Boundless

Schwartz Reisman Institute for Technology and Society

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

Division of University Advancement

Hospital for Sick Children

Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering

Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research

U of T Mississauga

U of T Scarborough

University Health Network

At this year’s spring convocation, nearly 15,000 grads joined a 600,000-strong network of University of Toronto alumni around the world – many of whom maintain strong ties with the university through the alumni relations departments across U of T’s advancement offices.

But most students feel the impact of U of T Advancement long before they graduate. Many would have entered a building or a lab funded in part by a donor. Some might have received a scholarship. Others may have taken advantage of a donor-supported research opportunity or been mentored by an alumni leader in their field.

As the vice-president of advancement, David Palmer has led U of T’s fundraising and alumni relations efforts since 2007. He was recently re-appointed to the position for a fourth term that begins in January 2020.

Under Palmer’s leadership, U of T set a new standard for philanthropy in Canada through its successful Boundless campaign. The campaign, publicly launched in 2011, harnessed the generosity of 104,000 unique donors to raise $2.6 billion by its conclusion last December – far surpassing its original $2 billion goal.

Another achievement: U of T’s endowments for student support and student aid surpassed the $1 billion-mark for the first time in the university’s history.

Yet, according to Palmer, “We've barely begun to scratch the surface of what we are capable of with the help of our alumni, friends, and donors.”

U of T News recently spoke with Palmer about the Boundless campaign and what’s next for university advancement.

Looking back at the incredibly successful Boundless campaign – what have been some of your highlights?

The work we've done on large scale, complex, collaborative initiatives brought together multiple strengths at the university across faculties and departments. We also made connections with institutions outside the university.

For example, the Rogers family’s extraordinary gift of $130 million to create the Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research, brought together the University of Toronto, SickKids hospital and the University Health Network (UHN)/Toronto General to tackle the challenge of heart failure across the life span. That was a tremendously exciting project that drew on the strengths within medicine and engineering at U of T, primarily through the Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, and on strengths within SickKids and UHN. We were able to look at the entire span of research from genetics, stem cells and biomarkers of disease to regenerative tissue engineering, new therapies, technologies and innovative product development.

More recently, the Labatt family gift of $20 million to create the Labatt Family Network for Research on the Biology of Depression has a foothold at CAMH (Centre for Addiction and Mental Health) and at SickKids hospital. That was a wonderful example of funding that supports basic research into something that we know very little about: the actual biology of depression.

These types of highly interdisciplinary and collaborative projects can have a deeply meaningful impact on some of today’s most pressing global or societal challenges. We’ve seen institutions across Canada and the U.S. take note of our ability to frame such exciting visions and mount them across departments, faculties, and institutions. There's something in the water here, I think, that allows us to dream big like this.

I think the immense variety and the number of donors – and where they come from and what they represent – is also something that's been a highlight for me. We had more than 104,000 unique donors to the (Boundless) campaign from 99 countries around the world. We also had over 16,000 donors under the age of 40 give to the campaign, which, I think, is an extraordinarily generous thing for people to prioritize at that stage of their lives. It shows how important the university is to them.

Another highlight for me would be the fact that our endowments for student support and student aid have now passed the $1 billion threshold for the first time in our history. That is just a tremendous reflection of our fundamental values of excellence and accessibility for our students.

Receiving a $100 million donation from Gerald Schwartz and Heather Reisman was a record-breaking milestone for the university. What did it feel like to work on this donation and what went into it?

We were all inspired by the enormous generosity of Heather Reisman and Gerry Schwartz and the very strategic and thoughtful way they went about their consideration of this enormous gift. It's just astoundingly generous and it is a real game-changer for the university and for Canada.

Pulling the various threads of this ambitious project together was very much a collaborative initiative between my colleagues Scott Mabury, the vice-president of university operations and real estate partnerships, and Vivek Goel, the vice-president of research and innovation, working with U of T President Meric Gertler and me on every aspect of the development of the project, the proposal, the solicitation and the conversations with Heather and Gerry.

There were also a number of leading scholars brought into the conversation whose work connected with the themes of this initiative, and a small group of deans who were consulted at pivotal moments in the project’s development.

For me, it was exciting to see this extraordinary group of leaders come together with a common vision and drive it forward so quickly and effectively. I think it was done at a scale and at a sophistication that was inspiring to all of us who were involved, and that clearly made an impression on the donors. It enabled the gift discussion to move ahead at an unusually fast pace. It was wonderful to see how a conversation that began with an October story in the newspaper led to a gift announcement in March.

I hear you carry a little black book with you. What’s the significance of it?

These books are my short-term memory. I have such a huge volume of interactions with people that I feel it's important to ensure that there is prompt and accurate follow-up to those encounters.

These little books, for me, ensure there is integrity and consistency in follow up to that vast amount of interaction. I do anywhere from 140 to 160 personal interactions per year with donors, volunteers and alumni – and many times that in terms of phone and email and other types of meetings. That's the kind of volume of activity we all have to do in this advancement business, across all of front-line fundraising roles in all of our faculties, colleges and campuses.

Going into the next advancement campaign – what are some of your goals?

The agenda for the university going forward is perhaps more exciting than it's ever been. I see that no matter where I go – no matter what department or faculty I encounter. The ideas that animate this place are extraordinary. In service to those ideas, I think we have to envision an even more ambitious plan.

People ask me all the time: “Have we exhausted the capacity of our donors and the time and efforts of our volunteers?” And I have to say we all feel we've barely begun to scratch the surface of what we are capable of together, and what our donors and volunteers are so generously willing to do for us.

We think there's a very, very exciting future ahead of us right now.

You’ve said that most of the money raised at U of T comes from meeting people face to face. What makes that kind of fundraising so important?

When people are considering a gift, whether investing time or resources, they want to get to know what they’re investing in. Fundamentally, the process of getting to know somebody across the table, face to face, is a process of forming a relationship. It is through understanding that person and what their goals and aims are, and how they might align with the goals and aims of your institution, that you find that kind of special connection that will cause someone to come forward in a very generous way.

At the heart of every gift is a deeply personal and motivating story. Fundraising is all about narrative. It's about finding the connection and alignments between a donor’s individual story – his or her passions, cause, motivations, or focus – and the story behind the initiative that you're bringing to their attention. Donors give to create change and they give generously to create change at scale. That’s the business we're in together: making this a better world for current and future generations.

At the end of the day, people will choose to support – give their time, their mentorship or their resources – because they care deeply about the place.

Our job is to look for ways to cause them to care and to care more deeply over time.

You earned an MFA from Princeton in musicology. Is music still a part of your life?

My performing days are long behind me, but I did enjoy teaching music history as an adjunct professor at Western University for many years. Those days are long behind me as well. But yes, music is still a very big part of our family's life. We enjoy attending concerts of every imaginable type of music, from ultra-contemporary Canadian composition to opera, to jazz and popular music and world music.

One of the greatest, fondest memories I have is being a player-coach for my daughter as she was growing up, seeing her blossom as a singer, and now seeing her develop into a brilliant young professional.

Business leader and alumnus William Troost receives honorary degree for philanthropy, support of students

perry.king — Tue, 18 Jun 2019 14:00:36 +0000

Business leader and alumnus William Troost receives honorary degree for philanthropy, support of students

perry.king Tue, 06/18/2019 - 10:00

Cutline

(photo by Steve Frost)

Perry King

Topic

Myhal Centre for Engineering Innovation & Entrepreneurship

Convocation 2019

Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering

Chemical Engineering

Honorary Degree

The son of a Dutch farm labourer, William Troost didn’t have much money when he was growing up – which is why he speaks so highly of the scholarship he received to study engineering at the University of Toronto.

“Without that award, I probably couldn’t have gone to university,” Troost has said of the J. Edgar McAllister Foundation Student Awards Program.

“So it had a tremendous impact on my life.”

Decades later, Troost – who founded Peel Plastics, an innovative Ontario packaging company – and his wife, Kathleen Troost, have sought to have a similar impact on current and future students by giving generously to the university, particularly to the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering.

For his “outstanding service to the University, as a dedicated and transformative volunteer, mentor, and philanthropist,” U of T will recognize Troost on Wednesday with a Doctor of Laws, honoris causa.

Watch William Troost deliver his remarks:

Since 2005, Troost has served on the advisory board for the department of chemical engineering and applied chemistry – the same department where he earned his degree. He supported the construction of the Myhal Centre for Engineering Innovation & Entrepreneurship and helped establish the Institute for Leadership Education in Engineering (ILead), which launched in 2010. Built upon on a previous summer leadership program, the institute provides leadership learning and professional opportunities, industry outreach and leadership research.

In 2018, Troost’s $3-million gift to ILead allowed the institute “to dig deeper into complex research questions about engineering leadership in the workplace and the classroom, and reach out further to engineering leadership educators and engineering-intensive enterprises,” Doug Reeve, a professor of chemical engineering and ILead’s inaugural director told U of T Engineering News.

The donation was matched by the engineering faculty and, in recognition of the Troosts’ longstanding support, the institute was renamed the Troost Institute for Leadership Education in Engineering.

Kathleen and William Troost (photo by Lisa Sakulensky)

The Troosts contributed nearly $10 million to U of T’s engineering faculty during the Boundless campaign. That includes a $1 million gift for student support – endowed funds meant to generate annual scholarships – and the establishment of the J. Edgar McAllister Foundation-Troost Family Award for Engineering, named for the same award that once gave Troost the opportunity to study at U of T.

Troost told U of T he wanted to give other students the same leg up that he once received. It helped pave the way to a bachelor’s degree from U of T in 1967 and an MBA from the University of Western Ontario (now Western University) in 1975. He founded Peel Plastics in 1978, which has since grown into a vital regional employer.

“I was fortunate,” Troost told the Boundless campaign. “And whatever success I’ve had in business, I certainly wouldn’t have gotten there without that kind of financial support.”

William Troost’s message to the Class of 2019:

Technical mastery by itself does not make you an effective and efficient engineer. To be effective and efficient, you must be able to translate your technical knowledge into positive change. You must be able to quickly identify problems and opportunities, and you must be able to make right decisions based on incomplete information, leading to conclusions, recommendations and action.

Thus leadership is a core component of an engineer’s ability to translate technical skills into practice.

Boundless campaign exceeds expanded fundraising goal and creates lasting impact

noreen.rasbach — Tue, 19 Mar 2019 04:00:00 +0000

Boundless campaign exceeds expanded fundraising goal and creates lasting impact

noreen.rasbach Tue, 03/19/2019 - 00:00

Topic

Division of University Advancement

Global

Subheadline

More than 100,000 donors in 99 countries came together to raise $2.641 billion for U of T

More than a decade in the making, and supported by more than 104,000 people around the globe, Boundless: the Campaign for the University of Toronto closed on Dec. 31, setting a record for Canadian philanthropy.

Speaking at a special Presidents’ Circle Lecture event, University of Toronto President Meric Gertler announced that Boundless has raised $2,641,331,307, opening doors of opportunity for students through scholarships and bursaries; building major facilities to enhance undergraduate education for future generations; fuelling innovative and award-winning research, faculty and programs; and increasing engagement with alumni around the world.

“What our great global community of alumni and friends have achieved together throughout this campaign is extraordinary,” President Gertler said. “Boundless has not only established a new standard in Canadian philanthropy, but it has also provided incredible new opportunities for students, reinforced the University of Toronto’s ties with its city and province, and strengthened U of T’s critical partnerships around the world. On behalf of everyone at the University of Toronto, I want to thank our donors, alumni, volunteers and supporters for your continued support.”

“The success of the Boundless campaign reflects our donors’ steadfast commitment to the important work accomplished here every day at the University of Toronto,” added U of T Chancellor Rose Patten. “This record achievement underlines how so many of our friends and alumni see U of T as a place where their generosity can make a lasting impact on the lives of students and on research across many different fields.”

The impact and scope of Boundless: the Campaign for the University of Toronto comes to life through so many different stories, such as a student from an underprivileged family who was able to become a doctor, a pair of engineering grads who received funding for a startup that is giving children with disabilities a chance to walk and research that could one day prevent the need for invasive surgeries following a heart attack.

All this was made possible through the generosity of U of T's many supporters, including thousands of donations from young alumni and first-time donors, and transformative gifts from U of T’s visionary benefactors.

Kenyan student Emmanuela Alimlim is just one example of how donor support is transforming lives. Thanks to the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program, Alimlim was able to leave her rural village to pursue her dream of getting a university education. “For [my community] to have somebody who has broken the cycle of poverty, who has gone outside to study and embrace education, they see that as something they should also aspire to do. I’m just so grateful for the opportunity,” she said.

“When we publicly launched this campaign in 2011, we could not have imagined how transformational Boundless would truly be,” said David Palmer, vice-president, advancement. “Even today, we are still learning about the many different ways Boundless has brought together a community of supporters, students, faculty and staff, united by a desire to support innovative teaching and groundbreaking research and help U of T’s students tackle some of the most challenging problems facing us today and advance U of T's global leadership and impact.

“And though it has set a benchmark record for Canadian philanthropy, I believe Boundless is just the beginning of what we can achieve together.”

Explore the legacy of the campaign and read stories from donors, students, faculty and alumni about transformative giving at uoft.me/boundlesscampaign.

The Boundless campaign: By the numbers

The success of Boundless was a true community effort, and its donors are as diverse as the causes they support.

104,059 unique donors gave to the campaign.
Donors live in 99 countries.
Close to 50,000 donors made their first gift to U of T during the campaign.
52,198 donors have given two or more gifts to the campaign.
More than 16,000 donors under the age of 40 gave to the campaign.
68 per cent of donors are alumni.

Boundless also had a major impact on student and faculty support, research and programs, and major campus infrastructure projects and improvements.

Boundless raised $406 million for student scholarships and programs, supporting nearly 4,000 scholarships, more than 220 student-focused initiatives, and pushing our endowment earmarked for student support past $1 billion.
The campaign raised $263 million in faculty support including 82 chairs and professorships, which ensures we can attract and retain the very best people for key research initiatives across our three campuses.
Boundless raised more than $856 million for more than 600 groundbreaking research centres, initiatives and programs.
The campaign raised $600 million to support 41 major infrastructure projects across all three campuses, bringing together leading thinkers and offering vital, new spaces for student education, research, innovation and discovery.

Boundless also saw a significant increase in overall alumni engagement, leveraging our global network of nearly 600,000 graduates.

More than 8,800 alumni and friends now serve as volunteers at the university, an eight-fold increase since the public launch of the campaign.
U of T now has 75 alumni networks in 30 countries around the world.
Alumni event registrations have tripled since the public launch of the campaign.
More than 30,000 young alumni were engaged during the campaign, through unique event offerings such as the Next Steps Conference and the Shaker program.

“The scope and impact of this historic campaign reveal what can be achieved when our community comes together to provide life-changing student support, advance leading-edge research and programs, build magnificent facilities and engage even greater numbers of alumni in the life of the university,” said Palmer.

“Together, the future is truly boundless.”

New $6 million gift to support students at John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design

noreen.rasbach — Thu, 15 Nov 2018 21:34:34 +0000

New $6 million gift to support students at John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design

noreen.rasbach Thu, 11/15/2018 - 16:34

Cutline

From left: Architecture students Isabel Amos, Avery Clarke and Zoona Aamir. The model is by Raymond Garrioch

Topic

Undergraduate Students

Subheadline

John and Myrna Daniels Foundation Opportunity Awards will help students who demonstrate both financial need and academic merit

John and Myrna Daniels’ philanthropy has been a game-changer for architecture education in Canada.

This week, the John and Myrna Daniels Foundation gave an additional $6 million to help students who might not otherwise have the chance to pursue studies at the University of Toronto, adding to an already impressive legacy of support for the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design and for its students.

This latest gift brings the couple's support to $30 million.

“Like John Daniels, creative people across the Daniels Faculty are thinking of ways to design better communities that reflect a commitment to social uplift,” says University of Toronto President Meric Gertler. “Today the Daniels Faculty is a globally recognized school and at the forefront of city-building.

"This is due primarily to the transformative philanthropy of John and Myrna Daniels, whose most recent support will ensure that qualified students will have the means to pursue an excellent education.”

The new gift adds to the Daniels Faculty’s endowment and will benefit students far into the future. It will also help ensure that the faculty can attract, and remain accessible to, high-ranking, deserving candidates. Recognizing the importance of this gift, U of T will match the annual payout on the endowment for students, thus doubling the impact. The John and Myrna Daniels Foundation Opportunity Awards will support students who demonstrate both financial need and academic merit.

John H. Daniels is an architect and veteran developer with a keen passion and track record for building socially sustainable and livable urban environments. He is the former chairman and CEO of Cadillac Fairview Development Corporation, and founder of The Daniels Corporation, one of Canada’s pre-eminent builders and developers. Some of the corporation’s most renowned projects in Toronto include the redevelopment of Regent Park and the TIFF Bell Lightbox and Festival Tower.

“This is the most recent in a number of catalytic gifts from John and Myrna to the Daniels Faculty,” says Dean Richard Sommer. “Thanks to their incredible commitment and support, our students are tackling the very real challenge of transforming Canada’s urbanizing cities and landscapes. We are extremely grateful to them; their generosity will enable us to compete for talent globally and help ensure that our school plays a leading role well into the future.”

The couple serves among the honorary chairs of U of T's Boundless campaign. Their first gift of $14 million, in 2008, helped create the John and Myrna Daniels Scholars Award and provided capital support for the school’s expansion. To date there have been 81 John and Myrna Daniels Scholars, all professional master’s students with financial need, and some are notably the first in their families to go to university. Through their studies, the scholars – and, indeed, students across the faculty – have been exploring the various ways that design addresses 21^st-century challenges, such as the relationship between growing inequality and cities, architecture and human health, digital technology and craft-construction, and data analysis and sustainable development.

A second major gift of $10 million from John and Myrna Daniels, in 2013, made it possible for the Daniels Faculty to undertake an ambitious transformation of One Spadina Crescent, where the school is located today. Toronto architects, alumni and the business community continue to make donations to One Spadina’s ongoing capital campaign, supporting a project that has been acknowledged by Toronto architecture critic Alex Bozikovic as “one of the best buildings in Canada of the past decade.”

“This latest commitment from John and Myrna through their charitable foundation brings their visionary and generous commitment to $30 million,” says David Palmer, vice-president of advancement. “Their support has helped the Daniels Faculty attain a new level of global leadership. It now attracts the finest young minds and faculty from Canada and internationally, who are dedicated to creating more livable communities for people around the world.”

U of T’s Boundless campaign surpasses historic $2-billion mark and expands goal to $2.4 billion

ullahnor — Fri, 09 Dec 2016 16:30:38 +0000

U of T’s Boundless campaign surpasses historic $2-billion mark and expands goal to $2.4 billion

ullahnor Fri, 12/09/2016 - 11:30

Topic

Research & Innovation

International Students

Subheadline

Thanks to the unprecedented generosity of 94,736 alumni and friends, the Boundless campaign has set a new record for philanthropy in Canada and helped U of T reach new levels of excellence, innovation and impact. By expanding its goal to $2.4 billion, the campaign will support compelling new initiatives inspired by the University’s Three Priorities

Groundbreaking treatments for heart disease, cancer and neurodegenerative diseases, new initiatives for Indigenous health and education, new centres and incubators for innovation and entrepreneurship, novel approaches to the design and infrastructure of cities, deeper insights into ancient cultures and modern societies and thousands of scholarships for students – these are just some of hundreds of causes that U of T alumni and friends have contributed to during the Boundless campaign.

Thanks to this commitment and enthusiasm, the Boundless campaign has raised a remarkable $2,058,559,590 to date, surpassing its original $2-billion goal six months ahead of schedule. Thousands of alumni and friends from around the world contributed to this milestone, which is unprecedented in Canadian philanthropic history and places U of T among just 31 universities worldwide that have raised $2 billion or more in a fundraising campaign.

Building on this impressive success and momentum, the University announced that it is expanding the Boundless campaign goal to $2.4 billion, with the unanimous support of U of T’s Principals and Deans Advisory Group and volunteer campaign leadership. The campaign expansion will advance the University’s Three Priorities and fund emerging initiatives across each of our campuses.

Speaking at an event on Dec. 8, U of T President Meric Gertler thanked donors for their vision, commitment and generosity.

“Great universities are built by great people,” President Gertler said. “The excellence of our faculty and students, and the extraordinary passion and dedication of our supporters is fuelling our imagination, driving our discoveries and laying the groundwork for the future success of the University. With our expanded campaign goal, we have an opportunity to raise U of T to even greater heights of research excellence and accessible education.”

Campaign Impact

The Boundless campaign launched publicly in November 2011 with a goal of preparing students for a borderless world and elevating U of T’s capacity to address critical local and global challenges. To realize this ambition, Boundless set out to raise $2 billion for the University’s highest priorities as part of the largest fundraising campaign in Canadian university history.

The response has been overwhelmingly positive. Over the past five years, U of T has received $316 million for student scholarships and programs, $203 million for faculty support, more than $660 million for groundbreaking research centres, initiatives and programs, $523 million for critical infrastructure projects and more than $356 million in philanthropic research grants.

A Tide of Support

The remarkable outpouring of generosity toward the Boundless campaign includes contributions from a record 94,736 alumni and friends, just under half of whom are first-time donors – a vivid illustration of U of T’s relevance to new generations of donors.

The campaign has also been defined by a number of transformational gifts from leading philanthropists to fields as diverse as architecture and urban design, astronomy and astrophysics, global affairs, high performance sport, Indigenous health and education, innovation and entrepreneurship, humanities, law, medical psychiatry, public health, social work, regenerative medicine and more. From amplifying Canada’s voice on international issues to imagining the future design of cities to addressing heart disease across the lifespan, these visionary benefactions are placing U of T at the heart of some of the most consequential issues of our time.

In addition to record philanthropic support, the University has witnessed a surge in alumni participation, pride and affinity at home and around the globe during the Boundless campaign. In the past year alone, 89,115 alumni participated in U of T programs worldwide, and more than 10,000 alumni served the University as volunteers and mentors.

“Boundless has captured the diversity, openness and optimism of our community and our aspirations to effect meaningful change in the world,” says David Palmer, Vice-President, Advancement at U of T. “As a result, we’ve seen unparalleled levels of giving and engagement, which are creating countless opportunities for students, transforming our colleges, faculties and campuses and driving vital research, teaching and innovation to address issues of paramount concern to our faculty, alumni and donors.”

A New Horizon of Excellence and Impact

The success of the Boundless campaign has elevated U of T’s standing among the world’s best universities and lifted the University’s sights to a new horizon of excellence and impact.

The campaign’s expanded goal of $2.4 billion will allow U of T to build on this momentum and fund critically important initiatives inspired by the University’s Three Priorities of leveraging our urban location more fully, strengthening key international partnerships and reimagining undergraduate education. The expansion will advance the most compelling ideas and innovations emerging across our three campuses and engage every division of the University.

New programs in city leadership, urban design and civic engagement will place U of T at the heart of debates about how to build more prosperous and sustainable cities of the future. Support for major collaborative research and exchange programs with leading institutions around the world will strengthen the University’s global outlook and its impact on critical issues from cybersecurity to clean energy to neurodegenerative diseases. New scholarships, mentoring programs and experiential learning opportunities will help U of T deliver a rigorous and relevant undergraduate experience that prepares students for success in an ever-changing world.

The expansion will also fuel pioneering research in the humanities, sciences and social sciences that illuminates our world and lays the foundation for social progress. And it will strengthen U of T’s growing entrepreneurial ecosystem by helping more researchers and students bring their best ideas to market and spark breakthroughs in fields such as regenerative medicine, genomics, artificial intelligence, machine learning and computational medicine to improve health and prosperity.

“Over the past five years, the extraordinary generosity of our alumni and friends has transformed lives and created healthier and more vibrant communities in Canada and globally,” says Michael Wilson, Chancellor of U of T. “As the campaign expands to $2.4 billion, we have an opportunity to build on this foundation and imagine an even brighter future for our city, our country and our world.”

For more information please visit the Boundless campaign website.

U of T’s Boundless campaign surpasses historic $2-billion mark and expands goal to $2.4 billion

ullahnor — Fri, 09 Dec 2016 01:00:32 +0000

U of T’s Boundless campaign surpasses historic $2-billion mark and expands goal to $2.4 billion

ullahnor Thu, 12/08/2016 - 20:00

Topic

Subheadline

Speaking at an event on Dec. 8, U of T President Meric Gertler thanked donors for their vision, commitment and generosity.

Campaign Impact

A Tide of Support

A New Horizon of Excellence and Impact

The success of the Boundless campaign has elevated U of T’s standing among the world’s best universities and lifted the University’s sights to a new horizon of excellence and impact.

For more information please visit the Boundless campaign website.

Alumnus leaves landmark $20-million bequest to U of T Engineering

lavende4 — Tue, 31 May 2016 14:26:56 +0000

Alumnus leaves landmark $20-million bequest to U of T Engineering lavende4 Tue, 05/31/2016 - 10:26

Cutline

Erwin Edward Hart (inset) and the Little Red Skulehouse, U of T Engineering’s first building (sketch by artist Andrea M. Listro /photo illustration by Geoff Agnew)

Engineering Strategic Communications

Author legacy

Engineering Strategic Communications

Topic

Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering

Subheadline

Percy Edward Hart and Erwin Edward Hart Professorships to bolster early-career research and graduate student mentorship

A $20-million bequest from the estate of alumnus Erwin Edward Hart (CivE 4T0) will drive engineering forward by supporting emerging research and education at the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering and providing enhanced opportunities for graduate students.

The income from the Hart Trust will fund the Percy Edward Hart and Erwin Edward Hart Professorships. Seven faculty members, each within the first 10 years of their academic career, will receive $75,000 per year for three years for research and graduate student support. The recipients will be nominated by their department or institute and will have demonstrated a high level of research excellence and exemplary graduate mentorship.

Erwin Edward Hart was a long-time employee of Massey-Ferguson Ltd. and served as the company’s chief welding engineer. The professorships are named in honour of Hart and his late father, Percy Edward Hart.

“The Hart Professorships are an outstanding example of the impact that can be made when visionary generosity meets visionary leadership,” said U of T President Meric Gertler. “Mr. Hart’s legacy gift will bolster the work of promising researchers at a crucial stage in their careers.”

The professorships will foster the next generation of engineering research leaders and educators, and strengthen the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering’s position as one of the world’s great engineering schools, said dean Cristina Amon.

“Investments in early-career faculty will accelerate research and innovation,” Amon said. “This gift will support generations of professors and deepen our Faculty’s culture of research and teaching excellence. It will also strengthen the Faculty’s ability to recruit top early-career educators and researchers from around the world. Our students will benefit by working with faculty members who are committed to mentoring the next generation of innovators.”

The bequest contributes to U of T Engineering’s $200-million fundraising goal as part of Boundless: The Campaign for the University of Toronto. To date, the Faculty has raised more than $180 million.

The first cohort of Hart Professors will begin in September 2016, and will represent the following departments and institutes:

Department of Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry
Department of Civil Engineering
The Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering
University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies
Institute for Biomaterials & Biomedical Engineering

Joseph Rotman leaves $30 million legacy gift to Rotman School of Management

sgupta — Wed, 06 Apr 2016 09:37:56 +0000

Joseph Rotman leaves $30 million legacy gift to Rotman School of Management sgupta Wed, 04/06/2016 - 05:37

Ken McGuffin

Author legacy

Ken McGuffin

Rotman School of Management

Business

Rotman

Student financial aid: improving access to U of T

sgupta — Tue, 15 Mar 2016 14:23:46 +0000

Student financial aid: improving access to U of T sgupta Tue, 03/15/2016 - 10:23

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Jessica Phillips, Kaleem Hawa and James Flynn, who will be attending the University of Oxford as Rhodes Scholars later this year, received financial support during their undergrad years (photo by Diana Tyszko)

Arthur Kaptainis

Author legacy

Arthur Kaptainis

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Undergraduate Students

Students