Kenneth Robert “Ken” Battle died on Nov. 18, 2024 after a long illness. He was born in Calgary on July 29, 1947, the son of Robert and Lois (née Morrison) Battle. He grew up in Calgary and Edmonton before moving with his family as a teenager to Ottawa, where he attended Bell High School. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts at Queen’s, then was awarded a Commonwealth Scholarship, which took him to Nuffield College, Oxford, for an MPhil. He later recalled the influence of his studies in sociology there as having given him a pragmatic approach to goals of social justice. Perhaps this is why he chose to follow in his father’s footsteps, joining the civil service in Ottawa rather than pursuing an academic career.
He spent several years with the National Council of Welfare, eventually becoming the Council’s director. In 1992, Ken was invited to co-found a social policy think tank by fellow Queen’s alumnus Alan Broadbent, chair of Maytree, a non-profit dedicated to finding and advancing solutions to poverty in Canada.
Ken became president of the Caledon Institute of Social Policy, a position he held until 2017, when the Institute’s operations were wound down. During those 25 years, Caledon’s research and writing focussed on practical ways that public policy could lift people out of poverty.
In 2000, Ken was named Member of the Order of Canada. He received the award, according to the citation, in recognition of his “significant role in the area of Canadian welfare legislation, including the development of the National Child Benefit Program.” The citation concludes: “His contributions have helped to forge and to shape Canadian social policy.” Since then, the Child Benefit Program and its successors have been credited with lifting hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty.
After a diagnosis of Lewy body dementia in 2019, Ken moved from his Kanata home to a retirement residence, where he bravely faced the loss of his health with patience, generosity, and good humour. He continued to demonstrate his commitment to social justice in his personal life. In spite of his declining health, he never failed to express appreciation for the people whose work made his life pleasant and to show concern for their well-being. He remained the sociologist observing and analyzing human behaviour in the society around him.
Ken is survived by his beloved daughter, Erin (Sc’19) (Austin, Texas); his brother, Murray, (Montreal); his sister Ellen (Victoria); and his nephews, Tyler and Curtis. Married three times, he was predeceased by Laurie McIntyre; and is survived by former wives, Ruth Jamieson (Arts’70) and Melanie Hess. He will be fondly remembered by his many former colleagues and collaborators as well as by the friends with whom he shared canoe trips, cross-country skiing, and foreign travels over the years. Broadbent has written that Ken “wanted to have influence that would improve people’s lives, particularly those without sufficient resources to live with dignity.” Thousands of families, without knowing his name, can attest that he was successful.
