The new Principal of University College (UC) wants to remove the “but” that sometimes appears when students and alumni describe the University of Toronto.
‘The University of Toronto is a world-renowned academic institution, but it can stressful…U of T has a solid international reputation for research, but it can be a little overwhelming.’
Professor Markus Stock was installed as the 17th Principal of University College on Wednesday at the Great Hall in Hart House, and though just weeks into his new position, he’s already begun to create a vision for boosting UC’s presence.
Namely, he would like to see that “but” replaced with an “and” that highlights the many benefits of the University’s college system — a welcoming, friendly, supportive, social ‘yin’ to the university’s powerhouse academics and research ‘yang.’
“If we could insert the colleges into the conversation right at that point, people might say, ‘U of T has an immense reputation as a research institution and its colleges provide students with a valuable support system and social connection.’ I think that would be ideal,” he said.
Keenly focused on enhancing the student experience, Stock intends to be a very hands-on principal, driving forward student-centred initiatives and programs founded primarily on student engagement and interaction.
“Talking with students, I’m figuring out how we can best support their experience on campus,” said Stock who joined U of T in 2005, and was previously chair of the Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures and is cross-appointed to the Centre for Medieval Studies. “For me, figuring that out might be the most fascinating part of the job.
“I’m finding out what their aspirations are to see where we can support their academic excellence, but then also emphasize their college is a place where they can live and congregate,” he added.
He’s excited about UC’s future, intending to fully embrace and celebrate equity and diversity within the college’s student body. He also plans on stressing the importance of student mental health and well-being.
“That’s something I feel very strongly about,” he said. “We have to figure out how to provide services to students who face a mental health crisis, but to an equal degree, ensure that students who are happy now stay happy during their rigorous academic experience at this University. I think the colleges play a huge role in that.”
As he thinks about the college’s role, Stock also welcomes the challenge on how to best use the newly renovated student and research spaces as he leads the completion of the UC Revitalization Project which is set to be finished this fall.
“What are we going to do with these spaces? How can our new spaces help us with this?” he asked, planning on taking full advantage of the newly renovated spaces where students can freely connect, recharge and easily access support services.
“If I could look back in five years and we instituted many initiatives that led to our students to continue to have a fulfilled academic life, but also have access to valuable learning beyond academics, I think that would be a big success,” he said.