Massey College (officially The Principal and Fellows of Massey College) is a postgraduate residential college formally affiliated with the University of Toronto, located on the St. George campus in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The independent institution was established, built and partially endowed in 1962 by the Massey Foundation and officially opened in 1963, though women were not admitted until 1974. It was modelled around the traditional Cambridge and Oxford collegiate system and features a central court and porters lodge.

Similar to St. John's College, Cambridge, and All Souls College, Oxford, senior and junior fellows of Massey College are nominated from the university community and occasionally the wider community, and are elected by the governing board of the college. The president of the University of Toronto, the dean of Graduate Studies and three members of the Massey Foundation are ex officio members of the governing board, chaired by the elected member of the governing board. Members of the governing board are elected for five years; the principal of the college is elected for seven years.

The college is well-connected with prominent figures of the national establishment, and is the sponsor and host of the annual Massey Lectures. It hosted the Man Booker International Prize of 2007.

History

<!-- Deleted image removed: thumb|left|upright|[[Robertson Davies, the founding head of Massey College]] -->

Massey College was conceived by Vincent Massey, the 18th Governor General of Canada, who attended University College, Toronto, as an undergraduate. Of the establishment of a new graduate college, Massey wrote, "It is of great importance that it should, in its form, reflect the life which will go on inside it and should possess certain qualities—dignity, grace, beauty, and warmth." The Massey Foundation, for which Vincent Massey served as a trustee, provided the financial endowment.

Opened officially in 1963, the college was designed by Canadian architect Ron Thom, who subsequently designed the master plan for Trent University. Alan Beddoe designed the Massey College coat of arms, which derives from the arms of Vincent Massey.

The founding head of Massey College (1963–81) was the celebrated Canadian journalist and author Robertson Davies. Professor Patterson Hume was the second head (1981–88), and Professor Ann Saddlemyer was the third one (1988–95). The fourth head of the college (1995–2014) was journalist John Fraser. On July 1, 2014, Hugh Segal, formerly a member of the Senate of Canada, became the fifth head of the college for a seven-year term, but he resigned in 2019. The sixth principal was Justice Nathalie Des Rosiers, a former Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. Dr. James Orbinski was announced as principal on August 16, 2024.

During the 2006–07 academic year, Massey College hosted the King and Queen of Sweden, held a special tribute in honour of the founding head of the college, Robertson Davies, and was the host of the Man Booker International Prize in April 2007.

Grounds and architecture

thumb|The pond in the quad provides constant sound which muffles the city noise from beyond the college walls

Located on the St. George campus of the University of Toronto, Ron Thom's design for Massey College was inspired by the medieval Oxbridge style college with influence from Frank Lloyd Wright and the Arts and Crafts movement.

The Robertson Davies Library, also known as the lower library, houses the college's librarian as well as an office for the University of Toronto's Book History and Print Culture Program. This library contains display cases for exhibitions curated from the collection by Book History students and Massey students.

The Library includes a collection of working 19th century printing presses. The Library's Bibliography Room has the largest collection of wood type in North America (some 350+ pieces). Several working hand presses are housed here. The most frequently used presses are two Albion presses, an Imperial Press, and a Washington Press. Some students work here as apprentices under the college printer. Printed keepsakes for college events are often made here.

Chapel Royal

Massey College is home to an ecumenical worship space, St. Catherine's Chapel, which Vincent Massey wanted included to "symbolize the position that religion should have in a house of learning." The interior was originally designed by stage-set designer Tanya Moiseiwitsch and features a 17th-century Russian iconostasis and cross, as well as a portativ pipe organ specially designed for the sanctuary by organ builder James Louder, from Quebec. The chapel was extensively redesigned in 2006 by the College architects, Brigitte Shim and Howard Sutcliffe, and rededicated in June of the following year.

St. Catherine's became Canada's third chapel royal in Canada on 21 June, National Indigenous Peoples Day, 2017, in recognition of the sesquicentennial of Canada, the relationship between Massey College and the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, and the only one with its own title in an Indigenous language.

Fellowships

thumb|Ondaatje Hall, the main dining hall of the college used for daily meals and High Table dinners

thumb|This inscription hangs in the main stairwell of Massey College, which reads: "This House was built by the Massey Foundation in 1962. It was the intention of the Founders to bring into being a College to serve a body of graduates limited in numbers but of high promise in scholarship and qualified to make of worth the fellowship to which they belong. It is the Founders' prayer that through the fulness of its corporate life and the efforts of its members, the College will nourish learning and serve the public good."

Junior Fellows are postgraduate students "of distinguished ability" at the University of Toronto, either in the study of art and sciences subjects or a professional discipline such as law, engineering, or medicine. Resident Junior Fellows can live in the college for up to three years before becoming non-resident Junior Fellows for another two years. Typically, about sixty Junior Fellows are resident and another ninety are non-resident. Each year, new prospective Junior Fellows apply to the college to be elected by the governing corporation. Junior Fellows are elected based on:

  • academic achievement;
  • scholarships and honours; and
  • community engagement outside academia. is composed of members of the Massey College community, including physicians, medical students and graduate students in areas related to medicine and health sciences. It convenes monthly during the school term and serves as a discussion forum for topics related to medicine, the health sciences, and issues of interest to students. Guest Mentors attend regularly. Planning for the Annual MGR Symposium is a significant element of these gatherings. The group is guided by Dr. Aubie Angel, CM, MD, FRCPC, Senior Resident/Fellow, President of Friends of CIHR.

The Janet Rossant Lectureship was established at Massey College in 2018 in recognition of Dr. Rossant's distinguished career as a scientist, scholar, builder and leader in medical research. Her dedicated mentorship of young scientists and scholars is reflected in the purpose of this honour. This Lectureship will attract accomplished visiting scientists to engage graduate students and faculty members alike, as part of the Massey Grand Rounds (MGR) program at Massey College.

The college has a strong connection to the Canadian establishments and Canadian journalism. The college also strives to preserve an Oxbridge-type atmosphere by mandating the wearing of gowns at dinner, and incorporating regular High Tables—into its schedule; and balances this with very active outreach programs . The mandated goal of the college is to demonstrate through its corporate life the interconnectedness among all learning.

Massey College also hosts its own Junior Fellow Lecture Series, sometimes called WIDEN-Massey, where graduate student members of the community are invited to talk about their research in a general way to their non-specialist peers.

Local and national arts organisations are affiliated with the college. Many college events feature singers from the Canadian Opera Company or musicians from the Talisker Players as well as many talented Junior Fellows who share their music after supper or at events.

Clarkson Laureateship in Public Service

The Clarkson Laureateships in Public Service are the highest honour the College awards annually to members of its community. Over the years, notable philanthropists, academics, community organizers, politicians, and activists have been awarded a Clarkson Laureateship, including Ursula Franklin, William Davis, and Mary Eberts.

The awarding of Clarkson Laureateships was approved by the Governing Board in 2003 and the first awards were given out in 2004, during the final year that Madam Clarkson, a Senior Fellow of the College, was Governor General of Canada. The award honours her many years of service to Canada by recognizing those members of its community who also contribute to the common good.

The Laureateships are usually awarded at the first High Table in January in the presence of the Laureates’ families and Massey College peers. It is tradition for the Laureates to donate the monetary component of the award to a charitable cause of their choosing, often detailed in their acceptance speech. The evening somewhat echoes the ceremonies Madam Clarkson presided over for the Order of Canada when she was Governor General and she herself attends, often joined by past Clarkson Laureates, to honour the awardees.

Cultural references

Massey College was used by David Cronenberg as a location for his 1970 film Crimes of the Future. In 2021, it was used as a location for Star Trek: Discovery. In 2023, Massey College appeared in the Amazon prime superhero series "Gen V"

References

Further reading

  • Judith Skelton Grant (2015) - A Meeting of Minds: The Massey College Story - University of Toronto Press.
  • Judith Skelton Grant (1994). Robertson Davies: Man of Myth. Viking.
  • Val Ross (2009). Robertson Davies: A Portrait in Mosaic. Random House of Canada.
  • John Robert Colombo (1984). Canadian Literary Landmarks, p.&nbsp;193. Dundurn Press Ltd.
  • Massey College Alumni Association
  • Massey Grand Rounds
  • Archival papers of James Nairn Patterson Hume, second head of Massey College, held at the University of Toronto Archives and Records Management Services