Queen’s Principal and Vice-Chancellor Patrick Deane received an honorary degree from McMaster University during a fall convocation ceremony in Hamilton on Nov. 23.
Principal Deane served as McMaster president and vice-chancellor from 2010 to 2019. Much like at Queen’s, he is known at McMaster for being a thoughtful leader who is committed to community and global engagement, research and teaching for impact, and the student experience. For Principal Deane, university students learn best when they are acquiring the skills and tools necessary to address pressing societal issues and make the world a better place.
During his address, Principal Deane spoke about the power of speech (spoken, written, signed) and urged graduates to reflect on what they have learned so far and to consider how they will use their knowledge and voices for good going forward.
“This degree is indeed an honour, and I thank you for this gift. I am forever grateful for the time I spent at McMaster as president as it was deeply enriching, and, in common with all of today’s graduates, I can say that it provided me with an outstanding education leaving me transformed and empowered,” he remarked. “We are all perpetual students, learning and developing as individuals, within formal contexts, as leaders of institutions, agents in society, and in the world at large. To live is to learn and to learn is to live.”
Originally published in the Queen's Gazette.