The Council of Ontario Universities (COU) has awarded Alastair Summerlee with the prestigious David C. Smith Award for his extraordinary contributions to universities and higher education, his unwavering commitment to the development of innovative policy in teaching and research, and his remarkable humanitarian efforts both here and around the world.

“Summerlee is an innovative teacher, internationally acclaimed scientist, advocate of higher learning and a passionate humanitarian,” says Patrick Deane, COU Chair and President of McMaster University. “His extraordinary work is a great example of how educating students for success can expand the boundaries of knowledge through research and also contribute to our local and global communities economically, culturally and socially.”

Summerlee served as President and Vice Chancellor at the University of Guelph for 11 years, stepping down in 2014, and is currently the newly appointed Chair of the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO). Through his work with Fund the Food, Lucky Iron Fish, refugee camps in Kenya and his contributions to ground-breaking research, Alastair has been actively involved in the pursuit of education and sustainable solutions to hunger, poverty and illness.

“Alastair has played an important role in shaping provincial policy and in fostering ground-breaking approaches to teaching, research and community engagement,” says COU President and CEO Bonnie M. Patterson. “We are encouraged by his innovative work and it is an honour for the Council of Ontario Universities to present him with this award.”

Previous award recipients include Dalton McGuinty, former Premier of Ontario; the Right Hon. Jean Chrétien, former Prime Minister of Canada; Dr. Martha Piper, former President of the University of British Columbia; Don Drummond, former Chief Economist with TD Bank; Roberta L. Jamieson. President and CEO, Indspire; Peter George, former President and Vice-Chancellor of McMaster University; and Rob Prichard, President Emeritus of the University of Toronto, Chair of Torys LLP and Chair of Metrolinx.

This award was established in 2000 and named to celebrate the late Dr. David C. Smith, who made enormous contributions to both scholarship and public policy in higher education as Principal of Queen’s University and in advisory work on behalf of the sector.

Click here to watch a candid video of Alastair Summerlee discussing his work and the award.

Read more about the David C. Smith Award.

Quick Facts:

• David C. Smith was the Principal of Queen’s University from 1984 to 1994 and Head of the Department of Economics from 1968 to 1981. He was Interim President of Trent University from 1997 to 1998.
• Alastair Summerlee earned three degrees from the University of Bristol, and received a 3M teaching fellowship in 2003, while also serving as University of Guelph President-Elect. He continued to teach undergraduate students, supervise graduate students and organize educational student field trips throughout his presidency.
• Recognized for his international work, Summerlee was Chair of the Board of the World University Service of Canada, and became involved in humanitarian issues in Africa, particularly in the refugee camps in Kenya, where he has been working for the last eight years.

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COU is the voice of Ontario’s universities, promoting the value of education, research and innovation that leads to social, cultural and economic success.

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Wendy McCann
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