Posted on June 4: More than 800 social sciences students receive McMaster degrees today
The Faculty of Social Sciences will confer degrees on more than 800 McMaster graduands at its annual Spring Convocation ceremony today (Wednesday, June 4).
The graduation will be held in two ceremonies, the first at 9:30 a.m. and the second at 2:30 p.m. Both ceremonies will be held at Hamilton Place. The morning will include Anthropology, Economics, Geography, Labour Studies, Political Science, Psychology, Religious Studies and MA(T)/MSc(T), the afternoon, Gerontology, Health Studies, Kinesiology, Social Work and Sociology.
Honorary degrees will be presented to Kenneth Robertson, Hamilton police chief, Ben Vanderbrug, Hamilton conservationist, Ken Dryden, Toronto Maple Leafs president, and John VanDuzer, superior court judge. Dryden and Robertson will deliver the Convocation addresses at their respective ceremonies.
Ken Dryden, Doctor of Laws
Ken Dryden is a hockey legend. During his eight seasons of playing goal for the Montreal Canadiens, Ken Dryden's team won the Stanley Cup six times.
Dryden continues to be active in Canadian hockey today, serving as President of the Toronto Maple Leafs. He is also a lawyer and an author.
Dryden is a graduate of Cornell University and the Faculty of Law at McGill University. He has authored four books, and his book The Game was named one of Canada's 100 most important books of the 20th century. Other books he has written are: Home Game, The Moved and the Shaken, and In School.
Dryden is a former Youth Commissioner for Ontario. He is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame and the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame.
Dryden will give the Convocation address at the afternoon ceremony.
Kenneth Robertson, Doctor of Laws
Hamilton police chief Ken Robertson joined the Hamilton Police Service in 1967.
Born and raised in Hamilton, he graduated from McMaster University with a degree in labour studies. Following this he attended the FBI National Academy and completed executive leadership courses at the University of Toronto and Queen's University. He recently graduated from the National Executive Institute in the United States.
During his 36-year career, Robertson has worked in all areas of police service and has extensive experience in high-profile investigations. Under his leadership, the Hamilton Police Service has been both a semi-finalist and a winner of the highly coveted Webber Seavey Award for quality in policing from the International Association of Chiefs of Police.
A member of the Rotary Club of Hamilton, he has been recognized with the Paul Harris Fellowship for Service in Rotary International. He is a member of the Hamilton Health Sciences Hospital Board and a former director of the Hamilton Downtown Partnership.
His excellence in policing has been recognized by the federal government and he was awarded the Order of Merit of the Police Forces by the Governor General of Canada. He is also a recipient of the Queen's Jubilee Medal for community leadership.
Robertson will give the Convocation address at the morning ceremony.
Ben Vanderbrug, Doctor of Laws
Ben Vanderbrug has spent a lifetime committed to the conservation movement in Hamilton and Ontario as well as national and international initiatives. As founding general manager of the Hamilton Conservation Authority (HCA), he has served his community for more than 35 years. His leadership, as a resource manager for two conservation authorities and later as general manager of the HCA, has had a profound and positive effect on the community.
Born in the Netherlands, Vanderbrug received a bachelor of science there before coming to Canada to continue his studies in agricultural engineering at McGill University.
His legacy in Hamilton is the development of more than 10,000 acres of protected natural areas and open space. Early in his career he championed the acquisition of lands in Dundas Valley, which today forms the Dundas Valley Conservation Area. He has also worked to preserve several historic Ontario properties.
He was awarded the Government of Canada's 125th Canadian Anniversary Commemorative Medal and the Commemorative Medal for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee. He received the Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth's Environmentalist of the Year award in 1994.
John VanDuzer, Doctor of Laws
Hon. Justice John VanDuzer has more than 30 years experience as a family court judge in Ontario. He is currently a judge of the Superior Court of Justice, Family Court in Hamilton.
Born in Grimsby, VanDuzer attended McMaster University, where he received his BA in history and political economy (1950), and was senior president of the McMaster Student Council (1949-50). He received his law degree from Osgood Hall Law School in 1954.
Upon graduation he joined the law firm of Fraser, Beatty in Toronto. He moved a year later to Hamilton to work with Ross and Robinson. He established his own practice, VanDuzer and Associates, in 1959.
He has presided in the Juvenile and Family Court, Provincial Court, the Unified Family Court of Hamilton-Wentworth and the Ontario Court of Justice (General Division).
An active community member, VanDuzer has served as director of several associations and organizations and is an active member of the United Church of Canada.
He is the recipient of awards from Mediation Canada, the Law Reform Commission, the United Church of Canada and the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts.
