Reflections from the Chair
Our lease on the Lillian Massey Building (which belongs to Victoria College), expired at the end of last year. It was with some sense of relief that we learned that it was to be renewed, and we began this year with an enhanced sense of awareness about our relationship with the building and the community it houses. One thing we have done since is to make the Lounge on the second floor more welcoming to everyone who comes in: feel free to make use of it when you visit yourself! There are now a water cooler and a coffee machine, and it is possible to talk without disturbing classes next door.
Among the things we appreciate about the building is having the Center for Medieval Studies as our neighbour. We have a lot in common, and there is more we hope to do together in the future. This year we have been searching to make a joint senior appointment in Late Antiquity, someone to form an institutional bridge between us: it has been an exciting process, and we hope to have good news to announce soon.
Talking of neighbours, we were also pleased to see our colleague Kate Cooper appointed as the inaugural Nick Mirkopoulos Associate Curator of Ancient Greece & Rome at the Royal Ontario Museum across the road. We are very hopeful that this will mark a new era of collaboration with this national institution. (Its outstanding Classical collection is well worth a visit if you have not been already.)
We have enjoyed a number of standout (and sold-out) lectures in Toronto this year, some hosted by yet other friends of the Department. It was a ‘Classics’ year for the Stubbs lecture, and Emily Wilson was at University College to reflect on her translations of Homer; Natalie Haynes visited Toronto Public Library to talk about her new novel, No Friend to this House, based on the story of Medea. John Ma came from Colombia University for our Arts & Science Lecture on “How to Do Hellenistic History”; and, in April, we invited Emma Dench to come from Harvard for our annual Alumni and Donors Lecture. She gave a fascinating and surprising account of her experience taking Classical texts into a classroom at the Harvard Business School. Our nearest experience of this has been the other way round: a group of our alumni again brought their experience of business to our undergraduate Classists in our second “Backpack to Briefcase” event, showcasing some of the ways in which our graduates are conspicuously versatile and successful in the professional careers they go on to have.
As ever, we have had many individual achievements to celebrate through the year: our undergraduates, graduates, and faculty have excelled themselves in multiple ways you can read about on our website, and by subscribing to our mailing list (which will also keep you up to date on future events in the Department). One in particular deserves special notice, though: we were enormously proud to see Victoria Wohl inducted as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada this year.
Many of us travel away from Toronto over the summer to libraries, conferences, and digs, but we have a lot to look forward to when we come back to Lillian Massey in the Fall, including a new search for a faculty position in ancient Greek. Do consider the building your home as well: we look forward to seeing you at our events!