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Before Dr. Susan French gave a substantial gift to the ���޾��ֲ� Institute for Studies in Education, she first met a critical crossroad as a teenager in rural Nova Scotia. Then, Dr. French chose a career in nursing – with education at the heart of her work.

That journey was incredibly rewarding. She earned degrees from McMaster University and McGill University, worked abroad in places like Bermuda, and specialized in psychiatric nursing. However, serendipitously, she gently arrived at a deep curiosity for nursing education – specifically, learning for adult learners.

“I had met individuals at Boston University, who were very much involved with adult education,” recalled Dr. French, in a sit-down conversation. “There are differences between adults and children in the way they learn. Yes, there are some commonalities, and I found that OISE gave me that opportunity to explore that and really strengthened my teaching well. I know it strengthened my teaching skills and awareness.”

She eventually completed her doctorate at OISE in 1981 – with a focus on adult education.

Her career eventually led to a life of philanthropy – where she has already gifted her first two alma maters. This past spring, she came full circle, donating a substantial $200,000 gift to OISE.

Dr. French’s gift has established the Dr. Susan French Bursary at OISE, one that will support graduate students in OISE’s Master of Teaching Program who are interested in focusing on practitioner-based research as part of their initial teacher education training.

“Our globally lauded education institute wants to provide its students with all the tools to prepare them to address the complex challenges of our world. Dr. French’s gift enables us to strengthen our practitioners – to give them even clearer guidance to strengthen their pedagogical toolkits,” said Professor Erica N. Walker, Dean of OISE.

“We deeply congratulate Dr. French for her tremendous gift to OISE. It is a gift that will make a difference.”

Since its founding in 1965, OISE is one of the largest and most research-intensive faculties of education in North America and is recognized as a global leader in graduate programs in teaching and learning.

“Dr. French has a clearheaded vision of how to support teacher practitioners – it comes from a deep sense of responsibility to save lives and help those in need,” said Sim Kapoor, director of OISE’s Office of Advancement, Communications, and External Relations. “So, to see this new bursary emerge from Dr. French’s generous gift is a gamechanger. Our students will now know how to apply what they learn at our Institute – and help schools and other institutions take great leaps in how they prepare those in their care.

“This is a lasting gift, and we are grateful to help Dr. French accomplish her vision for teacher learners going forward.”

From teaching to giving back

For Dr. French, this was an overdue gift. OISE has given her the tools to be the nursing educator she became – and taught her about the are differences in how adults and children learn. “OISE gave me that opportunity to explore that and really strengthened my teaching well. I know it strengthened my teaching skills and awareness,” she said.

Considered a pioneer of innovative teaching and problem-based learning, she was pivotal in the creation of the national accreditation system used across ���޾��ֲ� and has contributed to the development of undergraduate nursing programs nationally and internationally.

A registered nurse, she would eventually devote herself to the classroom, including a long tenure at McMaster, eventually becoming Associate Dean, Faculty of Health Sciences and Director, School of Nursing.

She retired in 2001 and was recognized as an Officer of the Order of ���޾��ֲ� in 2015.

As her career pivoted to philanthropy, she also found community at University of Toronto Schools (UTS), an independent school for students in Grades 7 to 12 that is affiliated with U of T – and where many OISE students would spend their practicums, applying what they’ve researched and learned. “I knew that there was always a cadre of students from OISE, the potential teachers at various levels.”

And it made for a perfect reason to support OISE students with her gift.

“I want to have at least one student have an opportunity to do more,” she says. “I know you do a thesis – I did a thesis too – but there's more than that. It's the every day, and there are so many issues in education that it’s becoming so political that we need to have those who are on the ground who are facing the issues working with the researchers and doing more.”

Dr. French would go on to bring leadership and dedication to UTS as a board member from 2015 to 2023 – contributing to the Access and Admissions Committee and the Anti-Racism, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee, she played a large role in shaping UTS’ future and ensuring inclusivity and diversity within the community.

Her efforts in securing some of UTS' most significant donations through her work with the Newton Foundation have had a profound and lasting impact on the school's ability to innovate and provide access. She would earn the UTS Heartwood Award for Volunteer Service in 2024, as a result.

For Dr. French, the OISE bursary for grad students is different from the undergraduate funding that she has helped develop. “At the graduate level, it's just a game,” she says. “In my own experiences, finances sometimes prevent you from going and really developing your skills and your ability.

She hopes the bursaries will help someone to be able to go further in their academic work – to aid a study that may take a little more time, energy and money, for example.

“I know that there are people out there who need it, who would benefit from it, that's not everyone comes from wealthy families,” said Dr. French.