U of T’s a big school with some big names but sometime’s it is not all about titles or degrees, but the size of your heart and your level of involvement within the U of T community. We thought it was time to turn the spotlight on the everyday heroes that in their own way help make our campus community a great place to live, work, and play.
This feature kicks off a series of profles of interesting individuals on campus. If you would like to nominate someone actively involved in the U of T community, at any level of involvement, please contact us at [email protected]. Special thanks to: Mez, Brian, Mike, Kim, Christine, and Meera for making this feature possible.
The St. George campus of U of T is lucky to have Olivia Chow as its city councillor. One of the most dedicated politicians, involved in social issues from securing funding for the controversial cross-walk outside the Bahen Centre to national issues, she makes her voice heard. Expect to find this politician of the people working out at the UofT Athletic Centre or whizzing past you on her big red princess bike decorated with foliage and flowers.
Damon (r) and Shahram Shahidi (l) are the owners and operators of the Innis Café. To know these guys is to love them. Geoff Ho, a third year commerce student, tells us “Innis Cafe is one of the best kept secrets on campus. Since I’ve discovered this place, I haven’t eaten at any of the ‘mass-production’ cafeterias on campus in a long time, nor do I ever plan to go back. The Innis Cafe not only has great tasting and well-priced food, but the healthiest selection on campus. From their fresh fruit juices, to their club-house sandwiches, to their home-made barbeque chicken, you simply can’t go wrong eating here”.
Lamont Hawkes is a first year Woodsworth College student majoring in canadian history. He is the DJ and host of “Constant Movement” airing weekly on CIUT 89.5fm. He took his involvement further with U of T’s only campus radio station by promoting and organizing their annual fundraiser “Raise It Up” on Monday, April 11 at the Kathedral (651 Queen St.W., 9pm).
Jude Tate is the coordinator of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered, Queer Resouces and Programs (214 College, 3rd floor) and raisis the profile of the group by actively attending many events on campus. Jude works with students, staff and faculty to provide programs, services, training, resources and outreach on issues related to the LGBTQ population at U of T. This past year Jude has made continued efforts to make sure that smaller groups on campus are recognized. This community award winner makes the LGBTQ office a place where students can drop in and feel welcome to discuss any issue.
Dr. Larry Grupp not only works as the Psychiatry Research Liaison for the University Health Network, but is also a Professor of Pharmacology at U of T, and produces the radio show “Mind, Mood, and Mental Health” which airs on CIUT weekly. Dr. Grupp is hoping to expand the capacity of his show to include other health-related issues next year. In its inaugural year (2003-4), the show has received a very positive response from the U of T community and Toronto at large.
Left: As a SAC representative (External Commission 2002-3 and the VP of Operations this past year) Alexandra Artful-Dodger has been very busy since coming to UofT in 2001. As a SAC representative, she organized a Pan-Canadian student anti-war conference, brought free income tax clinics to students, increased funding for clubs and the UTM and UTSC commission, and helped save students $2 million by switching SAC’s health plan providers. She also lobeid and helped implement the discounted metropass. Artful-Dodger is a strong advocate for public education, tuition freezes and reductions. She also helped organize the Feb 4 National Student Day of Action.
Middle: Kelly Holloway is a second year Masters student in public health sciences in collaboration with women’s studies. She is the Vice-President External at the Graduate Students’ Union (GSU) and chairs the Social Justice Committee. This year she has helped orzanize the Feb 4 National Student Day of Action, the Student’s for Peace in Iraq coalition, the ProChoice at UofT coalition and the Corporate Campus Teach-in.
Right: Arij Al-Chawaf is a second year PhD student at the department of zoology. She is a member of the GSU Social Justice Committee and has been involved in organizing events as part of Students for Peace in Iraq, Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights and the Feb 4th National Student Day of Action. She is VP External elect for the GSU.
Lesley Mak is at OISE doing her Masters of Education in higher education. She’s also a don at University College’s Whitney Hall and cohosts “Beyond the Classroom” on CIUT 89.5 (Tuesdays at noon), a show where she talks about services, events and programs available to those in the U of T community. She has also coordinated the Passport Program, a program that gets first year students involved at U of T. Lesley says that her involvement at U of T throughout her undergrad in genetics inspired her to get into university administration and help students discover life outside of the classroom.
For those of you who walked through the tents set up outside of Stanford Fleming last Thursday, you participated in U of T’s first Annual Sustainable Energy Fair. “The goal of this event was to make everyone aware of the opportunities sustainable energy offers: from the technologies you can use to the research being done at U of T to the ability to have a career in the field,” says Sustainable Energy Fair chair Monica Samec. Samec is a fifth year student triple majoring in chemistry, physics, and international development. “I’m interested in the science behind renewable energy and also the opportunity it holds for developing countries on the cusp of industrialization that haven’t committed to a fossil fuel infrastructure.” She will be exploring this further when she goes to Indonesia this summer on an overseas placement with Engineers Without Borders.
U of T violinists Mary-Beth Brown, Debbie Clark and Liz Loewen (not pictured) stepped out of their concert clothes and into ballet slippers this term in the Beginning Ballet class with Portia Wade at Hart House. The three friends, who are all undergraduate students at U of T’s Faculty of Music, decided to take the class to try something new and different, and have no regrets. “The class was great…so much fun and a great work out too” You can catch these three fiddle players at the University of Toronto Symphony Orchestra concert this Wednesday April 7th at 8pm at the Faculty of Music’s MacMillan Theatre.
Bryan Timm is the current OISE/UT SAC Director and also served on the SAC Elections Committee and the OISE Student Teacher Union Executive. David Miller’s election was the highlight of 2003 for him. Elections, the February 4th Canadian Federation of Students’ rally and organizing against the Ontario Teacher Qualifying Test has kept Bryan steadily busy. He is currently leading a fight to get proper academic recognition for OISE Technical teacher candidates. When he is not leading the revolution he likes to sail and race albacores and watch old British cooking shows.
