Renowned historian Margaret Conrad to receive honorary degree at Fall Convocation

While it's not quite the multi-day marathon of Dal's Spring Convocation ceremonies in May/June, Fall Convocation is every bit as special a time for the university's newest class of graduates — particularly for a class as distinctive as that of the university's 200th year.

Grads from across the university's faculties will cross the Rebecca Cohn stage during four Fall Convocation ceremonies on October 1 and 2. In doing so, they will join the legion of more than 135,000 Dal alumni around the world — and also join their Spring Convocation counterparts as grads of the Dalhousie Class of 2018.

Learn more: Convocation website

Joining them will be accomplished historian Margaret Conrad, currently Professor Emerita at the University of New Brunswick. She will receive an honorary degree — the highest honour the university can bestow. Honorary degrees recognize individuals who've demonstrated inspirational leadership in, or in service to, society, outstanding contribution to a field or discipline, and/or outstanding contributions to the university.

In receiving an honorary degree from Dal this year, Dr. Conrad joins the eight honorary degree recipients from Spring Convocation, as well as several other individuals being presented with honorary degrees as part of Dal 200 celebrations, including Belong Forum speakers Buffy Sainte-Marie and Mark Tewksbury.

More about Dr. Conrad:

Dr. Margaret Conrad

Reshaping our understanding of Canadian and Atlantic Canadian history
Tuesday, October 2 – 9 a.m. ceremony

Over her 40 years of pathbreaking, community-minded scholarship, Dr. Margaret Conrad has brought new light to the stories that make up the history of Atlantic Canada and Canada as a whole. Her work has illuminated forgotten journeys and pushed social history to the forefront of the narrative. It has broadened the voices who speak to us from the past and influenced generations of students and scholars.

Dr. Conrad, who has a BA from Acadia University and an MA and PhD from the University of Toronto, spent much of her 40-year career at Acadia’s Department of History. She has also served as the Nancy’s Chair in Women’s Studies at Mount Saint Vincent University in 2002 became the Canada Research Chair in Atlantic Canada Studies at the University of New Brunswick, where she is presently Professor Emerita. She has published widely in Canadian history and women’s studies, including co-writing pioneering textbooks that are now standard in history courses across the country. She is a leader in the digital humanities and was critical to helping restore the near-forgotten contributions of the pre-Loyalist New England Planters to Atlantic Canadian history.

Dr. Conrad is past president of the Canadian Historical Association. She is a Fellow in the Royal Society of Canada, an Officer of the Order of Canada and recipient of both the Queen’s Golden and Diamond Jubilee Medals. She holds honorary degrees from Acadia University, Mount Saint Vincent University and the University of Manitoba.