The POWER of inclusion - Ryerson University · 22 startup scores on draGons’ den Charith Perera learned from failed pitches and critical feedback By Will Sloan 23 about Face Sangita

SUMMER 2016

ThePOWERof inclusionHOW divERsiTy is cHanging THE POsT-sEcOndaRy landscaPE

insidE

Get in the zone with a new way of learning

An about-face lands Sangita Patel at ET Canada

Where Dr. Michael Kolios, an award-winning physics professor, is revolutionizing cancer treatment using ultrasound and photoacoustic imaging, while mentoring the next generation of researchers like Vanier scholar Eno Hysi.

How will graduate education transform you?

Learn from the iBEST*

* Institute for Biomedical Engineering, Science and Technology, a Ryerson- St. Michael’s Hospital partnership

ryerson.ca/graduate

This magazine is available as an accessible PDF at www.ryerson.ca/alumni/magazine/summer16.pdf

Ryerson University Magazine is published twice a year for alumni and friends. Reproduction, republication or distribution of content and photographs is strictly prohibited without prior written permission of the editor.

InterIm vIce-presIdent, unIversIty advancement: Rivi Frankle

assIstant v.p., communIcatIons, Government and communIty enGaGement: Erin McGinn

executIve edItor: Michael ForbesedItor: Colleen MellorassocIate edItor: Antoinette Mercurio desIGn: Wendy Schroder

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© 2016 Ryerson University ISSN: 1713-627X • Published June 2016

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AYUTHAYABERTHOLD IMAGOCENTURY GOTHICCHARLOTTE SANSCONDUITcronos

dead historyDIN regularheitistone sans

WINTER 2011

FOR ALUMNIAND FRIENDS

in every issue2 From the edItor Limitless

3 presIdent’s messaGe Why inclusion matters

4 showcase Fight for your right

6 Gould street Highlights, photos and what’s next at Ryerson

30 lIFe storIes Bowie, Berlin and a Ryerson grad Here’s what writer Rory MacLean learned from the late, great David Bowie

32 GIvInG back Alumni and friends give generously to Make Your Mark campaign

34 alumnI dIary News and events from alumni

38 class notes Updates from alumni

44 remember when? On the air Ryerson radio enters new era

cover story14 the power oF InclusIon Four Ryersonians explain how diversity is transforming the post-secondary landscape By Karen K. Ho

features 20 makInG waves Faculty of Science Professor Michael Kolios is taking physics to a human level By Dan Falk

26 Get In the Zone Unique style of learning puts students ahead of the curve By Stephen Knight

alumni profiles22 startup scores on draGons’ den Charith Perera learned from failed pitches and critical feedback By Will Sloan

23 about Face Sangita Patel gave up a career in engineering for her first love: TV By Sue Horner

24 a Gold braIlle watch helps keep a leGacy alIve Kim Wrigley-Archer connects with the Canadian Helen Keller By Megan Easton

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ta b l e o f c o n t e n t s summ e r 2016

cOveR stORycover IllustratIon by martIn o'neIll

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2 ryerson university Magazine • S U M M E R 2016 S U M M E R 2016 • ryerson university Magazine 3

from the edItor President’s messaGe

i t is a privilege to reach out to alumni as Ryerson’s new

president and vice-chancellor. I am excited to have the opportunity to serve, and look forward to sharing ideas, plans and progress.

Diversity is the theme of this issue, and as I was writing this column, we received some wonderful news on that very topic: Ratna Omidvar, executive director of Ryerson’s Global Diversity Exchange and chair of Lifeline Syria, has been named to the Senate of Canada by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The seven new independent appointments are intended to focus on the issues of Canadians and reflect our nation’s diversity — Ratna is a brilliant choice.

My goal over the next few months is to explore diversity in all its aspects at Ryerson. Over my 18 years at Ryerson, and most recently as provost and interim president, I have met many students and alumni, faculty and staff, and members of the broader community. Each of them brings a special spark to the university and deserves respect and support. These interactions motivate me to follow four core values: the value of the student experience; the value of talented faculty and staff; the rising value of the Ryerson degree for alumni; and the value of strategic partnerships.

For alumni in particular, as Ryerson’s reputation rises, the value of your degree increases

exponentially. My goal is to ramp up the visibility and engagement of alumni as a group. At leading universities around the world, alumni are a passionate and significant factor in university development, strong ambassadors for their alma mater, and especially loyal to their academic programs and classmates. Our relationship with you is important and in my first column it is this message I want you to remember.

Wherever you are in the world, you are close to Ryerson in spirit. All the very best and thank you for all the ways you make Ryerson great. n

WHY INCLUSION MATTERSA DIVERSE CAMPUS COMMUNITY ENRICHES RESEARCH, TEACHING AND LEARNING

BY MOHAMED

LACHEMI

students benefit from cross-cultural experience, and see a broad diversity in the campus that helps them become citizens of the world.m

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Shortly after appointing a gender-balanced cabinet, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke at an international conference

praising the ideal of diversity: “Diversity fosters new ideas. New ideas generate the experimentation needed to make the most of the fourth industrial revolution.

“We need societies that recognize diversity as a source of strength, not a source of weakness. Diversity is the engine of invention. It generates creativity that enriches the world,” Trudeau said.

The same can be said for diversity and inclusion at universities such as Ryerson, where students come from more than 146 countries. The university’s initiatives demon-strate the value of diverse voices, ideas and perspectives. In a society that is confronting racism, homophobia and exclusion of people due to socio-economic status, nationality and physical disabilities, Ryersonians continue to be leaders against exclusion.

For example, on page 29, read about alumna Maayan Ziv who developed the AccessNow website and app that helps people with a disability like her find accessible stores, restaurants and workplaces.

Another example of how Ryerson removes limitations is the story on page 8 about a Syrian refugee family who has landed in Toronto through the help of university volunteers, who are leading a co-ordinated response to the humanitarian crisis that aims to resettle 90 families and has raised more than $4 million.

In the cover story, Denise O’Neil Green, who directs the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, explains key ways Ryerson is building an inclusive campus for students, faculty and staff, exemplified by Canada’s Best Diversity Employer Awards which the university has won in the last two years.

Through these stories and more, you’ll discover how diversity as a core value enriches our campus, sparking conversations, attracting innovators and preparing students to be global citizens. n

colleen mellor, JournalIsm ’86

limitless letter to the editor

I’m an Architectural Technology ’90 grad and really enjoy the magazine you’re putting out. The quality of your publication gets better with every issue. The Design Issue was a great read, and it resonated with me because of the innovative, entrepreneurial products and experiences that we are bringing to market.

Are you planning to make The Design Issue an annual feature? If so, what is your selection process and how can I apply to have our disruptively innovative startup (Reviver Sport and Entertainment) considered for inclusion the next time around?

Keep up the good work!

Colin Weston, Vancouver, B.C.

Go Green!

thank you For helpInG us

Go Green!

help us reduce our paper use by subscrIbInG to ryerson unIversIty maGaZIne’s dIGItal edItIon

If you prefer to receive a digital edition instead of a printed copy of the magazine, just visit ryerson.ca/alumni/news/ryerson-university-magazine/ and complete the form to select delivery via email. When each edition is ready, we’ll email you the link instead of sending a print copy by mail. You will be able to read the stories online, on your iPad or mobile phone.

View the current edition online at www.nxtbook.com/dawson/ryerson/alumni_2016summer/

desIGn Guru

showcase

taken during a time of harsh racial tensions, this photograph by Griffith J. davis

captures college students in front of the clark atlanta university administration

building during the american civil rights movement of the 1960s. university students

were crucial to the movement in the deep south, organizing protests aimed at ending

segregation. this image comes from ryerson’s famous black star collection at the

ryerson Image centre, which includes nearly 300,000 photographs featuring the

personalities, events and conflicts of the 20th century.

Fight for your right


6 ryerson university Magazine • S U M M E R 2016

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S U M M E R 2016 • ryerson university Magazine 7

Meet our new president, Mohamed Lachemi

l achemi previously served as dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Architectural Science and then

Ryerson’s provost before stepping in as interim president last December. In his various capacities, he has overseen a period of tremendous growth for the university. He was closely involved in the expansion of the zone learning model, the creation of the Faculty of Science and the development of Ryerson’s academic plan, Our Time to Lead.

Lachemi has taken a unique journey on the road to Ryerson. He was born in a remote Algerian village where the local elementary school only went to Grade 6. His parents, dreaming of a better life for their children, risked separation from their family and friends to move to a new home with greater educational opportunities. A devastating earthquake in his new town was another setback that he and his family overcame. Not only did they persevere through that experience, but it also inspired him to become a civil engineer. A graduate

of Université des Sciences et de la Technologie d’Oran in Algeria (civil engineering, with distinction) and L’Université de Sherbrooke (MASc and PhD, Structural Engineering), Lachemi worked with Concrete Canada as a postdoctoral fellow and research associate, followed by a visiting professorship in Applied Science at Artois University in France.

A proud “global citizen,” he has studied around the world, learned both of Canada’s official languages, and supervised more than 60 graduate

students and postdoctoral fellows from 25 countries. Lachemi was the Canada Research Chair in Sustainable Construction from 2002 to 2010.

He has described three principles of his leadership: • Be willing to transform;• Be willing to try to overcome the

obstacles; and• Be willing to take risks.

Expect Lachemi to bring that same spirit of innovation, transformation and ingenuity to his role as president.

A NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED SCHOLAR, ExPERIENCED ADMINISTRATOR

AND ADVOCATE FOR STUDENT AND FACULTY SUCCESS, MOHAMED

LACHEMI COMES TO THE PRESIDENT’S OFFICE WITH A LONG RECORD OF

INNOVATION, TRANSFORMATION AND INGENUITY.

“I believe in creating opportunities through teamwork, and finding the strengths in others.”

Q: What attracted you to this position? Why did you want to be president of Ryerson University? A: Ryerson needs a leader who knows this university intimately, cares passionately about its future and enjoys the confidence of the community. Every stage of my career has prepared me to take this step: I am a builder, and this is a wonderful opportunity to build a better university. With the support of the community, we will grow Ryerson in new and exciting ways we could not have even imagined just a few years ago.

Q: What are your biggest career accomplishments to date? A: I was very proud to have overseen the creation of Ryerson’s academic plan, Our Time to Lead, which is a shared vision for Ryerson to become Canada’s most innovative, accessible and inclusive university. I’ve helped build strategic partnerships with organizations like St. Michael’s Hospital, and strong research teams focused on city and society, including the Centre for Urban Energy. I’m especially proud of helping build Ryerson’s innovation entrepreneurial ecosystem — including the zones and the big data business accelerator OneEleven — which impacts not only our students but also our city and its economy.

Q: What are your top priorities for the school? A: Ryerson has grown by leaps and bounds, and I want to contin-ue enhancing the student experience through quality programs, top faculty and staff, and strengthening our in-novation ecosystem. I also want to keep engaging alumni, and continue developing strategic partnerships that can give us a bigger role in city building.

Q: How would you describe your leadership style? A: I believe in creating opportunities through teamwork, and finding the strengths in others. Collaboration builds trust and allows you to move confidently and quickly. I treat people fairly and respectfully, and I trust colleagues to have a high degree of integrity, strong work ethic and an ability to move initiatives along.

Q: What do you like about toronto? A: I see diversity as one of the city’s greatest assets. Having to deal and interact with people who are quite literally from almost every country in the world is a rich advantage.

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Best advice you received as a student“education opens doors”

Favourite app or technologycBc and BBc news apps, tuneIn Radio app

Favourite lunch spotthe Hub (for quality, variety and healthy options)

Favourite place to visitcape town, south Africa

Last book you readGood Morning Mr. Mandela, by Zelda La Grange

Favourite part of campusGould street (for its energy, vitality and community)

MOHAMed LAcHeMI: LIGHtnInG ROUnd

S U M M E R 2016 • ryerson university Magazine 98 ryerson university Magazine • S U M M E R 2016

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‘there’s no better than this’ for resettled syrian family

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the rams women’s basketball team won ryerson’s first-ever silver medal at the cIs championship. the men won bronze for the second year in a row.

storytime, from left: aunt reyak, maaly (3) and malek (15).

From left: aunt saadah, maher and visitor.

Women’s, men’s basketball take home silver and bronze

the Ryerson Rams basketball teams ended the 2015-2016 season on a high note, taking home medals at

the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) Championships.The women’s team triumphed with the school’s first-

ever silver medal. Meanwhile, the men’s team ended their year with their second straight bronze at nationals. The medals cap a historic year that inspired the city to celebrate the teams by lighting up city hall and the Toronto sign in blue and gold.

The women went into nationals with momentum on their side, coming off a six-game winning streak in the regular season and capturing the program’s first Ontario University Athletics (OUA) Championship. At the CIS Championship in Fredericton, N.B., they scored a narrow victory over Regina (73-70) and a decisive win against McGill (82-72) in the semifinal, but fell to the University of Saskatchewan in the finals, 71-85.

The final game was marked by a strong performance from Keneca Pingue-Giles, CIS Player of the Year, who scored 26 points. Pingue-Giles and Silvana Jez were both named tournament all-stars following the game.

The men’s team also enjoyed some of their best results ever, tying Ottawa for the best record in the regular season (17 wins, two losses). The team won the OUA quarter-final (93-71) and also claimed the school’s first OUA Championship. At nationals in Vancouver, B.C., they eked out an overtime victory against British Columbia (109-101) before suffering a loss in the semifinal to Calgary (98-87). They won their final match against Dalhousie 85-78 to snatch the bronze.

mahmoud Al Rassoul and his family were among the 11

Syrian families who arrived in Canada through the Ryerson University Lifeline Syria Challenge (RULSC) in December. When asked what he thinks of his new home, Al Rassoul replied simply: “There’s no better than this.

“We were living in Lebanon, and there was no education or resources — either way, you would come out of Lebanon with nothing,” he said. “I had

a choice, but I wanted to leave Lebanon, because there is no education and no future there. They asked if I wanted to go to Canada, and I agreed. Every-thing changed for my kids.”

In response to the humani-tarian crisis in Syria, Ryerson launched RULSC last summer to sponsor 10 families — increas-ing to 25 families (100 newcom-ers) in September 2015. When OCADU, York University and the University of Toronto joined in, the program expanded again, creating 90 sponsoring

teams to resettle 90 Syrian refugee families — 300 individu-als in total — and raising more than $4 million. More than 1,000 volunteers, including many Ryerson students and staff, have joined the effort, which has been touted internationally as a model of social innovation.

The Ryerson community has come together to welcome new Canadians. Zena Salem, a first-year Ryerson journalism student, is volunteering as the Al Rassoul family’s primary translator. Enactus Ryerson has created

banking and financial literacy modules to help newcomers, which have been translated into Arabic. Students from the Master of Arts in Public Policy and Administration program have volunteered to draft a curriculum and provide seminars on Canadian Government 101 for refugee families.

“When we started this initiative in July 2015, I don’t think we realized how quickly we would reach 90 sponsorship teams and how much of an immediate and enthusiastic

response we would receive from students, faculty, staff and alumni as well as the broader community,” said Wendy Cukier, vice-president research and innovation, and executive lead of the project.

Al Rassoul’s family is settled in Scarborough, where seven of his children go to school. His children are taking lessons to learn English, and Al Rassoul plans to take courses required to work in construction. He says that he has been touched by the generosity

of his adoptive country.“One time, I was standing

outside waiting for a sponsor to pick me up. Someone in a different car kept on waving — it was a stranger offering me a ride, because he thought I needed transportation. That’s a very kind act.”

To learn more about the Ryerson University Lifeline Syria Challenge, including how to donate and volunteer, please visit www.ryerson.ca/lifelinesyria/.

– WILL SLOAN

meal time, from left:mouaayyid (9), mohammed (13)

mom Isaaf, malek (15), maher(12) and mohannad (11).

mahmoud al rassoul and daughter maaly.

Family time: mahmoud

(standing); maher on the laptop,

mariah (5) and malek.


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A vOIce fOR ALL ever wonder what the face on the other end of the radio looks like?

Well, RTA School of Media Professor Lori Beckstead is curious too. To explore diversity in Canada’s largest radio market, Beckstead hacked an old radio to create Interactive Radio: Diversity on Air, a data visualization and auralization tool that allows users to find out how many men, women and racialized persons have control of the microphone.

“I think there’s an attitude that everything is okay but when

you look at the numbers we’re not seeing the diversity of Toronto reflected at all in terms of the people who are speaking on air,” said Beckstead on CBC’s Metro Morning. “Torontonians want to be able to relate to the people they’re hearing on the radio and they would like to hear themselves reflected in that.”

listen to the full clip at www.ryerson.ca/news/diversity-on-air.– ANTOINETTE MERCURIO

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StudeNt daNcerS collaborate wIth JaMeS KudelKa

fifty-seven students from the Ryerson Theatre School’s

performance dance program staged an original performance last winter by renowned Canadian choreographer James Kudelka. Kudelka Meets Ryerson Dances 2015 gave students a chance to work with one of the country’s

most innovative choreographers.“This is a once-in-a-lifetime

experience on many levels for our students — the opportunity first to work with such an accomplished choreographer, and to be a part of this truly remarkable creation,” said Vicki St. Denys, director of the performance dance program.

Kudelka, the former artistic director of the National Ballet of Canada, has been widely praised for his innovative and eclectic body of work: along with full-length versions of classics like Swan Lake and The Nutcracker, he is also known for works such as 1983’s In Paradisium, 1991’s Fifteen Heterosexual Duets and Man in Black. The Ryerson show featured contemporary choreography performed in silence, without music or dialogue.

“Every piece that I’ve been to that’s been done in silence, I’ve found more fascinating because you don’t know what’s going to come next or where it’s going to go,” said Kudelka. “It really forces you to see and not just watch, and I think there’s a difference between seeing and watching.

It was better to have something that could breathe and expand and contract depending on what I thought was happening as it was unfolding. I didn’t want to be working for a score — I wanted to be working for what was coming out of the dancers.”

Kudelka described the rehearsals as mainly “task-oriented.” Third- and fourth-year students, however, were also encouraged to be spontaneous. Pointe work — the ballet technique in which a dancer supports his or her body weight on the tips of extended feet — was also incorporated into rehearsals.

Students from the school’s pro-duction program were also heavily involved behind the scenes as stage and production managers, sched-ulers and costume designers.

– ROBERT LIWANAG

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choreographer James kudelka (left) and student stella medley at the ryerson theatre school.

recognizing top alumnIin Toronto; and Robert Schauer, Business Management ’97, CFO and treasurer for BMO’s mutual funds and ETFs in Canada, and the bank’s head of operations, investment funds.

The Isadore Sharp Outstanding Recent Graduate Award was presented to Andrew Cividino, Image Arts ’06, director of the award-winning film Sleeping Giant. The Outstanding International Alumni Award went to Zanele Muholi, Master of Fine Arts in Documentary Media ’09, an international photographer and visual activist known for her visual history of black lesbian identity and politics in post-Apartheid South Africa. Jillian McKinley, Business Management ’07, founder of the Ryerson HR Alumni Association, received the Outstanding Volunteer Award. n

From left: president mohamed lachemi with award recipients Robert schauer, Business Management ’97; Lynn factor, social Work ’80; Zanele Muholi, documentary Media ’09; Andrew cividino, Image Arts ’06; Justin Poy, RtA ’93; Jillian McKinley, Business Management ’07; and chancellor lawrence bloomberg.

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e very year the Alumni Achievement Awards celebrate the best Ryerson

graduates. This year’s Alumni Award of Distinction recipients are: Lynn Factor, Social Work ’80, in recognition of her role as chair of the board at Children’s Aid

Foundation and child witness advocate with the Boost Child & Youth Advocacy Centre; philanthropist and agent Justin Poy, RTA ’93, president and creative director of the Justin Poy Agency, a full service award-winning marketing and advertising agency based


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Q: Where did the idea for Brown come from?

a It came to me before [my first book] Intolerable was published. I started

thinking about the idea of race and relationships, and relationships between races. We talk a lot about what being black is, we talk a lot about what being white is, but we don’t discuss what being brown really means and where that term comes from, and what its history is.

Q: Having now researched and talked to people and written the book, what does being brown mean to you?

a I think the main argument in the book is that brown people in general

tend to be associated with cheap or affordable labour, and they’re the ones who leave their homelands in pursuit of opportunities, or sometimes are forced to leave their homelands for political or economic hardships. To me, it became a story about migration.

Q: In the first few pages of your book, you describe the moment you first realized you were brown and how you wondered if you could “wash the brown away.” How has your relationship to your skin colour changed over the years?

a I went through a phase where I thought if I were white I would likely be better

off. I was in my twenties probably before I realized that you can actually be dark-skinned and beautiful, and feel confident and intelligent and all the other things that you always associate with only light-skinned people. But it took a little time and a lot of reading into issues from gay liberation to African-American history to colonization history and now I wonder, why did I waste all my time and energy fretting about something that I couldn’t possibly have changed?

Q: In the book you touch on the idea of brownness as being an expanding and contracting definition, it changes over time. Why do you think that is?

a It changes because the politics change, and who is our friend and who is our

enemy changes. For the longest time people from the Middle East were not considered brown in North America; the consensus was that being from the Middle East fell under the category of white. Clearly after 9/11 that’s no longer the case. That group of people have been sort of darkened by their association of 9/11 and therefore became part of the brown continuum. To some extent in some Hispanic countries, particularly places like Mexico and South America, there wasn’t always

the conception of brownness until anti-immigration forces, or anti-undocumented worker forces in America, started to mobilize against the advance of migrants. Politics have a lot to do with it, and geopolitical tensions around the globe have a lot to do with it.

Q: What was it like watching a very divisive election campaign play out in canada?

a I reported from different Muslim events, and in the summer I was in

the U.K. and I saw this hand-wringing by Muslim groups and worrying about the different surveillance programs in the U.K., and I was sort of smug, like ‘oh we live in a much better society than this.’ Then I came back to Canada and found out, during the election, how much of that was actually also happening here. It was a difficult book chapter to report. With all the other chapters in the other countries I had a certain kind of distance from them, but with the one set in Canada I felt, if this doesn’t get right I don’t have a choice. This is my home, and things better work out.

this interview has been edited and condensed.

In his new book, Journalism professor kamal al-solaylee considers the global implications of brown skin colour.

the Politics of beInG brownKAMAL AL-SOLAYLEE, A PROFESSOR IN

ryerSoN’S School of JourNalISM,

SPOKE WITH kelsey rolFe ABOUT

HIS NEW NONFICTION WORK BroWn:

WHat BEing BroWn in tHE WorlD

toDay MEanS (For EvEryonE), AND

HOW HIS ExPERIENCES AND IDENTITY

INFORMED HIS REPORTING.

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sometimes schoolwork can lead to unexpected places. In 2015, Ryerson

became the first Canadian university to participate in the Student Spaceflights Experiments Program (SSEP), a science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education initiative for students to design experiments to be tested in space. This summer, the winning experiment will be conducted at the International Space Station.

Designed by Preet Kahlon, Francis Buguis, Gemma Mancuso, Modlin Orange and Kugenthini Tharmakulasekaram, the experiment will monitor the growth of Pleurotus ostreatus in microgravity. Or, in layman’s terms, it will test the possibility of growing oyster mushrooms in space.

Why mushrooms? “Mushrooms are nutritious, and they’re delicious to some — some people don’t like them, of course…” said Ryerson Chemistry Professor Bryan

Koivisto, who leads the program. But, more to the point, “they grow in extreme harsh environments, and they usually just grow from waste. That was what our group would like to see: how mushrooms can be grown in space from simple things like cardboard, cellulose paper, things like that, because that’s all they need to grow.”

Led by the Faculty of Science, the extra-curricular SSEP program paired Ryerson stu-dents with high school students to design ex-periments for low earth orbit demonstrating the effect of microgravity (weightlessness). The selected project, NanoRacks’ SpaceX-9, overseen by NASA, is scheduled for launch on June 24. The students will test the experi-ment on earth simultaneously. “They’ve had really big exposure to what it’s like to do re-search and manage a project,” said Koivisto.

“The students who are doing the experiment have learned a lot about how

to develop a project. They’ve learned project management in a way that isn’t just about doing something that’s kind-of trivial down here on earth — that is way more complex. You’ve got to work with safety regulations, and you have to work with a number of international collaborators. It’s not an easy thing to do.”

an out-of-this-world exPeriment

student spaceflights experiments program will take science experiments to space.

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– WILL SLOAN


The power of

InclusIonfour ryersonians explain how Diversity is

transforming the post-seconDary lanDscape

by Karen K. Ho

photos by Jessica blaine smith

a t a major university like Ryerson, located in a city like Toronto, diversity is an ongoing

conversation. The community represents a wide array of back-grounds, classes, ethnicities, cultures and ages. There is broader discussion in classrooms about these topics and more resources being invested in issues such as race, gender, varying incomes and disabilities. In 2016, students, faculty and staff say that divers-ity, equity and inclusion are talked about more than ever before. People understand and strive for equity; people appreciate diversity, but when it comes to inclusion, there is always more work to be done.

Four individuals from the Ryerson community offered their perspective on how the university

is making diversity, equity and inclusion a priority in its culture and operations.

how ryerson is making diversiTy, equiTy and inclusion a parT of iTs culTure, in and ouT of The classroom

Ben Barry is professor of equity, diversity and inclusion, and founding director, Faculty of Communication & Design (FCAD) Centre for Fashion Diversity & Social Change. He says diversity is a reality of life on campus and students in the School of Fashion encounter it right away in class.

“It’s something they inherently understand because they live it every day,” said Barry. His students already recognize the benefits of being in a class with people from

different backgrounds. Many have had first-hand experiences of racism, sexism, homophobia and ableism. “They know the pain that discrimination can cause and they want to work at undoing these injustices,” Barry said, noting first-year students actively interact with the issue soon after they start their first semester through a public, one-day annual conference called Diversity Now.

“Diversity isn’t a ‘nice-to-have’ on this campus,” he said. “It really is on the agenda.”

This past year the School of Journalism took on the call to action by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) for Canadian journalism programs to educate students about the history of Aboriginal Peoples, including the history and legacy of residential

Denise o'neil Green: "For change to be effective our values of equity, diversity and inclusion must be a part of our policies, practices, procedures and programming."


“With a diverse faculty, we’re more likely to have curriculum that is more inclusive. With a diverse staff, you’re more likely to have policies with a different lens.” — Denise O'neiL GReen, Office Of equity, DiveRsity anD incLusiOn

schools. TRC Commissioner Marie Wilson gave the Atkinson Lecture on campus this year, speaking about the work the TRC does and the responsibility journalists have in getting the facts straight. In addition, Journalists for Human Rights held a seminar on indigenous reporting.

Asmaa Malik, a professor in Ryerson’s School of Journalism, incorporated diversity in a graduate class on digital journalism. “Each of those multimedia and long-form stories in the [students’] final projects responded to the call to action,” she said. Feature stories focused on secondary school curriculum, midwives on reserves and the distance required to travel for health care.

While the class is not about indigenous issues, the students are learning diverse points of view through their projects.

When it comes to curriculum, Barry said he audits his course reading list to ensure an equal gender split of male and female authors, as well as the inclusion of different ethnicities, races and other marginalized identities. He said the process ultimately provides students with a greater variety of perspectives and academic role models.

Another example of curriculum that reflects diversity and respects indigenous cultures is the Ryerson degree program in social work tailored for indigenous students. The university offers this through a partnership with the First Nations Technical Institute (FNTI), an indigenous community organization

based in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory near Belleville, Ont. The program, which usually admits a cohort of about 25 students every two years, integrates Ryerson’s academic rigor with indigenous knowledge and worldviews. Since 2004, the partnership has seen 86 indigenous students graduate with their bachelor of social work.

Diversity is a priority at Ryerson and the focus is on building an in-clusive campus. The university has been recognized as one of Canada's Best Diversity Employers twice in the past two years. Four years ago the university established the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI), hiring Denise O’Neil Green as the inaugural assistant vice-president/vice-provost. Green over-sees Ryerson’s Aboriginal Initia-tives, Human Rights Services, the university-wide initiative on access-ibility called Access Ryerson, educa-tion, awareness, strategic planning, assessment and special projects.

The new position was an outcome of the recommendations in the Report on the Taskforce on Anti-Racism at Ryerson in January 2010. The 106-page document also highlighted gaps in awareness and made recommendations on issues such as training, data collection, inclusive curriculum, employment equity, discrimination, harassment, aboriginal initiatives and security.

Another recommendation was to commit to a process of data collec-tion to better understand the experi-ence of students, staff and faculty.

This was addressed two years ago when Ryerson conducted a divers-ity self-identification survey. More than 4,400 employees completed the diversity self-identification survey or the previous version of the question-naire (99 per cent of full-time staff and long-term contract employees and 45 per cent of Ryerson’s short-term contract employees).

The results, compiled last year and to be released in a report this year, show that Ryerson’s workforce is 50 per cent women, 31 per cent visible minorities or from racialized groups, two per cent aboriginal, six per cent persons with disabilities, and eight per cent who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, queer (LGBTQ) or other identities pertaining to gender or sexual diversity.

The report shows that the percentage of employee population that identified as women is close to the population of women in the GTA and the university’s student population. The representation of employees who identified as aboriginal is comparable to the representation of Aboriginal People in the university’s full-time student population and the population of Ontario. The representation of employees who identified as LGBTQ is also on par with the representation in Toronto’s population and students in full-time programs.

In 2014, equity, diversity and inclusion were identified as priorities in the university’s academic plan, called Our Time

Professor ben barry: His students recognize the benefit of being in a diverse classroom.



to Lead. “The first strategy in the academic plan is to attract and retain people with diverse backgrounds,” Green said. “With a diverse faculty, we’re more likely to have curriculum that is more inclusive. With a diverse staff, you’re more likely to have policies with an equity, diversity and inclusion lens.”

One of the ways Green has increased the discussion of equity, diversity and inclusion on campus is through a series of panel discussions called Soup and Substance. Started in fall 2013, the monthly, hour-long events feature topics and panellists from around the university.

“They’re accessible to everyone,” Green said, estimating there have been more than 7,500 views from around the world of the series’ online video archive.

Beyond the classroom, the university recently launched an initiative called Transitioning at Ryerson, a program developed by staff from human resources, the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, and Positive Space, a coalition of faculty and staff dedicated to creating and maintaining a safe and inclusive environment for community members regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Ryerson is the first university in Canada to have publicly posted a process and support online for community members who are transitioning. There’s a website with resources for community members who want to learn more about trans inclusion. The team also developed

resources including templates for communicating name and/or pronoun changes to colleagues and a checklist for updating records.

The initiative has created a welcoming environment for transgender employees and established the university as a national leader in trans inclusion. The team won Ryerson’s Alan Shepard Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Award in 2014. The award is one example of how Ryerson recognizes the many community members who put equity, inclusion and diversity values into practice.

Green currently leads an all-gender washroom working group — it addresses inclusion on many levels, she says. “The goal is a policy that will speak to installation of all-gender washrooms as we have new builds and what to do with the washrooms we have. Even going beyond the facilities itself, the project speaks to educating the community about trans members of the Ryerson community and that everyone has a right to use a washroom based on their selected identity and they should be able to do it safely.”

When it comes to direct student services, third-year Radio and Television Arts student Zahra Khozema said the Ryerson Students’ Union’s six equity service centres, such as the Racialized Students’ Collective and the Trans Collective, provide safe, comfortable spaces for marginalized students to talk about their concerns and work towards greater inclusivity. “They really help,” she said.

Khozema also said RTA Professor Laurie Petrou was a great example of a faculty member who emphasizes the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion during discussions of race, gender and sexuality in a media and aesthetics class. “It’s very encouraging, to be honest, when someone stands with you,” she said. “You don’t have to be alone.”

recommendaTions for The fuTure

How can Ryerson and other colleges and universities across Canada increase diversity, equity and inclusion? Barry’s answer is that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s policy of gender parity for his cabinet should be taken as a guiding principle for hiring and university leadership.

Ryerson recognizes that its curriculum, faculty and staff need to reflect its students and the diversity of its community, Green said. She plans to conduct annual diversity self-identification surveys to measure how Ryerson’s workforce progresses and changes year to year. “For any change to be effective,” Green said, “our values of equity, diversity and inclusion must be a part of our policies, practices, procedures and programming.”

Ultimately, the clientele of post-secondary institutions has changed over the years and universities have to adapt to that diverse shift in population.

“We need to recognize we are in 2016 and the world is different,” Green said. n

“It’s very encouraging, to be honest, when someone stands with you. you don’t have to be alone.”

— ZahRa KhOZema, RaDiO anD teLevisiOn aRts


RTA student Zahra Khozema notes how the student union offers supports for marginalized students.


research

Makingwaves


m uch of the work that physicists do — at least, the headline-

grabbing variety — involves things that seem far removed from everyday life, like subatomic particles or gravitational waves. But Michael Kolios, a physicist in Ryerson’s Faculty of Science, is interested in a more down-to-earth kind of physics — the kind that can directly impact human health and well-being.

Kolios has been developing cutting-edge imaging techniques that can be used to monitor cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy. His most recent work involves photoacoustics: When light shines on tissue, the vasculature (blood vessels) in the tissue vibrate, emitting high-frequency sound waves. A rough analogy, he says, is the way that lightning heats up a cloud, causing the sonic clap we call thunder. “I can take a laser pulse, shoot it at tissue — or anything that absorbs light — and it produces ultrasound,” he explains. Those sound waves, with frequencies about a thousand times higher than what’s audible to the human ear, can be studied using a new kind of device known as a scanning photoacoustic microscope.

Although this kind of microscope can’t be used on a live patient, it can be used to develop the underlying science, Kolios says, so that similar imaging techniques can be used to monitor treatments, especially chemotherapy. If the therapy is affecting the targeted cancer vessels, it will also affect the red blood cells in the vasculature — which photoacoustic microscopy is exquisitely sensitive to. Much of the research is being conducted in Kolios’s new state-of-the-art lab, at St. Michael’s Hospital, where Kolios is an affiliate scientist at the hospital’s

Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute; he collaborates with doctors at Sunnybrook Hospital as well.

Kolios is also excited about another new technology known as “microbubbles.” Ultrasound waves interact with microbubbles that are injected into the blood stream, which make the vessels more visible. The effect of the bubbles can be studied with a new, high-speed camera that Kolios and his colleagues have developed, which snaps a staggering two million frames per second.

Both technologies, he says, can be used to make cancer treatments more efficient. “Treatments today are expensive, and have side effects — you don’t want to be giving a drug to somebody for two or three months, without knowing if it’s working or not,” Kolios says. “Conceivably, if you see that you’re administering a drug, and it’s not affecting the tumour, you can stop the treatment and try something else.”

Kolios is also involved in an initiative called iBest (Institute for Biomedical Engineering and Science Technology), a 20-year collaboration between Ryerson and St. Mike’s, with a mandate not only for health-care research and development, but also to lend support to startup biomedical companies that aim to shorten the time lag between research and patient care. Alongside iBest is a new Biomedical Zone, a physician-led “incubator” for commercializing products and technologies. n

dAn fALK, JOURnALIsM ’92 (@DANFALK), IS a ScIeNce JourNalISt BASED IN TORONTO. HIS BOOKS INCLUDE tHE SciEncE oF SHaKESpEarE AND in SEarcH oF tiME.

faculty of science Professor michael kolios is taking Physics to a human level

science professor michael kolios develops cutting-edge imaging techniques that can be used to monitor cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy.

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BY dAn fALK, JOURnALIsM ’92

charith Perera learned from failed Pitches and critical feedbackBY WILL SLOAN

W hen he was a student, Charith Perera, Ted Rogers School of

Management ’14, entered the Slaight Business New Venture Competition every year, hoping his pitches would earn the $25,000 prize. And every year… he lost. But through this process, Perera learned some of the skills he needed to launch TDot Performance, a fast-growing auto parts startup. “It really taught me a lot about how to answer questions, how to think critically from a business perspective, and also how to present,” he said.

On Nov. 25, Perera and business partner Mubin Vaid scored big on CBC’s Dragons’ Den, with Michele Romanow, a judge on the popular business competition show, investing $1 million

in their company TDot Performance.TDot Performance is an e-commerce

website (TDotPerformance.ca) for high-quality auto parts from the U.S., with free shipping on all items, and without additional customs duties that plague cross-border shipping. Launched in 2009 while Perera was a student, it was included in the 2013 Profit Hot 50 as one of Canada’s fastest growing businesses.

The $1 million deal with the Dragons (for a 25 per cent equity stake in the company) will help with “tuning the raw engine” of the business, said Perera. When asked for advice for budding entrepreneurs, Perera suggests starting early. “I realized that my biggest asset wasn’t money because I didn’t have any —

it was my time. I knew that I would have to bootstrap like crazy just to get something going, and it was a snowball effect.”

He also urges startups to confront and address criticism, not turn it away. “When someone asks you that really hard question about why it’s not going to work, take that criticism and actually look at it as a positive. They’re telling you why it’s not going to work. If you figure out how to fix that fundamental problem, then it will work.” n


ALUMNI proFIles

about Facesangita Patel gave uP a career in engineering for her first love: tv

BY SUE HORNER

S angita Patel, Electrical Engineering ’02, believes

in following your dream. For her, that meant turning an engineering degree, more than five years in the field and a designation as a professional engineer into a completely different career.

Now an Entertainment Tonight Canada reporter and host of HGTV Canada’s Home To Win, Patel is following her first love — television.

“I applied to both journalism and engineering at Ryerson,” she explains. “I had a passion for television, but I also loved math and science. My Dad sat me down and asked, ‘Where will you make money?’ He was right that engineering was the way to go, and I’m glad I did it.”

Still, she never gave up her love for TV.

While working as an engineer, Patel volunteered for Rogers, covering lifestyle, entertainment and film festivals. Her volunteer experience opened doors and opportunities at The Weather Network (“the perfect mix of TV

and science”), Citytv and Breakfast Television.

“I enjoyed being an engineer, but volunteering confirmed that TV is where I’m supposed to be,” Patel says.

“My primary job is now reporter for ET Canada, and it’s so much fun,” she says. “As an engineer, I didn’t have the opportunity to talk to many people. Now, I talk to someone different every day — this week, it was Chelsea Handler and Viola Davis. That’s what I love about this job.”

Meanwhile, HGTV Canada invited Patel to host Home To Win, where celebrities renovate a home that will be won by a viewer. She’s excited to don a hardhat and steel-toed boots again.

What’s next for this engineer-turned-television-personality?

“Education is a possible area,” she says. “I believe strongly that all kids should have access to education and opportunity. How else are they going to make their own dreams come true?” n

sangita patel was a volunteer for community television — now she reports for et canada.

charith perera (right) started tdot performance

with business partner mubin vaid while still a student at ryerson.


stUdent stARtUP scORes BIG On dRAGOns’ den


ALUMNI proFIles

a gold braille watch helps keep a legacy alivedisability studies grad tells the story of the canadian helen keller’s Pioneering life

Kim Wrigley-Archer, disability studies ’07, at the canadian helen keller centre.

k im Wrigley-Archer, Disability Studies ’07, wants Canadians to know that our country has its own Helen

Keller. In 1972 Mae Brown became Canada’s first deaf-blind university graduate. She was a tireless advocate for greater opportunities for individuals with deaf-blindness.

“Mae’s drive and persistence in working towards creating deaf-blind services was key in initiating the intervenor services we have today,” says Wrigley-Archer, who has partial sight and hearing. Like many people with the dual disability of deaf-blindness — which includes a wide spectrum of hearing and vision loss — Wrigley-Archer sometimes uses intervenors, who are trained to be mediators in communicating with the world.

When the Ryerson School of Disability Studies presented an opportunity to heighten awareness of Brown’s story, Wrigley-Archer didn’t hesitate. In 2006 she joined a group of students, faculty, alumni and activists to produce an exhibit called Out from Under: Disability, History and Things to Remember, now housed at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. It features 13 objects that recount Canadian history from disabled people’s perspective. Brown’s gold braille watch accompanies Wrigley-Archer’s narrative of her pioneering life.

Before studying at Ryerson, Wrigley-Archer had a 20-year career in computer programming. While she says the work could be rewarding, the professional culture did not support accessibility at that time. In contrast, she found the environment at the School of Disability Studies respectful and empowering. “The faculty ‘walks the talk’ when it comes to inclusion,” she says.

Wrigley-Archer is now an accessibility consultant with a focus on the workplace. She is also on the board of directors for the Canadian Helen Keller Centre, where the new Mae Brown Memorial Room will open in June.

“It’s important to keep Mae Brown’s name and legacy alive to serve as a reminder to other people — whether they are deaf-blind or not — not to place limitations on anyone.” n

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Generosity meets success at Ryerson

Thanks to alumni, friends, faculty, staff, students and parents, corporate partners and others, the largest fundraising campaign in Ryerson’s history exceeded our �� million dollar goal. Close to ��,�� supporters came together to help strengthen student success and create new opportunities. Thank you for making your mark for Ryerson!

ryerson.ca/supporting

BY MEGAN EASTON

BY stephen knIGht, JournalIsm ’94 PHOTOS BY CHRISTINA GAPIC

UnIQUe styLe Of LeARnInG PUts stUdents AHeAd Of tHe cURve

zoneGet in the

S U M M E R 2016 • ryerson university Magazine 2726 ryerson university Magazine • S U M M E R 2016

F or Jen Fischer, being up to her elbows in worms, dirt and vegetable scraps

is a transformative experience.The Vancouver transplant sees the

bigger picture in the rich compost created as worms eat food scraps and transform them into nutrient-rich organic soil to grow food.

“The worm bin illustrates the connection to nature. I can’t help but be lit up by a bin full of beautiful-smelling earth,” says Fischer, who is graduating this spring from Environment and Urban Sustainability after an unconventional educational experience. In addition to her regular classes, Fischer conceived and led two social ventures as a zone learning student, including a worm-related compost project known as the Microbe Hub.

“I’ve gotten so much more than I expected out of zone learning,” says Fischer, who is one of 600 students involved in this unique style of education at Ryerson.

While she doesn’t consider herself business-oriented, Fischer saw that acquiring skills such as crafting an elevator pitch, budgeting and forming a team may be the difference between success and failure for her environmental projects. “I’ve never experienced anything better —

there’s so much value. It’s an amazing bridge from the classroom to the real world.”

That’s a good description of Ryerson’s zone learning approach, which emphasizes collaboration, innovation and cross-pollination of ideas in 10 learning zones, including the SocialVentures Zone where Fischer developed her projects. Zone learning helps students turn their ideas into action, and fosters an innovation ecosystem versus the more conventional approach of chalkboards and all-nighter essay sessions fueled by black coffee.

Zone learning also connects students with industry mentors, like-minded problem solvers and external partners.

Following her passion for alternative agriculture, social justice and making constructive use of derelict urban land — the industry term is brownfields — Fischer started Soul Roots with the help of Greenest City, a Toronto-based environ-mental education and urban agriculture organization, and Ryerson’s SocialVentures Zone in the Faculty of Arts.

Fischer’s first big idea for Soul Roots was to turn the contaminated land from a previous gas station into a high-yield urban farm that also used the labour of vulnerable and marginalized populations

student Jen Fischer follows her passion for alternative agriculture

and social justice.

in her Parkdale neighbourhood. The idea was brilliant, but has since run into some barriers around regulation of growing crops on contaminated land and the reality of a costly site assessment.

Despite the temporary setback, Fischer says she’s more determined than ever to do the research, navigate the policy issues and untangle a solution.

“I’m propelled by what I’m learning in the classroom and [zone learning] has been really valuable in terms of on-the-ground problem solving and activist learning,” says Fischer.

• Biomedical Zone• iCUE• Design Fabrication Zone• DMZ• Fashion Zone• iBoost Zone• Launch Zone• Legal Innovation Zone• SocialVentures Zone• Transmedia Zone

ryerson’s 10 learnInG Zones are:

find out more at www.ryerson.ca/ zonelearning.

students Jen Fischer and sarah brigel started the microbe hub at ryerson to help divert compost away from landfill.

o ver at the DMZ, Maayan Ziv is helping to change the lives of

thousands of people with disabilities who encounter barriers every day for regular routines like going out for dinner with friends.

She has created AccessNow, a website (and, soon, a smartphone app) that allows users to pin locations around the world rated according to their accessibility level. In less than eight months, more than 4,500 places have been pinned and rated. While most pinned locations are in Toronto, there are locations in 125 cities, some as far away as Mexico, England and Australia.

Born with Muscular Dystrophy, Ziv encounters many physical barriers as she makes her way through the city with a motorized wheelchair.

“The idea began with my own personal experience,” says Ziv, a photographer and a 2015 graduate of Ryerson’s Master of Digital Media


AN ACCESSIBLE APP FOR CHANGE

program. “I would do a lot of research before going out. It was time consuming, and often the information was random, out of date or not there at all, so there was an authentic need for the service.”

Ziv says her zone learning experi-ence has been a game-changer.

“It’s entrepreneurial and I am able to learn from doing,” she says. “It’s a lot more organic, where you have different students with differ-ent experiences collaborating.”

Ziv knows that, sometimes, timing is everything. She launched the site last August, just in time for the Parapan Am Games, where more than 1,600 athletes from 28 countries, hundreds of media, thousands of fans, sponsors and dignitaries converged on Toronto for nine days of competition in 15 sports.

“I was totally not prepared [for the scale and level of interest],” says Ziv of the AccessNow launch. “I went from zero to 100 in a week, but I was trying to live in the moment. It was an amazing experience.”

The arrival of AccessNow has thrust Ziv into the middle of the conversation about rights for people with disabilities. She has become a sort of accidental activist. Although the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act has been in place for more than 10 years, the reality on the ground is that compliance and enforcement levels vary. Ziv says she’s happy to be part of the conversation.

“It’s a super-exciting tool, but it’s so much more than that,” she says. “It’s a digital platform to create change and participate in the con-versation in a more vocal way.” n

9 A.M. caffeinated Innovators meeting in socialventures Zone

10 A.M. Fourth-year environment and urban sustainability lab

11 A.M. meet with sarah brigel, co-founder of microbe hub in Faculty of arts; discuss and develop new case for space plan for expanding microbe hub’s composting capacity zoneA day in the nOOn tO 2 P.M. class: eus

senior projects class. work with group to develop community energy plan and pitch for waterfront toronto

2 P.M. working for arts eco action plan: meeting at balzac’s with arlene throness, director of ryerson’s urban Farm, to discuss ryerson’s ground gardens, o’keefe alleyway garden

3 P.M. working for arts eco action plan: researching carbon neutral conferences

for future events. put together powerpoint deck for Faculty of arts

4 P.M. meet microbe hub’s volunteers in kerr hall east to

collect compost pails and compost

6 P.M. Get on zero-emission bicycle and ride home (and get

some exercise!)

5:30 P.M. check emails from the day

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maayan Ziv: "Zone learning is a

game-changer."

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ZoNe learNING deSIGNer-IN-reSIdeNce Joel GreGorIo IS oNe of MaNy INDUSTRY MENTORS AVAILABLE TO HELP ZONE STUDENTS.

“I also want to be part of what’s next,” says Gregorio, who runs sovereign state, a boutique toronto branding and design studio. “there are all kinds of interesting collaborations with zone learning. people are there because they want to be, not because they have to be.”

4:00P.M.

11:00A.M.

9:00A.M.


lIFe storIes

i t’s Christmas Day in Berlin, 1977. Seated at the table are David Bowie and film director

David Hemmings, along with various partners, children and add-ons like me. At a secluded restaurant in Grunewald, the deep and dark urban forest that hugs the city’s western fringe, we eat and drink too much and Bowie gives me a copy of Fritz Lang’s biography, which one day will help me write a book about Berlin.

In return, I gift him a retro Japanese “space jet” model made of tin. Just right for a wannabe alien. At the end of the happy evening, I follow him downstairs to the huge, ceramic lavatory where — as we stand before the urinals — we sing Buddy Holly songs together, or at least a line

and a half from Little Richard’s Good Golly, Miss Molly.

One year after graduating from Ryerson’s Image Arts program, I’d come to Berlin to work as the assistant director on a film starring Bowie. As the only native English-speakers on the picture, we (Bowie, his assistant Coco, Hemmings and I) naturally gravitated toward each other. Over the next five months we spent many evenings together in his Hauptstraße apartment. He played records and demo tapes for us and others, explaining how musicians and groups come together then break up in the pursuit of creative goals, likening the process to the Die Brücke expressionists; the Beatles and John Lennon; Roxy Music and

Brian Eno; Der Blaue Reiter group and Kandinsky. At nearby Hansa Studio, I even watched him create a song in the studio where he’d just written and recorded Heroes, one of pop’s greatest and most original singles.

Everyone should have the luck to work with a genius once, and everyone should be lucky enough for the relationship to end, so as to let them grow into themselves. I’ve missed many opportunities in this life but once or twice at least, I got it right. To my mind, talent is a gift bestowed on an artist, and he or she must labour in its service. The fruit of their toil is then offered to us all, and it in turn can awaken our individual gift or dream. In those few lucky months working

alongside Bowie, I began to understand how the creative spirit can transform the world, flowing forth from the mouths and pens of poets, painters and songwriters. In Berlin, he taught me, as he taught us all, all the ordinary people, all the nobody people, that we were beautiful, that we could be ourselves. n

RORY MACLEAN IS THE AUTHOR OF 10 AWARD-WINNING BOOKS INCLUDING BErlin: iMaginE a city, THE

STORY OF THE CITY AND HIS DAYS WITH BOWIE, PUBLISHED BY HACHETTE IN CANADA AND ST. MARTIN’S PRESS IN THE U.S. WWW.RORYMACLEAN.COM.

david bowie and rory maclean on the set of “Just a

Gigolo” in berlin, 1977.

BY RORy MAcLeAn, IMAGe ARts ’76

bowie, berlin and the ryerson gradEVERYONE SHOULD BE LUCKY ENOUGH TO WORK WITH A GENIUS ONCE, SAYS WRITER RORY MACLEAN. HERE’S WHAT HE LEARNED FROM THE LATE, GREAT DAVID BOWIE

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How do I know if I am eligible to vote? You are eligible to vote if you are a graduate of Ryerson degree, diploma, or certificate program approved by the Senate; and no longer registered as a Ryerson student.

How do I vote? For information about the voting process, please visit the Board of Governors Elections website in early June at ryerson.ca/governors/elections.

When can I vote? Voting will begin on June 13, 2016 at 8 am and end on June 24, 2016 at 4:30 pm. You can vote any time during the voting period.

Alumni Candidates for the Ryerson Board of Governors Vote for the candidate of your choice. Voting is available June 13 to June 24, 2016.

Visit ryerson.ca/governors/elections for more information about the candidates and voting instructions.

Jesse Kertes

Jesse Kertes is a senior marketing and business development professional with a decade of experience. Jesse has held many senior roles at international firms such as Deloitte and Ipsos and is currently a research manager at BrandSpark International. In addition to his professional life, Jesse is an active member of the community, supporting various not-for-profit and charity initiatives. Jesse was a core member of the Ipsos Charity Trust and a co- founder of the Ipsos Helping Hands initiative. He received a bachelor of commerce degree from Ryerson University and an MBA from Wilfrid Laurier University.

Catherine Paisley

Catherine Paisley is the vice- president of science education and experience at the Ontario Science Centre. She has stayed connected by forging relationships between the Science Centre and Ryerson University to advance shared goals in early childhood education and science communication while providing learning opportunities for current Ryerson students. Catherine has held senior leadership roles on national boards and is a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council for Ryerson’s Faculty of Science. If elected, Catherine will develop opportunities and avenues for the alumni community to be actively involved in today’s Ryerson. Catherine is a graduate of the School of Business.

Alumni Member Election

Ryerson University Board of Governors Elections 2016


giving backalumni and friends give generously to make your mark camPaign

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For Carrie-Ann Bissonnette �RTA, ’��, planning a gift to Ryerson was logical and emotional: “Ryerson is family, and you take care of your family in your will.”

“I am grateful for the opportunity Ryerson gave me, and grateful to be able to create that opportunity for others.”

Making a gift in your will is a remarkable act of generosity that looks to the future. Carrie-Ann and other alumni and friends are leaving their legacies through planned gifts. You can too. Call now to find out how.

Janet Nankivell ��-��-��, ext. �� | [email protected] ryerson.ca/plannedgiving

Carrie-Ann Bissonnette looks to Ryerson’s future

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ryerson’s Make Your Mark fundraising campaign was a

call to action to alumni, faculty and staff, students and parents, corporations, foundations and friends. Ryerson’s community of donors answered that call. Together, we reached beyond the $200-million goal, achieving key building projects, an enhanced research and teaching agenda (including new academic programs, updated library resources, and the latest technologies) and expanded opportunities and access for students through scholarships and bursaries.

The generous support of some of the country’s foremost

philanthropists contributed to unprecedented campus expansion and a rejuvenation of the surrounding communities in Toronto’s downtown core.

The iconic Maple Leaf Gardens was brought back to life as the Mattamy Athletic Centre. The Ryerson Image Centre now lights up the heart of the campus featuring world-class collections, exhibitions and research. Ryerson now has a gateway from Yonge Street, with the spectacular Student Learning Centre. And at Bay and Dundas, the Ted Rogers School of Management now houses Canada’s largest business school, preparing a diverse new generation to be tomorrow’s

global business leaders. These are the landmarks of

the campaign, and the impact is further felt through new academic programs, research centres and institutes, and through a growing number of endowed chairs and exceptional new faculty members from around the world. Students have gained access to state-of-the-art technology in classrooms, labs and studios, where they can hone the skills they need to graduate career-ready and a step ahead of the competition.

The Make Your Mark campaign has also allowed Ryerson to open its doors wider than ever before by vastly increasing the

number of student awards. More talented and promising students will be able to access a quality university education.

All of these accomplishments are made possible by Ryerson’s community of donors. Thank you to the volunteer campaign cabinet for their dedication and commitment. Thank you to former Ryerson President Sheldon Levy for his vision and ambition. Thank you to Adam B. Kahan, who recently retired as vice-president, university advancement, for his leadership. And most of all, thank you to our donors. In your good company, Ryerson is shaping bright futures. n

make your mark campaIGn by the numbers

student scholarships, awards & bursaries

academic Programs, library & technology

capital Projects

teaching/institutes and research centres

millioncampaign total

changechangeLandmarks of PHOTOS: Far left: students from spanning the Gaps program: campaign support for spanning the Gaps and expanded outreach help ryerson extend a guiding hand into the community and bridge the gap to university and toward a rewarding career.

top: ryerson now has a gateway from yonge street, with the spectacular student learning centre expressing the driving principle of putting students first.

bottom: the ryerson Image centre now lights up the heart of the campus as an exciting new cultural destination featuring world-class collections, exhibitions and research.

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alumni diaryneWs and events from alumni

reconnect and share your memories

ryerson rams deFeat carleton: alumni (and future alumni!) cheer on the women’s basketball team. alumni get discount rates on tickets to rams games. learn more at ryerson.ca/alumni.

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BY SHARON ASCHAIEK

adesire to make toronto a better place to live inspired Kwesi Johnson,

child and youth care ’09, to become a director-at-large for the ryerson university alumni association.

the 30-year-old says the university’s focus on city-building aligns with his own priorities.

“ryerson is at the cutting edge of so much happening in toronto,” says Johnson, who also has a master’s in sociology from the university of toronto. “this is an opportunity to help shift the dial to positively impact the city.”

For Johnson, the role is also about showing gratitude to an institution that enabled him to overcome adversity. he says a “life-changing conversation” with a ryerson learning strategist helped him better understand his learning disability and access the right support. Four years later, he graduated with a ryerson gold medal, recognizing academic merit.

Johnson first returned to ryerson last september, when he served as post-secondary liaison to united way toronto. then, in January, he was invited to teach in the child and youth care program. In between, he was chosen by the non-profit civicaction to participate in its urban issues leadership program. now, he’s focused on initiatives to better serve ryerson alumni.

“our alumni are doing phenomenal things,” Johnson says. “we need to showcase those achievements to inspire current and potential future students.” n

Kwesi Johnson, child and youth care ’09, gives back.

t he most rewarding part of my job is connecting face-to-face with

our graduates at events on campus, across Canada and around the world.

Recently, at events in the Caribbean and Western Canada co-hosted with our admissions team, prospective students were able to connect with alumni. It was magical. Alumni lit up as they shared their special memories and reflected on the difference Ryerson made in their lives. The students loved it. It was a wonderful way for alumni to contribute, as advocates, to the core business of the university.

I encourage you to make a point of reconnecting this year. Our website lists the many ways you can do that. If you’re in Toronto on Oct. 1, I personally invite you to join me at Alumni Weekend — the biggest event of the year and one you don’t want to miss.

In the spirit of our collaborative partnership, this column will alternate between myself and the president of the Ryerson University Alumni Association (RUAA).

Thank you for your ongoing support and remember to always be a proud Ryersonian!

[email protected] / @TylerForkes

by tyler b. Forkes assistant vice-president, alumni relations

VOLUNTEER PROFILE

BUILdInG A BetteR tOROntO


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At The Chang School, we support Ryerson alumni well beyond graduation. Choose from 1,500 career-focused courses—many available online so you can study from wherever you are.

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In recognition of your recent graduation, The Chang School would like to offer you $100 off the tuition cost of your next non-credit course. Find out more: ryerson.ca/ce/alumni

Stay connected. ryerson.ca/ce/alumni

above, Idil Omar, Arts and contemporary studies ’11, remembers: “I won the dennis mock student leadership award but I wasn’t able to attend the ceremony because I was in Geneva for my dad’s funeral. I remember my associate dean at the time had speaker-phoned me while the ceremony was

going on. I lost complete control and was bawling my eyes out. I physically was not there, so none of these nice things had to be said, but my peers and ryerson’s administration wanted to say them. that was when I realized that my work really was appreciated, it was a special moment for me.”

We are all ryersonians is a social media portrait series launched by alumni relations earlier this year. Stories are shared every other Wednesday via twitter @ryerson_alumni and the alumni relations Facebook page at facebook.com/rualumni.

#weareallryersonians

uPcoming events We’re hosting these events in the coming months. Make sure your email and mailing information is up-to-date so we can send you an invitation to a reception near you.

June 23: Blackboard to Boardroom: Artful Alumni Social (Toronto)

aug. 25: Los Angeles Alumni Reception

sept. 22: Blackboard to Boardroom: Financial Foundations (Toronto)

oct. 1: Alumni Weekend featuring The Ryerson Dinner and Gould Street Party (Toronto)

oct. 27: Barrie Alumni Reception

nov. 30: RUAA Annual General Meeting/Volunteer Appreciation Event (Toronto)

tbd: Holiday Family Skate (Toronto)

For more details about these events, visit www.ryerson.ca/alumni.

we are all ryersonIans

alumni dIary

Alumni WeekendOctober 1, 2016

- Gould Street Party - Campus Tours - Reunions - Free BBQ - Receptions and Wine Tasting - Giveaways - The Ryerson Dinner

Register today for the biggest alumni event of the year! ryerson.ca/alumni/alumniweekend

#ruaw16

See the Insider’s Guide insert for the full scoop!

This event is brought to you in part by these partners: TD Insurance Meloche Monnex, Ryerson’s official partner for home and auto insurance, and Manulife, Ryerson’s official partner for life, health & dental insurance.

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1 Judy cook, theatre (dance) ’75, has written a book to inspire young readers.

class notesuPdates from alumni on Personal and Professional milestones

comPiled by chrIstIne JulIen-sullIvan, JournalIsm ’97

symphony and Canadian symphonies in Vancouver, Kitchener, Hamilton, Edmonton, Calgary and Winnipeg. The show was a huge success and was performed at concert halls and schools throughout Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario. I hope the book may inspire some of the young readers to become scientists or dancers or illustrators or writers.”

[2] Shaun Markey, RTA ’73, writes: “After a stint in broadcasting, I moved into the public sector where I worked in marketing and communications for many years. For the past 16 years, I’ve enjoyed running my own media relations/communications consulting firm. A parallel interest during that time was collecting and dealing in Canadian antiques and folk art. I pulled those memories together in a book I wrote titled Folk Art in the Attic, published last year by Sonderho Press of Ottawa. I enjoy Ryerson University Magazine, and through it, maintaining an important link with Ryerson.”

[3] The Early Childhood Education class of ’75 reunited at Ryerson during homecoming. “It was cold for early October, but our bright blue and yellow alumni scarves kept us warm as we moved around the Ryerson campus for the events. Gould Street, the quad and all areas of the campus were awash in yellow and blue proudly worn by graduates from so many different programs. Eight of the 26 graduates from the 1975 Early Childhood Education class made our way over to the “lab school” — the Early Learning Centre (ELC) where we’d spent so many mornings all those years ago. We were greeted by ELC manager Kim Watts, who gave us a tour, and brought us up to date on how the school operates now. Nice to see that ECE is still valued as a profession! We later headed out to the playground, which was the best spot for our group photo,” write reunion co-ordinators Christine Peets and Mary Anne Kaczer.

50s Paul Stoneman, Electronic Technology ’58, writes: “At 80 years of age, I remain active, having survived, with luck, the usual

maladies — some very serious — of creeping old age. I’m blessed with an extended family that includes two daughters, two sons-in-law, four grandchildren and a great-grandson. I have been in the low-voltage integration business for 56 years. My companies have worked on projects such as the Greater Toronto Area Airport’s new Terminal 1, Terminal 3 and the Union Station Revitalization Project in Toronto. It would be joyful to hear from Ryerson classmates, lunch mates and old friends.” He can be reached via www.cp-stoneman.com or by email [email protected].

60s Barbara (Bodsworth) Welch, Home Economics ’66, writes: “I am attempting to organize a reunion to celebrate 50 years since graduation. If you are a graduate of Home Economics ’66 and have an interest in this get-together, please email me at [email protected].”

70s [1] Judy Cook, Theatre (Dance) ’75, writes: “My three years at Ryerson had the most pronounced influence on my artistic life and I have had a full professional dance and theatre career since then. I am very excited to announce I have written and published a children’s book titled When Dinosaurs Go Dancing, with beautiful illustrations by Sonia Nadeau. My colleagues and I performed some of the songs and dances in children’s shows with the Buffalo

shaun Markey, RtA ’73, writes about antiques and folk art.

2

3

seven couples attended the reunion, all married for as long

as 49 to 52 years. standing, from left: Jan crone, tricia Jones, Lasha sawicki and

Lynn scott. sitting, from left: sue Horne, nancy Prime and

Judy Mcewen.

the electrical technology class of ’65 re-connected last fall. standing, from left: Bob Jackson, Jim Gray, Bill noll, doug scott, dave collins, Lorne

Mcewen, George Prime and Paul sawicki. sitting, from left: John Horne, mike yoshimoto, Brian Jones, don crone and chris Masuda.

the Home economics class of ’65 gathered for a reunion in september, with a potluck lunch at the top of the mark party room in Rosemary drinnan’s condo building.

eight of the 26 grads of ece ’75 reunited last fall, from left: Mary Anne (smythe) Kaczer, Marian Williamson, christine (dunlop) Peets, Louise Bennett, Anne (Arnott) Bartlett, Michele (chomyk) Meret, Ingrid (Maschek) Winters and nancy Ware Barber.


class notes

80s Barbara Dickson, Business Management ’83, has published a new book, Bomb Girls: Trading Aprons for Ammo, that gives a rare account of life in Canada’s largest Second World War munitions facility, built and managed by General Engineering Company Ltd. Located on 346 acres in Scarborough, Ont., GECO hired more than 21,000 employees — predominantly women — who risked life and limb handling high explosives daily. Dickson is a sought-after motivational public speaker, local historian and writer of fiction and periodical pieces.

Valerie Gierman, Food, Nutrition, Consumer and Family Studies ’84, writes: “I own a software company in Ottawa with my husband. We are in a unique area of technology called information governance (IG) which is all about organizing information to support business processes and to meet regulatory compliance. We recently won an award in the IG community as technology provider of the year.”

Dave Lalama, Architectural Science ’88, recently served as elected president of the Manitoba Association of Architects. Lalama is a

partner at Number TEN Architectural Group, with offices in Winnipeg and Victoria, specialized studios in hospitality/entertainment, education/recreation, institutional and commercial/multi-residential sectors. The Number TEN-designed Seven Stones Community School in Regina, Sask., earned a prestigious Award of Distinction from the Association of Learning Environments in October 2015. The Number TEN-designed Qualico Family Centre also won the Manitoba Premier’s Design Award of Merit last October. Visit numberten.com.

Byron Martin, Image Arts ’89, has enjoyed a distinguished career in filmmaking over the past 30 years, with such credits as The Carbon Rush, X-Men, The Boondock Saints, and The Chronicles of Riddick, to name a few. Earlier this year, he told Streets&Beats magazine: “I flourished at Ryerson. IMAX even sent me to England (one student from every film school in the world was selected to attend the first IMAX Symposium in Bradford, England). I was awarded the Norman Jewison

Filmmaker Award in my third- and fourth-year for my projects. My third-year film, Addiction, with writer/director Dylan Reade, won the Great Canadian Shorts contest. My graduate film, Evil Undergound, with writer/director Dwight Friesen, won the Best Film Award from the CBC! Ryerson sent the film to compete in the student Academy Awards and it was subsequently screened in festivals around the world.”

90s Murtaza Haider, Magazine Journalism Certificate ’95, has published a book titled Getting Started with Data Science: Making Sense of Data with Analytics. He is a professor at the Ted Rogers School of Management, and a visiting research fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto. Haider specializes in applying analytics and statistical models to find solutions for socio-economic challenges. His research interests include applied analytics, data science, forecasting housing market dynamics, transport/infrastructure/urban planning, and human development in Canada and South Asia.

00s Shazad Ahmad, Telecommunications Management Certificate ’01, has co-authored a non-fiction book titled Awesome Life: Create the Life You Always Wanted and Soar with Purpose! Launched on Amazon last August, the book combines classic wisdom with contemporary thought in its 12 easy-to-read chapters. Visit awesomelifebook.com.

Danny Glenwright, Journalism ’06, was appointed executive director of Action Against Hunger Canada in August. The Toronto-based organization is part of a global humanitarian organization dedicated to saving the lives of undernourished children and advancing sustainable nutritional health in some of the most vulnerable communities in the world. Prior to his appointment, he was executive director of Journalists for Human Rights. “As a journalist I often covered stories about the importance of food security, nutrition, water and sanitation,” says Glenwright. “I am honoured to now lead a

dynamic organization that is working to secure these basic needs for millions of people in more than 45 countries.”

On Feb. 21, Andrew Miller, Certificate in Accounting ’00, a former Rams goalie, his wife, Joan Miller, Nursing ’05, and their Peterborough Ice Kats Peewee ‘A’ team visited the Mattamy Athletic Centre to play an end-of-season game. Afterwards, the girls were treated to a tour of the varsity women’s hockey locker room by Rams skating coach Vanessa Stratton. The girls asked about team rituals, nutrition, school rivalries, and their parents asked about academic standards. Stratton shared the rigors of team practices and the requirement for players to maintain an 80 per cent GPA with mandatory study hall.

Salim Nensi, Business Management ’00, writes: “I am an advocate of Ryerson University who keeps sharing the excellence of this institu-tion. While at Ryerson, I was involved with Inter-national Student Services, the Ismaili Students’ Association, Student Services, as well as assisting with research grants, among other activities. Ryerson has made a huge difference in my life!”

Giselle Phelps, Journalism ’05, owns GJP Media Services LLC, which operates in New York City and Dallas, Texas. Her company focuses on

empowering women and minorities to tell their stories. It provides publicity services, media coaching, and video production. Giselle’s company has worked with national non-profits, NFL athletes, and international corporations. A former TV news reporter, Phelps also blogs for the Huffington Post and appears as a news commentator on various media outlets.

Andrea (Tung) Mai, Fashion Design ’04, writes: “I am a legally blind photographer based in the Toronto area. I recently travelled to China to create

a collection of photographs to document my travels, and have posted them on my blog at www.andreamaicreative.com.”

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Jim Dorward, Business Management ’57, died Aug. 31, 2015. He was retired from Spence

Brothers Construction Company where he served as treasurer. He was also past-president of the Saginaw Country Club, and a member of the Landings Club. Dorward was the anonymous cartoonist for several publications and drew his last cartoon on the day he died. His brother Don Dorward, Electronic Technology ’63, writes that Dorward was also the artist behind the “Murph” cartoon during his Ryerson days.

Michael Lundy, Architectural Science ’59, died peacefully at home at age 78 on June 29, 2015.

Following his studies, he moved to Ottawa in 1963 to establish a career in the construction industry. In 1967, he founded M.P. Lundy Construction. Over four decades, he led the company to construct many landmark projects in and around Ottawa. He was a proud member of the Kiwanis organization for 37 years, and also an active supporter of the Friendship Force and the Youville Centre. George Sanders, School of Interior Design, was a well-respected member of the faculty from 1961 until his retirement, and an enthusiastic supporter of student life at Ryerson. A life member of the Society of Canadian Artists, he served as president of the organization from 1993 to 1995. His design

background covered everything from pre-fabricated housing to pottery and furniture. He will be missed by his friends at the Arts & Letters Club of Toronto and by the many artists and designers he befriended, writes Lorna Kelly, Interior Design ’77.

Tim Scanlon, Graphic Communications Management ’85, passed away suddenly at home Oct. 17. He is survived by his wife Julie Scanlon, Urban and Regional Planning ’85, and his children Andrew, Victoria, Rachel and Gillian. Scanlon started Scantex Graphic Services in 1992. He loved to cycle, having fulfilled a lifelong dream of riding his bicycle across Canada in 2010. His other passions included sailing and gardening.

Stanley Tam, TRSM ’13, passed away peacefully at age 25 on Jan. 27 after an eight-month battle with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. At Ryerson, he dedicated countless hours to student life as the vice-president of finance for DECA Ryerson. Tam was a talented orator who was awarded several medals for winning case competitions in accounting, finance, and sports and entertainment marketing. In June 2015, weeks before his diagnosis, Stanley completed his first 10-km run, and began a new job at IBM as a financial analyst. During his treatment, Tam continued to work tirelessly towards his goal of becoming a Certified Management Accountant, earning his CMA designation in October 2015. n

class notes

UPDATE YOUR CONTACT INFOKeeping Ryerson up-to-date on your contact and employment information, ensures that we can keep you informed about alumni benefits and issues of interest to you.

Update your information online:

WEB FORM: www.ryerson.ca/alumni/update EMail: [email protected]

SEND AN UPDATE TO CLASS NOTES Share news about where you live and work, marriages, additions to the family, career changes and achievements.

Email your news and photos to the magazine at: [email protected]

We’d love to hear from yOU

PARENTS: if this magazine is addressed to your son or daughter and they no longer

live at this address, Ryerson University Magazine would appreciate knowing

their new address. information should be emailed to [email protected].

10s Motjaba Bakhtiari, Biology ’12, completed a master’s in biology, systematics and evolution at the University of Zurich in Switzerland. He writes: “I then received an offer for PhD studies at the University of Neuchâtel in Switzerland, where I have been a member of the Laboratory of Functional Ecology at the Institute of Biology and the Centre of Competence for Chemical Ecology. This centre aims to unite Swiss-based scientists in the field in order to push for excellence in research and teaching. It is motivated by similar initiatives by sister organizations in Jena, Alnarp, Brazil, Cornell and Penn State University.”

[4] Howard J. Davis, Theatre ’14, performed at the Shaw Festival (Canada’s

second largest repertory theatre company) in Sweet Charity and Pygmalion, directed by Morris Panych and Peter Hinton respectively. In November-December 2015 Davis starred in the revival of Anosh Irani’s play Bombay Black with Dora-nominated Kawa Ada and Anusree Roy. He is currently represented by Nancy Lefeaver at Lefeaver Talent Ltd. in Toronto.

Kristin Elsey, Image Arts ’14, writes: “I’m excited to announce that two short years after graduation, my creative partner, Lee Ventura, and I have been accepted into the National Screen Institute’s (NSI) Features First program for our newest film project entitled Judas Priest. The NSI is a renowned and prestigious Canadian development hub, which aims to launch producer/writer teams

who are looking to produce their first or second feature film with strong commercial appeal. Our film is about a charismatic young priest who devises a scheme to fake a haunted house in an attempt to draw tourists to his dying town, but in doing so, uncovers a sinister truth that threatens his community. We look forward to developing our script even further and getting it off the ground by 2017!”

[5] Katherine Highgate, RTA ’13, won the 2016 Miss Trillium Canada Pageant at Toronto’s Al Green Theatre. Contestants received points for their poise, personal style and stage presence. The judging panel for this year was led by Miss Universe Canada 2008, Samantha Tajik.

the miss trillium canada finalists from left: second runner-up Jolorn samuel; winner

Katherine Highgate, RtA ’13; and first runner-up saira kowlessar.

In memorIam

performing bombay black, from left: kawa ada, Howard J. davis, theatre ’14, and anusree roy.

4

the RtA class of ’90 gathered for a reunion to celebrate their 25th anniversary at the thomas lounge in oakham house on oct. 2. Fifty-two alumni were in attendance at the reunion organized by sarah clarke.

Happy Anniversary to the classes of ’51, ’56, ’61,’66, ’76, ’91 and ’06!

the FollowInG classes are plannInG reunIons thIs year.

electrical technology, 1956: OCT. 1, 2016

Home economics, 1966: SEPT. 10, 2016

RtA, 1981: SEPT 30 - OCT. 1, 2016

nursing, 1996: OCT. 1, 2016

disability studies, 2011: OCT. 1, 2016

to celebrate with a class reunion, contact [email protected] or call 416-979-5000, extension 7863.

5


remember when?

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r adio has had a long-standing history at the university. Ryerson’s first station, CJRT-FM, was established in 1949

to teach management and operations to radio and television arts students. RTA went on to become one of the first programs at Ryerson to receive degree status — granted in 1973. And radio continues to bring exciting new developments on campus. The Allan Slaight Radio Institute, named after broadcasting pioneer Allan Slaight, opened at the RTA School of Media in February

2016. It’s a state-of-the-art facility, made possible by a $3-million gift from The Slaight Family Foundation. Students get hands-on experience producing original content and have the opportunity to create innovative radio programs. Beyond the classroom, campus radio is also growing. Although the former station CKLN-FM dissolved in 2011, Radio Ryerson Inc. launched a successor. Community radio station The Scope started broadcasting online in April 2013 and hit the AM dial in March 2016. n

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student-staff operate heavy-duty machinery during a radio broadcast at cJrt on april 18, 1951.

On tHe AIRWith state-of-the-art

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and a sPot on the

am dial — ryerson

radio enters neW era

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The POWER of inclusion - Ryerson University · 22 startup scores on draGons’ den Charith Perera learned from failed pitches and critical feedback By Will Sloan 23 about Face Sangita