Close to 1,000 U of S students set to graduate

Saturday, Oct. 24, 2015
9 am, 2 pm ceremonies
TCU Place, 35 22nd Street East
Saskatoon

More than 950 students are graduating this fall from the University of Saskatchewan. These graduates join a community of more than 146,000 graduates who, year after year, continue to build upon the success of those before them. U of S alumni include a Canadian prime minister, a Nobel Prize winner, award-winning authors and artists, groundbreaking researchers, successful business executives and accomplished athletes.

This year's fall convocation will also feature the installation of Peter Stoicheff as the 11th president and vice-chancellor of the U of S. The 9 am installation ceremony will include a special musical and video performance that brings together the U of S Wind Orchestra and Aboriginal singers, drummers and fiddlers.

All ceremonies will be streamed live on usask.ca.

Convocation story ideas

• Honorary degrees and awards will be awarded to:
  
  
  
  • Honorary Doctor of Letters — Brian Gable
  
  
  • Honorary Doctor of Letters— Gerald Finley
  
  
  • Distinguished Graduate Supervisor Award — Maureen G. Reed
  
  
  • Master Teacher Award — Keith Willoughby
  
  
  • Award for Distinction in Community-Engaged Teaching and Scholarship — Marie Lovrod
  
  
  • Award for Distinction in Outreach and Public Service — Alexandria Wilson
  
  
  • J.W. George Ivany Award — Jeffrey McDonnell
  
  
  • President's Service Award— Margaret Brown
  
  
  • New Researcher Award — Regan Mandryk
  
  
  
  

To media who plan to attend convocation

• If you would like to interview any of the honorary degree recipients and award winners, please contact Kurt Hofmann for advance requests at 306-966-2057 (office), or call 306-380-2068 (cell) on the day of convocation.


• Photographers may take photos from anywhere—except on the stage once the ceremonies begin.


• Reserved space for media is located on the second floor to the left of the stage (all other seats are reserved for the graduating students and their guests).

• The route graduates use as they proceed to the stage must be kept clear.

CONVOCATION SCHEDULE:

For the morning ceremony, the academic procession begins at 8:45 am, installation ceremony at 9 am and graduates start walking across the stage at 10 am. For the afternoon ceremony, the academic procession begins at 1:45 pm, speeches at 2 pm and graduates start walking across the stage at 3 pm. For more information visit http://students.usask.ca/events/fall-convocation.php

9 am ceremony

Graduating: Centre of Continuing and Distance Education, Arts and Science, Edwards School of Business, Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy, School of Environment and Sustainability.

Installation of President Peter Stoicheff presided over by Chancellor Blaine Favel:

Peter Stoicheff will be installed as the 11th president and vice-chancellor of the University of Saskatchewan.

Award for Distinction in Community-Engaged Teaching and Scholarship: Marie Lovrod

Assistant Professor Marie Lovrod, co-ordinator of Women's and Gender Studies in the College of Arts and Science, has had an instrumental role in numerous outreach initiatives in partnership with community organizations. These have included the creation of a housing project and a community hotline for youth facing violence, and partnerships with the Saskatchewan Youth in Care and Custody Network, the Saskatoon Mothers' Centre, Next UP and the International Women of Saskatoon.

Master Teacher Award: Keith Willoughby

Associate Dean at the Edwards School of Business, Keith Willoughby's innovative approach of connecting real-world events to learning in the classroom and deep-rooted passion for teaching has made him a favourite of his finance and management science students.

Distinguished Graduate Supervisor Award: Maureen G. Reed

Maureen G. Reed was integral to the creation of the School of Environment and Sustainability at the U of S and is a dedicated mentor sought after by students for advice and guidance. She has directly supervised 35 graduate students and dedicates an enormous amount of time to ensure the success of her graduate students.

J.W. George Ivany Internationalization Award: Jeffrey McDonnell

Jeffrey McDonnell's philosophy is to give Canadian students an international experience and to give international students Canadian experiences. As the associate director of the Global Institute for Water Security, McDonnell believes the world is a classroom and backs it up by logging more than 100,000 miles a year to work with some of the world's brightest minds.

2 pm ceremony

Graduating: Agriculture and Bioresources, Education, Engineering, Kinesiology, Law, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy and Nutrition, School of Physical Therapy, School of Public Health, Veterinary Medicine.

Honorary Doctor of Letters Degree: Brian Gable

If you have ever opened a newspaper in Canada and marvelled at the satire of the cartoon on the opinion pages, chances are it flowed from the pen of Brian Gable. The award-winning Globe and Mail editorial cartoonist got his start in the pages of the Sheaf student newspaper while earning his BA from the U of S.

Honorary Doctor of Letters Degree: Gerald Finley

Grammy award-winning bass-baritone Gerald Finley is a leading singer and dramatic interpreter of his generation, with acclaimed performances at the world's major opera and concert venues. In his spare time he climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro in 2014 to help raise money for the charity Help Musicians UK and has been appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Award for Distinction in Outreach and Public Service: Alexandria Wilson

Alexandria Wilson is a well-known activist for Indigenous rights. She is a founding and inspirational member of the grassroots Idle No More movement and is also involved with several important educational and outreach efforts drawing attention to missing and murdered Indigenous women in Canada.

President's Service Award: Margaret Brown

Margaret Brown is the "administrative backbone" of the U of S Native Law Centre, a constant at the centre since its beginning in 1974. She is both a friend and a mother-like figure to students, all who have nothing but high praise her.

New Researcher: Regan Mandryk

Regan Mandryk is a prolific and highly-regarded researcher in the Department of Computer Science in the area of human-computer interaction. She is recognized as an international leader in affective computing, an area of research that is concerned with sensing and modeling the affective and emotional state of the user and with making use of these models in the design of interactive systems.

Student of interest: Tracy MacDonald, PhD Toxicology

More than a billion people around the world depend on fish for protein in their diet. Toxicology graduate Tracy MacDonald is trying to keep that food source safe from mercury poisoning.

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For more information, contact:
Kurt Hoffmann
Communications Officer
Student and Enrolment Services Division
University of Saskatchewan
(office) 306-966-2057 (cell) 306-380-2068
kurt.hofmann@usask.ca

Ivan Muzychka
Associate Vice-President Communications
Advancement and Community Engagement
University of Saskatchewan
(cell) 306-281-4012
ivan.muzychka@usask.ca