Treasure.” The story won a 2011 Governor General’s History Award in the Kayak Kids Illustrated Challenge competition – one of just six such awards given annually by Canada’s History Society. In UTS F2, Divya learned about both World Wars and found the subject matter fascinating. “[We learned about] the enormous sacrifices Canadian soldiers had to make and how they fought and were willing to die for their country,” said Divya (now in M3 or grade 9), adding that she found studying about the Canadian war effort inspiring. In her story, a grandfather recounts his experiences of being a Canadian soldier during World War I’s Battle of Passchendaele to his grandson, telling the story of how he earned the Victoria Cross for his valour in combat during the battle. Divya says she is very close with both of her grandfathers and loves listening to their stories, and it was those relationships that gave her the idea for her tale. On December 12, 2011, Divya, along with the five other award-winners, attended a ceremony in Rideau Hall in Ottawa, where His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, presented them with their prestigious awards. “I was really excited and glad to receive this honour,”
Divya said. “It’s not every day you get to meet the Governor General; it’s a oncein-a-lifetime experience.” n
Beyond the Classroom “Branching Out” Mentoring Event In the “Branching Out” mentoring program, students get an opportunity to explore career and university goals and to benefit from the perspective of an older – hopefully wiser! – former UTSer, and alumni get the satisfaction of sharing their experience and knowledge with eager students. The program’s highlight this year was Branching Out: Education Beyond the Classroom, on November 17, 2011, to which the entire community was invited. The evening kicked off with an inspiring keynote speech by Jim Fleck ’49 (see “A Serendipitous Life” starting on page 12 to learn more about Jim), who shared what he considers to be the key elements of a successful life. Our alumni panel then weighed-in, reflecting on Jim’s thoughts and adding their own insights. Tariq Fancy ’97, principal in the Private Debt group at the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, spoke about the rewards of global experiences. Branching Out mentor Oliver Jerschow ’92 (UTSAA Director), manager of InterGovernmental Infrastructure Policy in the Ontario Ministry of Infrastructure, considered the opportunities that arise THE UTS ALUMNI M AGAZINE
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Bits & Pieces
LEFT (L-R): Education Beyond the Classroom moderators, Frank Li ’12 (school co-captain) and Allan Yan ’12 with Jim Fleck ’49, Oliver Jerschow ’92, Jennifer Orange ’89, Tariq Fancy ’92, and David Allan ’78. RIGHT: Larry Hill ’75 chats with grade 10 students.
from networking. Lawyer Jennifer Orange ’89 related how she used the challenge of her daughter’s unforeseen illness to begin an entirely new vocational track; and David Allan ’78 (UTS Board Member), executive chairman of the Tao Group of Companies, emphasised the role of education as the basis for a successful business career. Mentee Adarsh Gupta ’12 commented that: “After listening to the panel, I
began to understand that it’s extremely important to choose an undergraduate education that leaves doors open, because undergoing career changes is commonplace nowadays.” Another mentee, Emily Chen ’12, said that: “The panel speakers taught us how to balance work and personal life, deal with rejection, and pick ourselves up after our plans fall apart.” At the Branching Out Closing Event on
The Keys Gallery Celebrating 13 years! Exhibiting in the Gallery this fall:
Don Boutros, Retired Faculty
New Urban Paintings The Keys Gallery is located in Room 107a at UTS. If you would like to exhibit, contact Liv Mapue ’04 at liv@kraftlab.org or Johanna Pokorny at johanna.pokorny@gmail.com for further information.
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February 22nd, Principal Evans praised the time, devotion, and dedication of the mentors throughout the program (a record 26 partnerships!). Alumni commented on the benefits they’d enjoyed – including re-involvement with UTS and guiding their mentees’ explorations of educational options and career paths. As one alumna observed, “The mentee teaches you as much as you teach them.” n
Students welcome Larry Hill ’75 to UTS On behalf of the Harmony Committee – a student group that celebrates diversity in and around the UTS community – we recently wrote to alumnus Lawrence (Larry) Hill ’75, author of The Book of Negroes (HarperCollins, 2007), inviting him to visit UTS during Black History Month to talk about his work, issues of race and identity, and his experiences at the school. UTS staff arranged a full program of activities, beginning with a special all-school assembly. Addressing the misconception that Black History is uniquely tied to American slavery, Larry
spoke about how African colonial history is also inextricably tied to Canadian history. He read an excerpt from The Book of Negroes, shared that he is currently working on a film adaptation of the book, and explained that he was asked to rename the book for markets in the US, Australia, and New Zealand (where it was ultimately released as Someone Knows my Name). Larry responded to student questions, then joined a number of the staff, student equity leaders, and some special guests (classmates David Rosenbaum ’75 and Chuck Tysoe ’75, and former teachers Derek Bate ’44 and Al Fleming ’54) at a lunch gathering. He shared some personal stories of his time as a UTS student and even pointed out a funny picture of himself in the hallway. Larry spent a period with the M4 (grade 10) students offering some personal insights on the portrayal of black characters (in particular, Othello, which the M4s were studying) in the course literature. He also discussed his writing process, saying that he likes “to let it fly”: to write quickly and then to go back and refine. He stressed that it was important to “find the heart” in the writing and he encouraged students to read current black literature. Larry signed student copies of his books and also a number of volumes that he donated to the UTS library. His last stop was the Office of Advancement where he sported his new UTS hoodie to show his school pride! We couldn’t have been more thrilled with the warm reception and attentive presence of the students who heard Larry speak. After so many years, it was a pleasure to welcome him back to our school! n – Alex Chung ’12 and Marilyn Verghis ’12 Executive Directors, UTS Harmony Committee
Back to School The 2011–12 school year has seen many alumni back at UTS, visiting classrooms and labs and sharing their expertise with students. Physicist Alan Fisher ’71 visited Advanced Placement physics to discuss his work with high-energy particle accelerators at Stanford University; Harvard math professor Jacob Tsimerman ’06 spoke to the math club; and UofT professor and philosopher Thomas Hurka ’71 discussed his recent book The Best Things in Life: A Guide to what Really Matters (Oxford University Press, 2010) with S6 (Grade 12) philosophy students. Five recent alumni – Jonathan Bright ’04, Peter Wills ’07, Sima Atri ’08, Vivek Kesarwani ’09, and Fern Ramoutar ’11 – shared some insights with students about their experiences at UofT; and McMaster University professor Paul Rapoport ’66 spoke to the S6 music students about music not composed in the usual 12 note octave. Journalist Paul Tough ’85, whose work includes New York Times Magazine cover stories, discussed values-based education with staff. (His new book, The Success Equation, will be released later this year by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.) Christine Farquharson ’10 led a discussion of international immigration in the senior World Issues class, and Noah Shopsowitz ’72 discussed a recent class topic with the S6 Writer’s Craft students: screenplay writing.
Errata David Brillinger ’55 is the recipient of three Honorary Doctorates and has now retired from Chair of Statistics at UC Berkeley. We regret the errors published in the Fall 2011 issue of The Root. n
TOP (L-R): During his visit to UTS, Paul Tough ’85 had a chance chat with his former teacher, Andrew Wilson. BOTTOM (L-R): Fern Ramoutar ’11 and Sima Atri ’08.
THE UTS ALUMNI M AGAZINE
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President’s Report
Principal’s Report
Counting our Blessings
Teaching at UTS
Looking back on a busy and eventful year.
A transformative, values-driven commitment.
Greetings from your UTSAA! It has been a busy and eventful year for UTSAA. Here are the highlights.
John Wilkinson, ’78 President, UTSAA
Governance Review: This year, the UTSAA Board initiated a comprehensive reconsideration of aspects of our structure, operations, and documentation, and a review of our values, mission and vision statements, and committee structure (all works in progress). A review of our by-laws and a “key records” retention project will follow. Annual Alumni Dinner: All who attended were first wowed by the musical talent of UTS students, and then witnessed the presentation of the Crawford Award and the induction of a stellar troupe of UTS music and arts legends into the school’s Hall of Fame. Interaction with the School: The UTSAA board (and other alumni) provided input into the school’s evolving Strategic Plan. Various Board representatives attended numerous school functions – from all-important graduation celebrations to the moving Remembrance Day ceremony. Constructive interaction with the school’s Office of Advancement has lead to innovative ideas, consistently positive fundraising, and – most importantly – meaningful and frequent communication with alumni through a growing variety of media – from written letters (yes, it still happens) to Facebook. In addition, a new tradition was started by inviting the current school co-captains to a Board meeting to share students’ perspectives on the school and the UTSAA. Finally, principal Rosemary Evans has been unfailing in her support of the UTSAA (and in her attendance at our Board meetings!). Events: Alumni have been closely involved in many well-attended and enjoyable events, including Branch meetings in cities around
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the world, sports activities (such as the annual basketball and golf tourneys), the Branching Out mentorship program, and the “Education Beyond the Classroom” speakers program in November. Year Reps: Year Reps are often the primary connection between you and the UTSAA. We are working to provide more support to these wonderful volunteers moving forward in order to enhance communications between classmates, with the school, and with other alumni. School Location: On behalf of the Association and the school’s 5,500 alumni, our leadership has invited the University of Toronto to discuss its decision regarding 371 Bloor Street West. We have communicated that, while we recognize that UTS is more than bricks and mortar, many alumni – a large percentage of whom, like me, are also UofT alumni – have been taken aback by the decision. We have also conveyed that we feel it is mutually beneficial to foster the ongoing strong relationship between UTS and the University. We hope that a dialogue about the future of the UTS–UofT nexus will help to shape that connection in a positive manner. All in all, UTSAA is blessed with: • a school of unique and wonderfully talented students; • an engaged and active Board; • many dedicated and enthusiastic Year Reps; • a school Advancement team that is talented, forward-thinking, and pro-active; • an innovative and energetic faculty led by a principal who, within her first year, already “gets” UTS, and who is a passionate and eloquent advocate for the entire community; • an alumni body made up of people like you and your classmates, our most important constituency and indisputably our greatest strength. n
We live in a fast-paced society in which technological advances are impacting and reshaping our world in far-reaching and unexpected ways. At UTS, our teachers – like many teachers elsewhere – are engaged in discussions regarding how to prepare students for a global society, as well as the significance and relevance of our educational program, and the values implicit in what – and how – we teach. Established as the first practice-teaching secondary school in the province of Ontario, UTS has always been at the forefront of educational innovation. Henry “Bull” Crawford, the first principal, personified the spirit of the school. Jack Batten ’50 noted in University of Toronto Schools, 1910–2010 that, as a former principal at Riverdale Collegiate, Crawford was known for his dedication to social justice, often using his own funds to provide textbooks and clothing for students in need. He shaped a school that demanded of its students and teachers scholastic rigor and an expectation of “honest work, fair play, polite manners and good morals”. Over the years, what constitutes excellence and progressive practice in Ontario education has changed significantly – though much has remained the same. One of the foremost debates has centered on two conflicting paradigms: teaching as “transmission” of knowledge, which focuses on the transfer of content, and where memorization and recitation predominate; contrasted with the transformative approach (espoused by noted educators such as John Dewey and Paolo Friere), which involves students in creating knowledge through inquiry, critical thinking, and problem-solving, and using that knowledge to transform the social order and tackle prevailing injustice. At UTS, creative tensions between these two models have frequently shaped discourse. Former principal Brock MacMurray struggled with the
values dilemmas that shook the rebellious ’60s. His enduring legacy for many was the values he championed and expected of the students, exemplified in the school trophy he left to be awarded to the student who best demonstrated “scholarship, excellence in extracurricular activities, example, self-discipline, integrity and courage.” The early masters were subject specialists, as are our teachers today, but this did not preclude them from espousing a strong set of values. Renowned educational psychologist Howard Gardner maintains that despite – or perhaps because of – the changes being wrought to our global society, there is still a place for “classical” values such as truth, beauty, and goodness in our schools. As our alumni can attest, UTS teachers have never veered far from Gardner’s vision. Throughout the school’s history, they have continued to love their subjects, demand excellence and rigor, challenge students to question their assumptions, and inspire students to grapple with values dilemmas and to take a stand.
Rosemary Evans Principal, UTS
There is still a place for “classical” values such as truth, beauty, and goodness in our schools. As our alumni can attest, UTS teachers have never veered far from [this] vision. UTS alumni recall with fondness their inspirational teachers. They speak about the transformative impact that the school has had on them and, by extension, on the global community. They express gratitude for the opportunities and possibilities that the school provided, and they readily admit that without a UTS education they would not have achieved so much. UTS teachers today continue the commitment to a transformative, values-driven education. n
THE UTS ALUMNI M AGAZINE
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UTS Board Report
Advancement Report
A Productive New Year
The Final Gift
Welcoming our new directors and continuing the search for a new home for UTS.
Our alumni make clear their abiding commitment and dedication to the future of their school.
Bob Lord ‘58 Board Chair, UTS
The year began with a good deal of Board activity. As of January 1, 2012, three long-serving Board members retired. Sujit Choudhry ’88, former parent Cathy Mallove, and Bernie McGarva ’72 stepped down to pursue career and personal priorities. Each had contributed immeasurably to the Board and to the school, and there is no doubt that we will be reaching out to them again for their wisdom and expertise. The response to our call for nominations was overwhelming, and the Board found itself in the fortunate but difficult position of having many more qualified candidates than available positions. After careful consideration, we appointed five new directors, expanding the Board from 12 to 14. Incoming directors David Allan ’78, Jim Fleck ’49, Andre Hidi ’77, Michelle Hull (parent), and Prabhat Jha (parent) participated in a full orientation session in early February and are already quite involved in several Board committees.
Each one of these accomplished directors is deeply committed to the school and brings valuable expertise and focused energy to our initiatives. Each one of these accomplished directors is deeply committed to the school and brings valuable expertise and focused energy to our initiatives: David Allan is a long-standing member of the Board’s Affiliation Committee; Andre Hidi is both a generous supporter of the school and an active member of the Affiliation Committee; Michelle Hull has been an active member of UTSPA and the Board’s Advancement Committee; and Prabhat Jha is using his global expertise to further develop the Global Ideas Institute with
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principal Rosemary Evans. All have volunteered their time to other Board steering committees. We are very lucky to have their support and commitment. One of the new Board and Affiliation Committee members, Jim Fleck, is being recognized in this issue of The Root for his steadfast commitment and generosity to UTS. He is also an Officer of the Order of Canada and one of Canada’s most active philanthropists. We are very fortunate to have Jim, a celebrated example of a UTS success story, give back to the school in a truly meaningful way. The site search process has been an area of focus and increased activity for the Board in recent months. The Board has been working diligently to explore viable options for a permanent home for UTS. The site search efforts are being led by Rosemary Evans and the Site Search Committee, co-chaired by Peter Neilson ’71 and Don Schmitt ’70. The options we are exploring must meet the following criteria: 1) Close proximity to the St. George Campus 2) Close to a subway line 3) Financially doable and sustainable, and 4) Appropriate to the school’s program needs. Although we have a way to go to achieve our goal, one important factor has come to light during this process: with increasing support from an expanding circle of individuals, we have realized that UTS has many friends and much support within the immediate and extended community. This in itself boosts our confidence with respect to our prospects of finding a suitable home for UTS. We will continue to update you on events as they develop. Please visit the school’s website (www.utschools.ca) for the latest news. n
This year, I attended too many funerals of UTS alumni – some were dear to me before I joined UTS and others welcomed me into the UTS fold and had become part of my regular interactions. Listening to the tributes during their funerals, I reflected on the full lives that these alumni led, the impact that they made in their communities, and the legacies they left behind. John Macaulay ’45 was the first UTS alumnus to contact me when I arrived on the job. He and John “Butch” Bowden ’46 sat me down and delivered a course in “UTS 101”: they addressed the school’s history and the UTSAA’s role in saving the school when funding was cut in the 1990s, the profound connection that UTS alumni have to their school, and provided offers to support our mission to help secure the future of the school through alumni relations and fundraising. John Macaulay was a meticulously organized man who was not afraid of sharing good ideas. Hardly a week would pass without an envelope containing an interesting article on fundraising, or a phone call to let me know the latest ideas from the Class of 1945 to provide more financial support to more UTS students. John Macaulay loved his school and, along with John Bowden and Jack Rhind ’38, he received the 2011 Crawford Award in recognition of his philanthropic commitment to UTS and for his continuous and varied philanthropic volunteer efforts to society at large. Less than two weeks before John was to have received his award at the UTSAA Annual Alumni Dinner, he suddenly passed away. But, as I said, he was an organized man and had already written his acceptance speech, impeccably delivered by his sons, Michael and Peter. This is a man who dedicated himself to UTS. He was one of the leaders of the Class of 1945 Bursary and, upon his death, UTS received a generous charitable bequest from John’s estate to further enhance the class’s bursary. I wish the
students who receive the bursary could have known John and could have expressed their gratitude to him for making his final gift to UTS. I know that recognition was not a factor in John’s philanthropy: for him, the satisfaction was found in knowing that his graduating class enabled students to access a UTS education. Another alumnus recently made his final gift to UTS in a different way. Timothy Hunter ’59 lost his battle to cancer in January. Memorial donations were designated to UTS to provide bursary support to help future students gain access to the same quality education that Tim received. The response from Tim’s classmates, family, friends, and former colleagues has been so strong that the Timothy Arnold Hunter Bursary was established as one of UTS’ largest bursary funds. Every day, I am heartened by the caring gestures of UTS alumni as they partner with students in the Branching Out mentoring program, return to the school to speak in classes or assemblies, make annual contributions through the UTSAA Annual Fund, and provide good ideas to the UTS Board as they work to forge our future. In planning to remember UTS, our alumni make clear their abiding commitment and dedication to the future of their school. n
Martha Drake Executive Director, Advancement
Make a difference today for tomorrow’s students... If you would like to designate a bequest to UTS or receive information on planned giving, please contact: Martha Drake, Executive Director, Advancement at 416-946-0097, or mdrake@utschools.ca.
...and leave your mark on UTS’ future!
THE UTS ALUMNI M AGAZINE
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A Serendipitous Life An Interview with Jim Fleck ’49 By Diana Shepherd ’80 Photography by Jamie Day Fleck
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Professor Jim Fleck visits the Fleck Atrium at the Rotman School of Management.
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ames (Jim) Douglas Fleck ’49 is an active member of the Class of ’49 Committee
and the UTS alumni community. He has donated generously and in many ways to the school through the years – most recently, by joining the UTS Board of Directors. He holds a doctorate of business administration in finance from Harvard, and has received honorary degrees from the University of Toronto and the University of Trinity College. Jim is a highly-respected long-time entrepreneur, business professor, and philanthropist. In 1954, he founded Fleck Manufacturing Inc., which grew from 10 to 3,500 employees and generated over $100 million in sales. He has served on many boards including the Chairmanship of ATI Technologies and Alias Research. In 1972–73, he was International President of the Young Presidents Organization. He is currently Chairman of NGRAIN Corporation, a Vancouver-based provider of 3D simulation solutions for maintenance and training for the defense industry, and he is Chairman of Business for the Arts, and the Ontario Minister’s Advisory Council on Arts and Culture. Jim has taught at the Harvard Business School, York University, and the University of Toronto. He has also served in government as CEO of the Office of the Premier of Ontario, Secretary of the Cabinet, and Deputy Minister of Industry and Tourism. He has served as Chair of the Art Gallery of Ontario and Tennis Canada. He is also a member of the Chief Executives Organization and was on the Canadian Council of Chief Executives. Jim was presented with the Queen’s Silver Jubilee medal in 1977, the Queen’s 50th Anniversary Medal in 2002, and he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1997. In 2003, he received the Edmund C. Bovey Award for Leadership Support of the Arts, and he received the Angel Award for philanthropy in the Arts in 2009 from the International Society of Performing Arts. In 2004, he was inducted into Canada’s Tennis Hall of Fame as a Builder, and he received the Public Policy Forum Testimonial Dinner Award for “Distinguished Service to Canada” in 1996. In February 2012, he received the Clarkson Laureate for Public Service at Massey College, UofT. The Root’s Editor, Diana Shepherd ’80, recently caught up with Jim to talk about his fascinating series of careers, and about UTS – past, present, and future. THE UTS ALUMNI M AGAZINE
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you tell us a little about the teachers who you are! Obviously, the girls had no trouble DS Can JF There influenced you most at UTS? becoming part of the school very quickly. While I teacher who had the biggest impact on me was teaching at the Harvard Business School, it also went JF The was Roy Dilworth. He was a French teacher and he from all-male to co-ed, so I experienced this sort of change coached basketball, in which I was quite active. He took a personal interest in his students – particularly the ones who were on his teams – and I benefitted greatly from his mentoring. Math was certainly my strongest subject at UTS, so I had a particular affinity for the math teachers. I had Bruce MacLean, affectionately known as “Nails”. Nails was a perfectionist and a disciplinarian who didn’t take any nonsense from his students. Nails is the one who taught us that there are three kinds of people: those who can count and those who can’t! One of the outstanding attributes shared by all UTS teachers was that they came out to extra-curricular activities – both as coaches and as cheerleaders for those who were representing the school. I was very involved with sports at UTS, playing on the basketball and footballs teams. We used to play our sports up at the “Aura Lee” athletic field, which was between Yonge and Avenue Road north of Davenport. Aura Lee was a gift to the University largely for the use of UTS students; later, when Aura Lee became part of the city’s Ramsden Park, UTS athletics moved to the Robert Street field – which the students still use.
DS That was quite a distance to go… was quite a distance! We were allowed to practice JF Itfootball at Varsity Stadium, which was a lot closer to the school. When did you attend UTS?
first-hand. Initially, the faculty was worried about how it would impact the school, but it turned out to be a nonissue. The only thing the male students had to worry about was being outshone by the ladies – which I’m sure also happened at UTS! UTS students talk about the acceptance and DS Many relief they feel after arriving at the school – that they no longer have to hide their intelligence to fit in and make friends. Do you think your classmates formed an integral part of the experience for you? I didn’t have the benefit of growing up with other kids who were going to UTS; in fact, I didn’t know much about the school at all when I applied. I found out about UTS from one of my classmates at Whitney Public School; he said that UTS started two weeks later and got out two weeks earlier than the other schools – and that classes ended at 2:30 instead of 4:00 each afternoon. “That sounds like my kind of school!” I said. UTS was everything that he had promised but, fortunately, for an uninformed and naïve young student, it was much, much more. As is the case with all schools, the younger students looked up to the older ones. I particularly admired John Evans and Fraser Mustard ’46; they were both big fellas, and my classmates and I looked up to them because of their athletic abilities. In terms of classmates, Don Avery ’49 (who was school captain in our final year) has done a great job of keeping our class together. We all got nostalgic about 40 years out, and since that time, we’ve been having two to three lunches a year.
JF
1974 to 1980; I started in the second year DS From Did you maintain any of your friendships made that girls were admitted to the school. Well, I had something to do with that! I was Premier DS at the school after graduation? JF Bill Davis’s chief of staff at the time, and Minister UTS, I went to the University of Western JF After Ontario, and very few UTS alumni went to Western Bob Welch wanted to cut out the funding for UTS mainly because it was an elite school. John Evans ’46, who was president of UofT, and Ralph Barford ’46 chaired a committee of the university’s governing body to look into the matter. The compromise that was worked out to preserve its status was to go co-ed. The main concern of the (then exclusively male) alumni was sports: that UTS wouldn’t have enough bodies to field boys’ hockey and football teams – which gradually happened over time.
those days. After graduating, I moved to Tillsonburg where I started my business [Fleck Manufacturing Inc.], then I was off to the Harvard Business School where I started my academic life. I wasn’t back in the Toronto area again until the mid ’60s. Really, it was in the late ’80s when I re-established friendships from UTS.
it did.The UTS football team died during DS Yes, my time at the school – but on the other hand,
year at Oshawa Collegiate and Vocational Institute (OCVI). Can you compare your experiences at the two schools? (laughs) The differences were quite significant! The most obvious was that it was co-ed. I don’t
the girls’ senior basketball team won the York League Basketball Championship in 1980.
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your penultimate year, your family moved DS During to Oshawa, and you spent the rest of that school
JF
want this next comment to sound like a negative reflection on OCVI – it’s more a positive reflection on UTS – but certainly in the math area, I had the feeling that I knew as much math as the teacher. I wasn’t learning anything! That’s when I decided I needed to commute and not miss the opportunity to be exposed to the high caliber of teaching in my final year. So I was at OCVI for just half a year, and came back to UTS for the second half of the Fourth Form and all of the Fifth [Grades 12 and 13]. Many UTS teachers had the ability to take complex subjects and make them simple. That was not the case at OCVI. I really appreciated the chance to compare, and the comparison showed how fortunate we were to be at UTS. There’s no doubt that UTS’ excellent teachers contributed to my winning an entrance scholarship for best marks in Mathematics and Science at Western. days, many UTS students commute from DS These outside the GTA to attend school.What was the commute from Oshawa to Toronto like in 1948 and 1949? There was no Highway 401 in those years. Of course, traffic was nowhere near as heavy as it is now, so I was able to take the 7 a.m. bus – which stopped at every village on the way – along Route 2 and get to school before 9 a.m. Before my family moved to Oshawa, the way I got home most days was hitch-hiking up Avenue Road – which you couldn’t do today.
JF
successful people extol the virtues of DS Many pursuing a single, laser-focused goal.Your working life seems to have been split between business, government, teaching at the graduate level, sports, and the arts. Is this about living a balanced life – or just having a lot of different interests and not being willing to give up any of them? It’s a combination of serendipity and liking challenges. My career was in seven-year segments: I started a business and ran it for about seven years, then I went off and did the academic bit for about seven years, then I worked in government for seven years. Those all came about as opportunities that looked challenging and interesting. I didn’t have a single focus on trying to become wealthy; if I had, I would have stayed with the business. Teaching at Harvard came out of the Young Presidents’ Organization, which I joined when I was 26. In those days, you had to have a minimum of 50 employees and more than one-million dollars in sales to join. I was exposed to a seminar at the Harvard Business School in which all the students were Young Presidents, and I found the place quite stimulating, and that’s what moved me out of Tillsonburg. The thought of living my whole life running that business in Tillsonburg wasn’t going to be stimulating enough for me, so when the opportunity came to go to
JF
Jim and wife Margaret, on the occasion of his receiving the Ramon John Hnatyshyn Award (part of the Governor General’s Awards).
Harvard, I took it. And then when I came back to help start the business school at York University, an opportunity came up to do this major study of the Ontario government, which lead to my becoming Premier Bill Davis’s chief of staff and various other roles in the Ontario government. It was a great challenge, if not a very financially-rewarding one. But it was fun to do and gave me a feeling of accomplishment. And then when I went back to Harvard, to the Kennedy School, that was serendipity again: I was offered a visiting professorship, and I thought it would be interesting and challenging to see the other side of Harvard. The Charles River separates the business school from the rest of the university; it was said that there were a lot of sharks in that river, and that it was difficult to move successfully from one side of the university to the other! When I returned to Canada, I was able to work out an arrangement with UofT to be a half-time professor – which allowed me to do the teaching I enjoyed while running a business the rest of the time for about 20 years. That was getting closer to the balance you were asking about. I really enjoyed being able to do both. If you were teaching business, I thought you should also have business experience. Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen too often nowadays because of the need to have a doctorate to teach. So you get people teaching business who have never been inside a business. I think a good school should have a mixture of both sorts of people.
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I got involved with the Arts and the not-for-profit sector while I was still running the business; after I sold the business, I was able to spend a higher proportion of time on those activities. And then serendipity came forth again when I had the opportunity to become involved with some high-tech companies, which I ended up chairing. Again, this was all about stimulation. I’ve always loved challenges: doing something that looked like it would be tough to do. And fortunately, they’ve always worked out. you tell me what, for you, were the highlights DS Can of your career? biggest highlight was the reorganization of JF The the Ontario Government. The Committee on Government Productivity was interesting because it was made up of five CEOs and five Deputy Ministers; I liked the mixture of public and private sectors. And then John Robarts resigned and Davis came in – and when a new Premier comes in, they like to put their stamp on something, and it was all ready to go. Usually, it would take them two years to figure out what it was, and then it would be too close to the next election to do anything. So the timing was right, and elements of that [reorganization] still exist today. In the business sector, building Fleck Manufacturing over 40 years certainly gave me a feeling of accomplishment. In the teaching area, I’ve always liked the “case method” because it involves you in a dialogue with students as opposed to just lecturing to the students. It keeps you on your toes because it’s a form of debate – you can’t rely on what you did in the past, and there’s no single right answer. I’ve always enjoyed working with younger people, and that’s one of the pluses of teaching: you’re constantly stimulated by the minds of those going through the program. But in terms of overall feeling of accomplishment, it would be the government work.
the lowest common denominator. A school like UTS is very important. The character of the school has changed a lot over the years. In my day, it was a combination of academic ability and tradition in the sense of families who had had members at UTS over the years: fathers, sons, brothers, nephews, etc. Now, it’s strictly academic, and therefore, its makeup has modified somewhat. The academic standards, if anything, are higher. I recently spent a couple of days at the school, and the close relationship between the students and teachers was very evident. In my day, you couldn’t get as close emotionally to teachers as appears to be the case today.
According to Albert Einstein, “It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.” Our alumni report that their UTS teachers were able to do just that – inspiring them to become teachers and “pay it forward.”
The Art Teacher of the
DS How do you feel about the future of UTS? very optimistic about the future of UTS. JF I’m Now that it isn’t subsidized, it has significant fees – and even though they’re still low in comparison to other schools, they’re still quite high. And while 20% of students receive substantial financial support, 80% don’t. That means there’s a barrier to entry that wasn’t there in my time – which is of concern in terms of the ability to have access to the school. I am hopeful that we’ll work something out with the university. One possibility, from UTS’ point of view, is to build on the Robert Street property, but who knows how that will play out. I’m optimistic in the sense that there’s a need and a tremendous tradition, and as long as UTS can keep attracting the best and the brightest – in the faculty as well as the students – it will be an important contributor to Canada’s future. So I’m a fan! One of the challenges we may have is that there may not be as many affluent grads as there were before. It’s a much tougher environment to go out and raise funds. I hope the alumni will share my view of the importance of the school and help in any way they can.
Edited by Diana Shepherd ’80
L
Root would like to welcome you to the UTS you could give one piece of advice to the class DS The DS Ifabout Board of Directors! Why did you decide to join the to graduate this spring, what would it be? to maximize your options by exposing yourself board at this time – and what do you hope to accomplish JF Try to as many opportunities and people as possible. during your tenure? very impressed with Rosemary Evans. When you go to university, try to develop new contacts JF II was knew of her because I had grandchildren at rather than forming a clique with people you already Branksome – but I didn’t realize at the time that she had been a student of mine at the Rotman School of Management. Not only was she a student, she was an “A” student, and I didn’t give out many “A”s! I also knew that UTS was facing a challenge as the relationship with the UofT changes. So again, it was a challenge – and I thought I could be helpful. I have strong positive feelings about UTS. To my way of thinking, we should be encouraging elite schools – not trying to get rid of them. That may be the Canadian way: of trying to bring everything to 16
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know. If you broaden your network and your horizons, you’ll broaden your opportunities. In my day, people expected to go into one job for the rest of their lives and retire with a pension. That’s no longer the case. Don’t get too specialized too early. Your first degree should be for life and your second for your profession. You want to be an interesting person, so you don’t want to be too narrow too soon. If you over-specialize, that can happen. Above all, it is essential that you love what you do and do what you love. Your task is to determine what that is. n
One of Hilary Maseman’s ’95 innovations as a teacher was setting up a knitting club: “part coffee shop, part knitting circle.”
ast December, The Root asked alumni who had become teachers to share their stories: why they had chosen that path, and whether their time at UTS had influenced their choice of career. After reading through the submissions from our alumni, some common themes began to emerge. The first – and common to almost all submissions – was that the UTS faculty inspired and nurtured a joy of learning in their students. “I was inspired by my history teacher at UTS to pursue a career as a history teacher,” wrote Bill Sherk ’61. “His name was Andy Lockhart and he was a very warm and approachable teacher who obviously enjoyed teaching history.” Bill’s teaching methods are described in detail in his forthcoming memoir Keep Up If You Can: Confessions of a High School Teacher (Dundurn, April 2012). Bill taught history at Northern Secondary School in Toronto from 1966 to 1976 before becoming Assistant Head of History at North Toronto Collegiate Institute; he taught history there for 21 years until he retired in 1997. Here are a couple of examples of lessons learned at UTS that Bill passed along during his years with the Toronto District School Board (TDSB). Latin teacher Ken Prentice gave Bill the idea to assign ancient names to all his ancient history students. “They called me Sherkules (SHERK-yoo-leez),” he revealed. Ronald Ripley taught him the importance of memorizing poetry, and Bill insisted that all his Canadian history students memorize John Magee’s “High Flight” (“Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth, and danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings...”). “My classmate Jim Jones ’61 brought a 1930 Ontario license plate to class and displayed it prominently on his desk,” remembered Bill. “Mr. Baird saw it there and said: ‘Jones! Is that all that’s left of the car?’ We howled with laughter and I made a point of bringing things like that to my own classes when I was teaching.” THE UTS ALUMNI M AGAZINE
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Amanda Martyn ’96: “What could be better than encouraging students to be successful at doing what they love?”
I have come to believe that a great teacher is a great artist and that there are as few as there are any other great artists. Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. – John Steinbeck
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“I had many, many excellent instructors at UTS,” said Lily Quan ’87. “Al Fleming ’54, for example, had the uncanny ability to make mathematics potable for me, and for a brief, shining moment, algorithms were understandable. However, this was not surprising given UTS’ academic reputation. But I took for granted the dedication of teachers who would stay late, volunteer with clubs, and invest so much of themselves into making UTS a better place.” As a teacher with the TDSB, Lily says she tried to instill a sense of community in the classroom, and she made learning fun because that was her experience at UTS. “Staff and parents have commented on my dedication and commitment,” she added, “but it was something I never thought twice about: it was the model presented to me all those years growing up.” “I have always felt that teaching is all about relationships, that we learn from those we admire as people and choose to emulate them,” noted Eric Petersiel ’89. “In my UTS years that meant listening to Jim Ryan play guitar, being pushed to experiment musically by John Fautley, squeezing the entire baseball team into Al Fleming’s K-car, and traveling to Italy with Neil McLean and Paul Moore. Far more than any nugget of information taught in their classes (though I still remember the significance of being able to summarize Fred Speed’s class onto a bus ticket) were the personalities who made education exciting, and inspired us to become the people we are today.” Eric has been teaching for 15 years now, and he adds that he hopes “to bring out in each student the drive and desire to learn and grow that my
teachers at UTS cultivated in me. Their model is one to which I aspire every day.” “My teachers at UTS definitely influenced my teaching practice,” stated Hilary Masemann ’95. “Although I never went past Grade 9 art at UTS, my one year with Mr. Boutros taught me lessons that I am now passing on to my students, especially his emphasis on blind contour drawing, a skill that allows even the most inhibited student to ‘let go’. Mr. Gendron was my history teacher when I first realized that I loved history, and it was a great pleasure to come back to UTS and tell him that I was now teaching that subject. Mr. Fautley was my most influential teacher at UTS, and I was lucky to have him for six years running.” Hilary was certified as a secondary school teacher in 2008; she is now teaching at Marc Garneau Collegiate, which is the thirdlargest school in the TDSB. She pointed out that it was the relationships UTS teachers created with their students that made all the difference, and she tries to establish that kind of relationship with her students today. “Most of our [UTS] teachers let us have a lot of freedom, and this is something I try to do with my students,” she added. “School turns so many people off because teachers don’t trust students; I always felt that my teachers trusted me and therefore let me discover things on my own as much as possible.” “Having had exceptional teachers at UTS in the languages department, all of whom inspired me to excel, I knew that I wanted to match their enthusiasm, passion, and talent,” asserted Jimmy Steele ’99, who noted that “virtually all” of his language teachers had taught at the Faculty of Education at UofT at some point in their careers. He pointed to Marie-Claire Récurt, Ana PereiraCastillo, and Maria Collier as teachers who had had the greatest influences on him. “While I excelled in language classes at UTS,” he continued, “I struggled greatly with other subjects – particularly math and science. Those teachers took extra time to help me, demonstrating great care and interest in my studies, and making connections between disciplines to appeal to my learning goals. [They taught me] skills that I carry with me in my career, and work very hard to emulate. Attending UTS and reflecting on that time has also helped to equip me with strategies that engage gifted and highly-motivated students.” Jimmy was a secondary teacher with the TDSB for seven years; in his career, he has taught French, Spanish, Portuguese, German, and drama. He was recently promoted to Instructional Leader for Core French,
International and Classical Languages, working at the board level. “What nobler employment, or more valuable to the state, than that of the man who instructs the rising generation?” observed Marcus Tullius Cicero (106 BC–43 BC). Many of our alumni who became teachers seemed to think UTS did not agree with the Roman philosopher, orator, and statesman: the second most oft-repeated theme was the opinion that UTS tends to encourage students to seek leadership roles in “a bigger pond” than teaching at the elementary or secondary-school level. “It always disappointed me that UTS did not seem to encourage bright students to become teachers,” said Eric Petersiel. “My UTS classmates are overwhelmingly Ph.D.s teaching at the university level and contributing to the greater academic world, but shockingly few were inspired to emulate the educators at UTS and choose teaching as a profession.” Christopher Federico ’91 has been teaching since 1996; he joined the Canadian and World Studies Department at UTS in 2002. He made the decision to go into education when he was half-way through his undergrad at UofT. “I was on the whole disappointed with the level of discourse that I found in undergraduate classes and realized that at UTS I had had the opportunity to engage with other students and teachers, and ideas, in unique – perhaps even peculiar – and imaginative ways that I didn’t see replicated very often even at the university level,” he said. “It was that opportunity to explore and share ideas and arguments that most attracted me to teaching. I’m not sure whether that makes me an educational idealist or a disputatious elitist with a Peter Pan complex!” During Christopher’s school days, UTS departments tended to be much smaller than they are now: for instance, there were two history teachers instead of five. That being the case, “it was inevitable that one would have the same teachers year after year. As a consequence, certain topics are in my mind inextricably linked to the teachers and their styles of teaching that I found so compelling, and I often find myself employing similar strategies when I come to teach those same topics.” Like Christopher, Amanda Martyn ’96 didn’t know that she would become a teacher straight out of the gate. “I took a very indirect road to teaching, originally believing that in order to take full advantage of my UTS education, I had to choose a career immediately recognizable as being difficult and prestigious – something on the level of the title doctor or lawyer so many
of us aspire to, even though I knew it wouldn’t be either of those,” she said. “Consciously, the idea of becoming a teacher didn’t occur to me until almost eight years after graduating, when I noticed that I had multiple after-work tutoring jobs not because I needed the money, but because I enjoyed them.” Amanda, who has spent the last two years teaching at UTS, pointed out that: “There is an understanding that along with all the other amazing experiences to participate in as a student or a teacher, we’re all here because we love learning. I try to let the students know, however, that the advantage they’ve gained from studying here, the potential they have, isn’t really the potential to be traditionally successful, but the potential for happiness in being successful at doing what you love.” In The Prophet, Kahlil Gibran wrote that: “The teacher who is indeed wise does not bid you to enter the house of his wisdom but rather leads you to the threshold of your mind.” It seems clear that UTS teachers have been able to give that gift to their students over the years – and those former students are now “paying it forward” as teachers. And, as Amanda Martyn points out, what could be better than encouraging students to be successful at doing what they love? n
Those who educate children well are more to be honoured than parents, for these only gave life, those the art of living well. – Aristotle
All of these submissions have been edited for length; to read the full submissions – as well as others not included in this article – go to: www.utschools.ca/root
Christopher Federico ’91: “It was that opportunity to explore and share ideas and arguments that most attracted me to teaching.” THE UTS ALUMNI M AGAZINE
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2011 Annual Alumni Dinner A festive event featuring the presentation of the Crawford Award and inductions into the UTS Hall of Fame.
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O
n October 28, 2011, nearly 200 alumni, friends and former staff gathered at UTS for the Annual Alumni Dinner. Following a reception, the program began in the auditorium, with greetings from MC Rob Duncan ’95, John Wilkinson ’78 (president, UTSAA Board of Directors), Peter Neilson ’71 (director, UTS Board), and principal Rosemary Evans. The proceedings were interspersed with stellar musical performances by current students: a jazz rendition of Feeling Good (by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse), performed by Thomas Broadley ’13, Alexander Levy ’13, and Benjamin Levy ’15; the first movement of Felix Mendelssohn’s Violin Sonata in F major performed by Annie Zhou ’16 (piano) and Emma Meinrenken ’17 (violin); and an original composition, Love Letter, written and sung by Eliza Pope ’12. The installation Intersections,
UTS’ contribution to this year’s Scotiabank “Nuit Blanche”, was projected onto the auditorium walls, and the Keys Gallery photography exhibit, Sometimes the World Arranges Itself, by Baillie Card ’05, was also open for viewing. With a sense of both celebration and poignancy, Don Borthwick ’54 and Rosemary Evans took the stage to present the Third Annual H.J. Crawford Award, which recognizes the significant contribution to UTS made by an individual or a group through commitment, dedication, and volunteerism, or contributions made to greater society through other lifetime achievements. This year’s recipients were John (Butch) Bowden ’48, Jack Rhind ’38, and, posthumously, John Macaulay ’45, who passed away shortly before the event (see page 28 for John Macaulay’s obituary).
Butch and John both worked with Jack in the initial bursary campaign in 1980. Butch was Campaign Cabinet chair during much of the “Preserving the Opportunity” campaign in 1994–99. Both Butch and John had major volunteer roles in the Leadership phase of the campaign, helping to raise a record $15-million. Both have been Class Reps, have regularly attended many alumni activities, and have been extremely supportive of various school initiatives. Jack has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to service to Canada, his local community, and to UTS and, as chair of the inaugural bursary campaign in 1980, he supported the vision that financial accessibility for all qualifying UTS students is essential – a tenet still vital to UTS. “These gentlemen have left their mark on the quality of the Student Bursary Program that today provides nearly a $1-million annually in bursaries to almost 20% of the student body, placing UTS at the forefront of Canadian independent schools,” Don Borthwick pointed out. Butch Bowden and Jack Rhind gave amusing
and touching addresses; John Macaulay’s sons, Peter and Michael, were on hand to receive their father’s award and to read the speech that John had, with characteristic forethought, already written for the big night. This year’s first Hall of Fame inductee was a former math teacher: the remarkable W. Bruce “Nails” MacLean for “his outstanding commitment to coaching that contributed to the success of the UTS ‘Firsts’ hockey team over many years.” The focus then shifted to art and music and the superlative contributions made to the school by retired faculty members Don Boutros and Ann Unger (art) and John Fautley and Natalie Kuzmich (music), who were cited for their dedication, innovation, and nurturing of students. Two UTS students who were challenged by these remarkable teachers were also inducted: Jamie Sommerville ’80, current principal hornist for the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Music Director of the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra; and Kim‑Lee Kho ’81, a visual artist, graphic designer, and consummate art instructor. n
OPPOSITE PAGE (clockwise from top left): Jack Rhind ’38, John Bowden ’48, Bruce ‘Nails’ MacLean with John Wilkinson ’78; Hall of Fame art inductees, Kim-Lee Kho ’81, Don Boutros, and Ann Unger; music inductees, Jamie Somerville ’80, John Fautley, and Natalie Kuzmich; Michael Macaulay; Peter Macaulay. ABOVE (clockwise from top left): the Classes of 1971, 1981, 2001, and 1986. To see more pics, login to the alumni e-directory at: www.utschools.ca/ alumniedirectory
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ALUMNI NEWS
Alumni News
Notes on The Interesting Lives and Outstanding Achievements of Our Alumni
Identifying Mavor Moore: A Historical and Literary Study (Playwrights Canada Press, March 2011) by Allan Boss is a groundbreaking study of the legacy of Mavor Moore ’36, showing him to be the enigmatic giant behind many of the most important moments in Canada’s theatrical and cultural landscape. A stamp featuring John Polanyi ’45 has been
created in celebration of the International Year of Chemistry. Dr. Polanyi was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize “...for the development of a new field of research in chemistry – reaction dynamics.” The ninth Annual Global Health Symposium on Global Health & Global Health Ethics run by UofT’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health (in collaboration with the UofT Joint Centre for Bioethics)
was hosted at UTS on November 1, 2011. The proceedings included a special tribute to John Evans ’46 by his son Timothy Evans ’78, who is the Dean of the James P. Grant School of Public Health, BRAC University, Bangladesh. Tom Symons: A Canadian Life (University of Ottawa Press, June 2011) is a compelling portrait of Tom Symons ’47, one of Canada’s pre-eminent educational and cultural statesmen. Tom was founding president of Trent University (1961–72) and founding vice-president of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (1978–84). He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, an Officer of the Order of Canada, and he holds the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Medal and the Canadian Centennial medal, among many other honours. On October 12, 2011, the Honourable Henry (Hal) N.R. Jackman ’50 received the Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa, from UofT’s Victoria University.
John Evans ’46 and son Timothy Evans ’78 at the ninth Annual Global Health Symposium, hosted at UTS on November 1, 2011. 22
THE ROOT • Spring 2012
After years of inspired leadership, Joseph Gill ’56 retired last year from the chair of The Friends of Fort York. He continues to serve as the organization’s treasurer. His many innovations include planning and organizing the Fort York Festivals, spearheading a newsletter and lecture series, and convening a task force that developed the principles that were embodied in Fort York: Setting It Right (2000) (recognized by a Communications Award from the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects) and Fort York: Adding New Buildings (2005) (awarded the Heritage Toronto Award of Merit for media). However, Joe has said the process of securing recognition of Fort York and nearby Victoria Memorial Square in 2003 as a National Historic Site was the most important thing that happened on his watch. David Wood ’57 has spent almost a year becoming a certified practitioner of Pathfinder (a career guidance system) and is working as an independent practitioner.
Cited for his leadership and vision in helping to strengthen healthcare delivery in Canada, St. Joseph’s orthopedic surgeon Dr. Robert (Bob) McMurtry ’59 has been appointed to The Order of Canada. Bob is the founding assistant deputy minister of the Population and Public Health Branch of Health Canada, was special advisor to the Romanow Commission and also to the deputy minister of Nunavut in a review of the territory’s healthcare system. He was appointed to the Health Council of Canada, and was Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry at The University of Western Ontario (1992–99), where he is a Professor Emeritus.
Seven Tales of the Pendulum (Oxford University Press, March 2011), by Gregory Baker ’60, describes
major themes in which the humble pendulum is a central character in our scientific, technological, and cultural history. Professor Julien Clint Sprott of the University of Wisconsin says, “This book is highly recommended both for the professional scientist and the curious layman, each of whom will find much of interest.” While attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Nobel Laureate Michael Spence ’62, a professor of
economics at NYU’s Stern School of Business, discussed the findings of Bloomberg’s Global Poll and the outlook for euro-area
economies on Bloomberg TV’s “The Pulse.” His most recent book, The Next Convergence: The Future of Economic Growth in a Multispeed World (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, May 2011) was named a Washington Post Notable Nonfiction Book for 2011. James (Jake) Fowell ’63 has retired
from practicing architecture and he and his wife, Lee O’Connor, spend much of their time at their Haliburton home. Jake has been managing – and playing saxophone in – The York Jazz Ensemble, a nine-piece jazz band with an active schedule of engagements. The group’s website (www.yje. ca) was designed by Wendy Leung ’00 (see page 26). Jake has illustrated fellow 1963 classmate Randy Spence’s book Time To Time (Esda Books, August 2011), an exciting science-fiction thriller. Randy (brother of Michael ’62, see above) says he “has lived and worked in many corners of the world, though not yet elsewhere.” He
There are lots of great ways to stay in touch! The Alumni E-Directory – sign-up at: www.utschools.ca/alumniedirectory
Facebook Go to: www.facebook.com/utschools or click the link on the UTS homepage: www.utschools.ca
Email Make sure we have your current email address! Send contact info updates to: alumni@utschools.ca
adds that: “there was a launch January 21 at which Jake and companions played jazz. And Mark Czarnecki ’63 helped me a lot in the writing of the book.” John Hunter ’67, a senior litigation
counsel at Hunter Litigation Chambers in Vancouver, BC, has been elected president of the Federation of Law Societies of Canada for 2011–12. John is a Fellow and former Provincial Chair of the American College of Trial Lawyers, a Fellow of the International Society of Barristers, and a Life Bencher of the Law Society of BC, serving as president in 2008. Hold Me Now (Freehand Books, October 2011) by Stephen Gauer ’70
tells the story of Vancouver lawyer Paul Brenner whose son Daniel has been killed in Stanley Park. Stephen’s prize-winning short stories have been published in Descant, Prairie Fire, the Toronto Star, and Best Canadian Stories 10 (Oberon Press). He
Show your school spirit in style! Hoodies – $40 To see the complete range of UTS merchandise and to place your order, go to: www.utschools.ca/merchandise
THE UTS ALUMNI M AGAZINE
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ALUMNI NEWS has also written for Geist magazine, the Globe and Mail, the Vancouver Sun, the Boston Globe, and has contributed to The Root. Sandy McIntyre ’71 has been
appointed CEO of Sentry Investments. He will continue in his post of Sentry’s president. George Crawford ’72 has retired after
almost 35 years of service to CH2M HILL and Gore & Storrie. George was instrumental in developing the patented “Hyan Process”, a high-rate anaerobic process. In the mid-1980s, he also helped to develop a bioreactor in the Lakeview Water Pollution Control Plant; the bioreactor was awarded the 1986 Schreyer Award, recognizing it as the best Canadian Engineering Project of the year. He was a key mover in a pilot plant – funded by the Canadian Government – to treat MSG waste. The project was a resounding success and led to a joint venture for the Chinese industrial and domestic markets in the early 1990s. John Tory ’72, a lawyer, business leader,
community activist, broadcaster, and former MPP and Leader of the Official Opposition, has been awarded the Order of Ontario. He was cited for
ALUMNI NEWS being a consummate champion of the GTA as a founding member and chair of CivicAction. He has also been asked by the Government of Ontario to head a volunteer advisory panel charged with looking into the revitalization of Ontario Place. James Kofman ’74 has been appointed vice-chairman of Cormark Securities. He is a leading advisor on mergers and acquisitions and complex financings and has run an independent advisory firm since leaving UBS Securities Canada, where he was vice-chairman and managing director. He is currently a director of Argonaut Gold and chairman of ZENN Motor Company.
David Schimmelpenninck van der Oye ’75
has published Russian Orientalism: Asia in the Russian Mind from Peter the Great to the Emigration (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2010). “I am still teaching Russian history at Brock, although I just returned from a sabbatical year in France,” he says. “While based in Paris, I was invited to teach a spetskurs (special course) at the Federal Siberian State University in Krasnoyarsk. I am now beginning a new book, Russia’s Great Game: Tsarist Conquest in Central Asia and the Threat to British India.”
David Sherman ’75 continues to be busy
writing and updating his many books on tax law (published by Carswell/ ThomsonReuters) as well as assisting clients. His books, The Practitioner’s Income Tax Act, The Practitioner’s Goods and Services Tax Annotated, and Canada GST Service (and their e-versions) are the leading publications in their fields. David and his wife Simone have been married 34 years; they have four grown children and four grandsons, and spend much of their time on cruise ships and travelling to visit family.
Through his company, Delta Management, Gavin Pitchford ’76 spearheaded the creation of the “Canada’s Clean50 Awards” to recognize the 50 individual or small teams of Canadians who had advanced the cause of clean capitalism and/or sustainable development over the prior two years. The 2011 Summit was a tremendous success and there were many UTS alumni involved: social responsibility/ sustainability practitioner Celesa Horvath ’85; communications company UpMarket run by Paul Cassel ’77; Siva Vijenthira ’05 helped with planning and with the website; and Globe and Mail columnist Jeffery Simpson ’67 was named as a Clean50 Honouree for the impact his writing has had in drawing attention to energy and sustainability issues. Elyse Pomeranz ’79 facilitated a project with international sculptor Marko Pogacnik on the grounds of the Toronto Waldorf School in Thornhill where she has been a teacher. She says, “It was a very interesting work of what is often known as Land Art or Art for Healing.”
Marko Pogacnik’s sculptures at Toronto Waldorf School 24
THE ROOT • Spring 2012
In August 2011, CBC News reported that Roman Waschuk ’79 has been appointed ambassador to Serbia.
Martin Van Kranendonk ’80 and his wife Wendy Francis recently moved to Sydney, Australia. Martin has taken up a position as Professor of Geology at the School of Biology, Earth and Environment at the University of New South Wales. He says, “This brings to an end my nearly 15 years of employment by the State Government of Western Australia, where I have worked for the Geological Survey of Western Australia. My new job is a research position with the aim of running a post-graduate research team, but also with some teaching in structural geology and leading the Field School.”
Hilary’s debut novel, The Damage Done, (Forge, September 2010), won the 2011 Anthony Award for Best First Novel and a Crimespree Award, and was a finalist for the Arthur Ellis and Macavity awards. Elizabeth (Allan) Wilson ’91 and David
James Cheng ’88 in Asiansploitation’s 2011 sketch-comedy show.
Michael Denham ’82 has been appointed
president of Accenture in Canada. He will retain his role as managing director, Management Consulting Services, which he has led since 2007. Prior to joining Accenture, he held progressively senior positions in the consulting and aerospace industries. Michael serves on the Board of the Montreal Chest Institute and is the chairman of the Board of Directors of Selwyn House School in Montreal.
in high school, he is now a founding member of the award-winning Toronto-based sketch-comedy troupe, Asiansploitation. The troupe, which won Just for Laughs Best Comedy (2010 Toronto Fringe), has been gaining increasing critical acclaim and is developing an all-new show that will play at the George Ignatieff Theatre this spring. Hilary Davidson ’90 has launched her
Canada’s former ambassador to Afghanistan and former deputy head of the UN Assistance Mission to Afghanistan,
second novel, The Next One to Fall (Tor/Forge, February 2012), a murder mystery set in Peru, to wide acclaim. According to Publishers Weekly, “The rich history and geography of Peru add depth to an engrossing mystery.”
Wilson are delighted to announce the birth of their daughter, Serena Lauren Falconer Wilson, on September 23, 2011 in Toronto. Serena is the greatgranddaughter of James Gilbert Falconer ’19 and Blandford Meredith Eliot Allan ’27. Physicist and awardwinning journalist Alexander Hutchinson ’93 writes the
“Jockology” column in the Globe and Mail and is a senior editor at Canadian Running magazine. His new book, Which Comes First, Cardio or Weights? Fitness Myths, Training Truths, and Other Surprising Discoveries from the Science of Exercise (McClelland & Stewart, May 2011), tackles dozens of commonly-held beliefs and looks at just what research science has – and has not – proven to be true.
Christopher Alexander ’85, is the
author of The Long Way Back (HarperCollins Canada, August 2011). A first-hand account of recent events in Afghanistan,, the book also explains what has been achieved and what it will take to reach a lasting peace. After 22 years working on Broadway, David Auster ’86 is moving to Stratford this spring with his wife Janis and daughters Emelia (5) and Nora (2) to become the producer of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival.
Want to hear original pieces by UTS students and alumni or recall the day when you or your classmate wrote a song for the Twig Tape?
Presenting uTunes the UTS student-run online music repository For a digital version of every Twig Tape since 1985, go to http://utunes.utschools.ca or click the uTunes button on the UTS homepage: www.utschools.ca
James Cheng ’88 says that although he might not have been the funniest guy THE UTS ALUMNI M AGAZINE
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ALUMNI NEWS featured artists in the Scotiabank Contact Festival. The exhibition will showcase some of his large-format work from the former Soviet Republics in Central Asia. Pierre Duez ’96 and Martha Lai ’99 are
pleased to announce the birth of their first child, a daughter, Claire, on July 8, 2011 in Toronto.
design project management into traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture, with the eventual goal of balancing these two very diverse careers!” Jay Bahadur ’02 is the author of The
Hilary Doda ’97 and Richard Morris are
Jason Shron ’93 with children Isaac, Dalya, and Boaz. Jason Shron ’93 and Sidura Ludwig are proud to announce the birth of a son, Isaac Amiel Shron, on January 6, 2012. Isaac joins big brother Boaz (6) and big sister Dalya (4). Jason reports that, “The Shrons now live in Vaughan, where I am building a full-size VIA Rail train car in the basement. Well, what did you expect?” Amanda Heppler ’94 and her husband
David Dewsbury have opened The Kensington Cornerstone, an entirely gluten-free restaurant, in Kensington Market, Toronto. She also continues her day job as a project manager in Facilities Assessment and Management at Morrison Hershfield. Andrew Rowat ’95 will be having a
photography show at the Elaine Fleck Gallery in Toronto in May as one of the
thrilled to announce the birth of their second child, Alexander David Morris, on July 29, 2011. Hilary also completed and defended her MA in history at Dalhousie University in December. Ian Speers ’98 co-authored 150 Years of Football at the University of Toronto: 1861–2011 (University of Toronto, Faculty of Physical Education and Health, 2011). The book details the history of Canada’s oldest football team, which has seen the involvement of many UTS alumni, including Dr. John Evans ’46, the late Dr. Fraser Mustard ’46, and Dr. Bryce Taylor ’62. Albert Tang ’99 married Rei Takaoka
on October 8, 2011 in Vaughan. They honeymooned in Costa Rica and Nicaragua and are eagerly awaiting the completion of their new home in Thornhill. Jonathan Bitidis ’99 and Daron Earthy ’99 welcomed their daughter Theo on
November 18, 2011.
Save the Date! The Annual Alumni Dinner will be held on Saturday, October 13, 2012. See the flyer insert with this magazine, or go to www.utschools.ca/ rsvp to reserve.
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THE ROOT • Spring 2012
Theo is the daughter of Jonathan Bitidis ’99 and Daron Earthy ’99.
This May, Wendy Leung ’00 is releasing her fourth album, Crayon Wars, with electropop band Wendy Versus, while continuing to record and play in indie rock band Papermap. She is also “transitioning away from graphic
Pirates of Somalia: Inside their Hidden World (HarperCollins, July 2011). A journalist who dared to make his way into the remote pirate havens of Africa’s easternmost country, Jay gives us the first close-up look at the hidden world of the pirates of war‑ravaged Somalia. Jay is managing editor of www. SomaliaReport.com. Currently a student at Yale College, Sinye Tang ’09 was interviewed by Ali
Velshi on CNN’s American Morning in December. She is a member of the Campus Microfinance Alliance: a coalition of nearly a dozen student-run microfinance groups that have already lent more than $150,000 to disadvantaged small-business entrepreneurs.
337 Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps to Celebrate Centennial Saturday, June 9, 2012, 1:30 p.m. until 4:00 p.m. at Varsity Arena, Toronto In recognition of the Corps’ Centennial and its historic ties to UTS, this year’s Annual Ceremonial Parade returns to Varsity Arena for the first time in 40 years, and all alumni, veterans, students, and staff are invited to attend! For more information, go to: www.utschools.ca/alumni or contact Captain Warren Ralph ’71 by phone (416-901-8123) or email at warrenralph71@rogers.com.
TOP LEFT: class of 1967 golf tourny winners – Peter Ortved, Michael Gillies, George Boddington, and Norm Beatty. TOP RIGHT: Basketball winners, Team Victor is Crazy – Matt Tanner, Thomas Harris, Geoff Burt, and Luke Nelson. BOTTOM LEFT: the London UK Branch Event. BOTTOM RIGHT: the class of 1996 reunion.
UTS Alumni are Great Sports! After June’s rain-out, the replay of the 16th annual UTSAA Golf Tournament in September was a wonderful event enjoyed by all. The results: Hargraft Trophy: Norm Beatty ’67; The UTSAA Trophy for Low Net Score: Don Borthwick ’54; UTSAA President’s Trophy: Norm Beatty; Dr. Jolley Memorial Trophy: Class of 1967 – Norm Beatty, George Boddington, Michael Gillies, Peter Ortved; The Donald Borthwick Legends Trophy: Chad Bark ’43, Don Borthwick, Al Morson ’53; The Most Honest Golfer: Derek Bate ’44. Join us for the 17th annual tournament on Tuesday, June 19, 2012. Ten teams – with players from 1973 through 2014 – burned up the court in the Annual Alumni Basketball Tournament in which Victor is crazy! (Geoff Burt ’02, Thomas Harris ’03, Luke Nelson ’03, and friend Matthew Tanner) prevailed over Team 2004 (Darnel Leader ’04, Doug Poon ’04, Brandon Chu ’04, and friend Tevya Reid). Team Duck, Duck, Goose (Shamir Pira ’13, Sunil Mall ’13, Peter Wang ’13, and Ryan Lee ’12)
placed third. The tournament raised more than $600 for the UTS bursary program! If you’re interested in weekly pick-up games, or would like to get involved with next year’s tournament, please contact Nina Coutinho ’04 at ncoutinho@gmail.com.
Branch Events Dena McCallum ’82 and Christopher Watson ’92 co-hosted a wine and
cheese party in London, England on October 20, 2011. Seventeen alumni ranging from 1957 to 2002 gathered for a school update from retired principal Michaele Robertson. In addition to London-based alumni, Joanne Carter ’86 came in from Paris and Michael Topolnytsky ’92 came in from Munich.. The Washington D.C. Branch, building on the success of their initial meeting earlier in the year, held a second 2011 event on Wednesday, November 16th hosted by Ilya Shapiro ’95 and Laura Bogomolny ’98. We are planning more events: Vancouver on March 29th, Hong Kong later in 2012, and some Ontario locations as well! Make sure we can
reach you! Send your new email info to: alumni@utschools.ca.
Class Reunions A number of classes gathered this year to celebrate special anniversaries – including two groups that organized events to coincide with the October 28th Annual Alumni Dinner weekend. The Class of ’71 had a reception at the Faculty Club and then walked up to UTS to continue their celebration at the Dinner. The Class of ’81 held a party at the home of Tom Friedland on Saturday and a Halloween brunch on the Sunday. The Class of ’46 enjoyed a reunion lunch on September 8, 2011, and approximately 30 members of the Class of ’96 celebrated their 15th anniversary on October 15 at the Duke of York, coming from as far away as Dayton, OH. The class set a fundraising target of $5,000 in support of the Bursary Top-Up. The Class of ’01 enjoyed a reunion dinner followed by a house party on Labour Day Weekend, and the Class of ’06 kicked-off the winter holiday season when they celebrated five years on December 23 at Harbord House. THE UTS ALUMNI M AGAZINE
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ALUMNI NEWS
ALUMNI NEWS
Remembering the Lives and Achievements of our Alumni
Richard (Dick) Boxer ’36 1918–2011 Dick Boxer ’36
passed away peacefully on January 15, 2012 surrounded by his family. As a husband and father, friend, sportsman, veteran, businessman, and philanthropist, Dick worked from a strong moral compass and will be remembered by all whose lives he touched. Upon graduation from UTS, he joined the Navy and after the war went into the wallpaper business, co-founding Waldec of Canada. His energy and leadership benefited many organizations, including UTS where he served as President of the Parents and Alumni Associations, The Navy League of Canada, Regent Park Health Centre, The Order of St. Lazarus, the Royal Canadian Legion, and many others. Dick was warm and gracious, and a skillful raconteur with a kind word to say about everyone. Thoughtful and charitable, he was an active member of his church and his faith played an important role in his life. He was always there to support his friends and his family. Predeceased by his wife, Nancy, he was the beloved father of Richard ’67, Jeffrey ’73, and Shelagh.
Donald Campbell Kerr ’39 1921–2011 Donald Kerr ’39 passed away on December 15, 2011 after a brief battle with lymphoma. After graduating from UTS and working for Bell Canada, he joined the 2nd Division Signals rising to the rank of Lieutenant. He volunteered for overseas duty in 1942, landed at Gold Beach on D-Day, and saw continuous
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action as part of the liberation of Holland. Mentioned in Dispatches for Distinguished Service and decorated with the Oak Leaf Cluster, Don was promoted to Captain and, in the postwar years, to Major. He served as an Aide-de-Camp to two Ontario Lieutenant Governors, the Honourable Keiller MacKay and Honourable Earl Rowe. To ensure that future generations of Canadians would understand the sacrifice made for freedom, Don produced a DVD and delivered lectures to schools across Southern Ontario. He was the recipient of the Minister of Veteran Affairs Commendation. Don was a strong advocate for municipal planning and had an outstanding career in the land-development and realestate industries, participating in the development of Canada’s “First Planned Community” (Bramalea), as well as many other projects. He served as a member of Etobicoke Council from 1965 to 1982, and was a member of the Conservative Party and a lifelong Kiwanian. He had a great passion for boats and music – especially big band, swing, and jazz. Don leaves his best friend Yvonne Pepper, and sixteen children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his wife Doris and son Campbell.
John Macaulay ’45 1928–2011 This obituary was not supposed to be written for many more years. John Macaulay ’45 had just
renovated and moved into his new condo. He died there suddenly on October 9,
2011. He was at the door of a new stage of life, with arms open for a hug and a fresh bunch of flowers for you. He loved and supported his late wife Dorothy through all of her art projects and travel. He loved and encouraged his sons Peter and Michael through all their umpteen post‑secondary degrees and designations. He enjoyed the new adventures and people his sons introduced him to – including Peter’s partner Mary and Michael’s partner Kyle. His grandchildren from Peter’s marriage to Beverly, Gavin and Clair, gave him pride as they set off for university. His education at UTS brought him life-long friends and the school honoured him [posthumously] with its Crawford Award on October 28 for his many years of fundraising. His time at Trinity College, UofT lead to fundraising for Erindale College. The Hyperion Club, his closest and longest-standing group of friends, was key to his social life. He enjoyed his career as a salesman, building businesses including Arbor Scientific, Pinetree Instruments, and Bay Biological. Instead of flowers at the service, how about you give some to someone you love? Or, make a donation to the UTS Alumni Class of 1945 Bursary Fund. – By Michael Macaulay (John’s son)
James Fraser Mustard ’46 1927–2011 Fraser Mustard ’46 passed away
on November 16, 2011 after a short battle with cancer. Chaviva Hosek, president of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR) – which Fraser founded – recently said of him: “He was an intellectual entrepreneur and boy did he have guts” – a phrase that describes him perfectly. Fraser credited Mr. Petrie, his Grade 12 algebra teacher at UTS – who gave
Fraser ever-more complex problems to solve as punishment for disturbing class – with initiating his lifelong enjoyment of solving puzzles. He was awarded the Nesbitt Silver medal upon graduation, and moved on to UofT, where he gained an M.D. in 1953 followed by a Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge in 1954. Ever the keen sportsman, “Moose” Mustard played Varsity Blues football at UofT with his dear friend, John Evans ’46 – who said he was a “fantastic tackle”. In 1966, along with John Evans, he established the school of Medicine and Health Sciences at McMaster University, eventually becoming VP, Health Sciences. During tenures at UofT and McMaster, he developed a major research career in platelets, thrombosis, and cardiovascular disease. He declined the position of president at McMaster in 1982 (“too much administration work”) instead establishing CIFAR – building a cross-Canada multi-disciplinary network of researchers. The subsequent creation of The Founder’s Network, a CIFAR off-shoot, concentrated on early childhood development and its relationship to socioeconomic factors. Fraser was involved with governments in Canada, Australia, and Latin America, the World Bank, and Pakistan’s Aga Khan University emphasizing the crucial nature of early human development, and he co-chaired a report for the Government of Ontario (The Early Years Study). Fraser was the recipient of the Gairdner Foundation International Award (1967), a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada (1976), was made an Officer of the Order of Canada (1985) (promoted to Companion in 1993), and was appointed to the Order of Ontario (1992). He was the recipient of 15 honorary degrees and was a Thinker in Residence, a program in Adelaide, South Australia from 2006 to 2007. Fraser was predeceased by his wife Betty. He leaves six children and nine grandchildren. – By Joseph B. McArthur ’46
James Wallace McCutcheon ’54 1937–2011 “McCutcheon here,” was the opening telephone salutation of Jim McCutcheon ’54, and it
always heralded an interesting conversation on any subject. His engaging personality, sharp wit, broad knowledge, generous heart, and unbridled love for his family were always present. As a 1960 graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School, he brought passion to his law practice: as a founding partner at Shibley, Righton & McCutcheon, as counsel to McCarthy Tetrault LLP, and to his own practice in later years. Jim adored his father, the late Senator Wallace McCutcheon, and patterned his service on corporate and public boards in like fashion. As a controlling shareholder in the Traders Group, he helped build one of Canada’s premier financial groups in trust, insurance, and financial services. Jim also championed community activities in a range of organizations, such as the ROM, the AGO, the Royal Agricultural Royal Winter Fair, Eglinton St. Georges United Church, the United Way of Greater Toronto, Victoria University at UofT, and the James Wallace McCutcheon Chair at the University Health Network. Many will continue to benefit through his legacy, the James Wallace McCutcheon Foundation. Jim played an important role in his class – one of the most cohesive in the school’s history, hosting reunion gatherings, the most recent being its 55th anniversary of graduation. He also offered continuing support to the class’s Alan G. Fleming Bursary to the school. Soon after Al Fleming ’54 was appointed UTS principal in 1988, Al recalls that over lunch, Jim “offered his
full-fledged support on anything he wished to accomplish.” Jim leaves his wife, Brenda; four sons, ten grandchildren; and two brothers, Fred ’57 and Douglas ’61. – By Don Borthwick ’54
Tim Hunter ’59 1940–2012 John Botsford ’59
In Memoriam
Tim Hunter ’59
passed away in Toronto on January 21, 2012. At UTS, Tim became interested in sports cars, math, and science. He played on the senior football team, but his love of sports cars led him to an engineering degree at UofT and a life‑long career in the automotive industry. He joined General Motors, where he enjoyed a successful international career with postings in Detroit, Sao Paulo, and Melbourne. He helped to bring world-class manufacturing techniques to the company. The latter half of his career was spent in Toronto as an executive at Woodbridge Foam, a major component supplier to the automotive industry. He treasured his international experiences for not only what they provided him but also what they offered his family. Memorable adventures included scaling Ayers Rock in the outback, jockeying elephants in the jungles of Thailand, and mastering the Samba at Carnival in Rio. Tim, T, TA, Timber will be remembered for his quick sense of humour, integrity, uncompromising commitment to family and as an author of pithy poems on many special occasions. Tim always enjoyed an active lifestyle, which included round-robins on the tennis court, morning jogs, hikes on the Bruce Trail, and his life-long challenge with golf – which peaked with a hole-in-one last year.
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ALUMNI NEWS Tim leaves his wife, Jan, two children, and four grandchildren. His family would appreciate memorial donations to the UTS Class of 1959 Bursary in Tim’s name. – By Tim’s classmates John Lynch, Tibor Szandtner, and Ian Sturdee.
Arthur Gordon Stollery ’66 1947–2011 Entrepreneur Gordon Stollery ’66 passed away
on December 12, 2011 while on vacation in the British Virgin Islands. Gordon came from a family of UTS students: his father Arthur ’34 and numerous cousins and uncles attended the school. An exceptional student-athlete, he won several awards, including the Nesbitt Silver Medal. Al Fleming ’54, Gord’s hockey coach, remembers that Gord in his graduating year “literally carried the team on his shoulders. He was strong, hardworking and had a great shot” scoring 75% of the team’s goals. Gord’s thunderous slapshot became a legend among his teammates. While at UTS, Gord became an accomplished golfer. He was runner-up at the 1965 Canadian Junior Golf Championship and was Rosedale Golf Club Champion in 1967 and 1972–74. Gordon graduated from Princeton University with a degree in Civil Engineering in 1970, earned an M.Sc. in Geology from UofT, and headed to Alberta in 1979 to practice geology, ultimately establishing a number of oil and gas companies, most notably Morrison Petroleum and Highpine Energy. With his father, he built Angus Glen Golf Club in Markham, Ontario, which hosted Canadian Opens in 2002 and 2007. Gord’s company Kylemore Communities built an award-winning housing development nearby. Gordon also successfully bred and raced thoroughbreds in Kentucky. 30
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Gordon was a generous philanthropist giving to numerous causes, including the Markham-Stouffville Hospital, UofT, and UTS. However, his family was the most important to Gordon: his wife Judy and seven daughters. He will be remembered
by his many friends for his eclectic interests, his wry sense of humour and for being a hugely fun person to be around. – By Gord’s daughters, Lindsay Stollery and Tori Stollery, with Tom MacMillan ’67
Condolences are extended to the families of these alumni who passed away recently. Arthur Wooldridge ’36
David Doll ’49
April 6, 2011
December 29, 2011
Richard Boxer ’36
William Henderson ’49
January 15, 2012
February 3, 2012
George R.G. Lindsey ’38
John Hogg ’49
September 6, 2011
January 4, 2011
Ken Duncan ’39
Charles E. Meek ’50
June 6, 2012
October 31, 2011
Donald C. Kerr ’39
Paul E. Baylis ’51
December 15, 2011
September 22, 2011
Robert Tate ’39
George German ’53
November 24, 2011
November 17, 2011
Ronald Bremner ’40
Malcolm MacTavish ’54
October 21, 2011
December 17, 2011
Gordon A. Lorimer ’40
James W. McCutcheon ’54
September 29, 2011
October 17, 2011
G. Neil Gillespie ’43
Keith Lister ’55
September 11, 2011
September 18, 2011
Thomas A. Newman ’43
John Pelton ’55
November 12, 2011
September 20, 2011
Donald Teskey ’43
Terrance Wills ’56
November 10, 2011
December 3, 2011
James B. Craig ’44
David MacGregor ’56
October 24, 2011
September 21, 2011
John Macaulay ’45
Jeremy Glassey ’57
October 9, 2011
2010
John P. Hamilton III ’45
John Malowney ’58
December 11, 2011
December 9, 2011
J. Fraser Mustard ’46
Timothy Hunter ’59
November 16, 2011
January 21, 2012
William E. Ogden ’46
A. Gordon Stollery ’66
November 22, 2011
December 12, 2011
A. Douglas Murch ’47
J.D. (Jody) Ortved ’69
October 26, 2011
February 1, 2012
David Patterson ’48
Paul Woodrow ’80
August 2, 2011
December 11, 2011
Remembrance Day Alumni veterans, students, staff, and guests gathered in the auditorium for the Remembrance Day ceremony, which included two memorable speeches. An address by WWII navy veteran, Dick Boxer ’36, had been pre-recorded at his home, and although Dick was unable to attend in person, his two sons, Richard ’67 and Jeffrey ’73, were present. As it turns out, this was to be Dick’s last “appearance” at UTS – he passed away a scant two months later in January, 2012 – and it seems fitting that on this occasion, he was able to address current students directly and share his experiences with them. “My purpose in speaking to you today is
to bring remembrance, as closely as I possibly can [to these] wonderful young people… of UTS,” he said. Dick reminisced about his time at UTS and the fact that “the true measure of any institution [is] not to be found under the roof at any moment in time but… in what the graduates [are] doing for the community 15 years out.” He added, “That was part of UTS at that time, it was adopted enthusiastically as a measure of success, and as far as I’m concerned it has existed ever since.” Current UTS teacher, Christopher Federico ’91, who served in the Sudan in 2006, also addressed the students. “As a Canadian, it seems unusual to
speak in grand terms about sacrifice, or duty, or patriotism, or valour, yet to observe Remembrance Day seems to demand that we do just that,” he said. “As a teacher, I wonder how much resonance it has with all of you for us to speak of the actions of Canadians whose Canada – a Canada to which many of our families did not yet even belong – seems so very different from today’s… If the deeds of Canadians in France or Flanders seem too far away to be of relevance to you,” he continued, “then remember instead Cambodia, or Sierra Leone, or even Libya; and if the cause seems wrong to you then fight right here to change it.” n
TOP ROW (L-R): School co-captains William Tang and Frank Li carry the wreath to the foyer, Rosemary Evans, a pre-recorded address by Dick Boxer ’36 is shown to the assembled. BOTTOM ROW (L-R): William Tang chats with alumni-veterans, Christopher Federico ’91, former teacher Paul Moore with posters of the research he has carried out to locate the resting places of UTS boys lost in the world wars. THE UTS ALUMNI M AGAZINE
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Looking Back
Since its establishment in 2000, the Keys Gallery has had the privilege of showing artwork by many members of the UTS community. Along the way, it has acquired – through purchase from or donation by the artist – a number of pieces for the school. Three alumni friends who contributed to this collection are Donald Fraser ’38 (a sketchbook from when he was a student in the lower grades of UTS, top right), and watercolours by Alex Bryans ’39 (top left) and Hugh Dale ’39 (bottom right). Former staff member Ann Unger – who opened the Gallery as her “retirement gift to UTS” – recalls that all three expressed great pride and excitement at the chance to give their work to the school. “Hilary Masemann ’95 [see her contribution to “The Art of the Teacher,” starting on page 17] donated the little mugs that are used at each opening event of the Keys Gallery as her way of saying thank you for the opportunity to show her works,” adds Ann. 32
THE ROOT • Spring 2012
