Defending the Arts

A gift by University of Toronto Chancellor Henry N. R. Jackman will help create an unprecedented $45-million endowment in the humanities and social sciences at U of T’s Faculty of Arts and Science. Jackman’s $15-million donation will be double-matched by U of T to create a comprehensive arts program. The endowment will allow for a distinguished professor in philosophical studies, a minimum of 10 professorships in the humanities and social sciences, eight faculty research fellowships and a minimum of three graduate student fellowships in the humanities.

“This initiative is particularly close to my heart. I can’t imagine a university without these areas of study – the heart, root and historical basis of any great university,” says Chancellor Jackman (BA 1953 VIC, LLB 1956, LLD Hon. 1993). “As a society, we’ve made astronomical strides in science and technology, but in my view, we have not made corresponding advances in how we can live with each other in peace and in friendship. The humanities and social sciences teach us that.”