The recipients are: Denise Chong, acclaimed journalist and author; Sheela Basrur, former Chief Medical Officer of Health for Ontario and champion of our public health system, and Charlotte Gray, celebrated author and historian.

"It's a privilege to welcome these distinguished Canadians into the York community," said Mamdouh Shoukri, York University President and Vice-Chancellor. "It is our hope that our newest graduates will be inspired by their achievements."

Ceremonies will be held on York's Keele Campus (located at 4700 Keele Street), between Osgoode Hall Law School and the Atkinson Faculty of Liberal & Professional Studies. For a campus map, click here.

York University's fall 2007 convocation ceremonies will be streamed live over the Internet. Click here to view the ceremonies. 

A biographical sketch of each honorary degree recipient is below. Recipients are listed in order of ceremony:

Denise Chong, Honorary Doctor of Laws                                            

October 20, 10:30 am (Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Education)

Denise Chong has achieved eminence as an economist, public servant, and author. She became a trailblazer for a more inclusive Canadian public service, first in the Department of Finance, and later as senior economic advisor to the PMO, where she worked closely with Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. Chong left the public service in 1985 to establish herself as a writer. Her highly- acclaimed books – The Concubine’s Children and The Girl in the Picture: The Kim Phuc Story – forged her reputation as a leading chronicler of the Asian-American experience. The Concubine's Children won the Edna Staebler Award for Creative Non-Fiction and the City of Vancouver Book Award, and was short-listed for a Governor General’s literary award, as was The Girl in the Picture. Chong has continued her involvement in public life, serving on task forces, public boards, and committees, including the Task Force on the Participation of Visible Minorities in the Federal Public Service, the National Advisory Board on Culture Online, and the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada. She holds an honorary doctorate from the University of Northern British Columbia.

Sheela Basrur, Honorary Doctor of Laws

October 20, 3 pm (Faculty of Health, Faculty of Environmental Studies, Faculty of Science & Engineering)

Sheela Basrur served as the first medical officer of health for the amalgamated City of Toronto, leading one of the largest public health bodies in North America. Her leadership in handling the SARS outbreak in Toronto in 2003 earned her the respect of health care professionals around the world. In this role, Basrur was known for her ability to address systemic problems and her unique understanding of issues facing Toronto’s diverse communities, particularly those of immigrants and refugees. She was instrumental in the city’s banning of non-essential “cosmetic” pesticides, and improving public health standards in Toronto’s restaurants. Basrur went on to serve as chief medical officer of health and assistant deputy minister of public health in the Ontario Ministry of Health & Long-Term Care. She is a recipient of the YWCA Toronto 2004 Women of Distinction Award, and an honorary member of the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario.

Charlotte Gray, Honorary Doctor of Laws

October 21, 10:30 am (Atkinson Faculty of Liberal & Professional Studies, Osgoode Hall Law School, Schulich School of Business)

One of our country’s best-known writers of Canadian history, Charlotte Gray is the author of six books, most recently Reluctant Genius: The Passionate Life and Inventive Mind of Alexander Graham Bell. She has won numerous awards, including the Edna Staebler Award for Creative Non-Fiction and the Canadian Authors Association / Birks Foundation Award for Non-fiction, the Canadian Booksellers Association Libris Award for Non-fiction, and the Floyd S. Chalmers Award in Ontario History. Her first book, Mrs. King: The Life and Times of Isabel Mackenzie King, was nominated for a Governor-General’s literary award. In 2003, she was awarded the UBC Medal for Biography, and the Pierre Berton Prize for distinguished achievement in popularizing and promoting Canadian history. She has contributed to many of Canada’s major magazines and newspapers, and won several major magazine awards. Gray is a member of the Order of Canada.

York University is the leading interdisciplinary research and teaching university in Canada. York offers a modern, academic experience at the undergraduate and graduate level in Toronto, Canada’s most international city. The third largest university in the country, York is host to a dynamic academic community of 50,000 students and 7,000 faculty and staff, as well as 200,000 alumni worldwide. York’s 11 faculties and 24 research centres conduct ambitious, groundbreaking research that is interdisciplinary, cutting across traditional academic boundaries. This distinctive and collaborative approach is preparing students for the future and bringing fresh insights and solutions to real-world challenges. York University is an autonomous, not-for-profit corporation.

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Media contact:

Melissa Hughes, Media Relations, York University, 416 736 2100 x22097 / mehughes@yorku.ca