JSGS founder Atkinson’s ties to USask remain strong

Michael Atkinson is Professor Emeritus in the Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy, University of Saskatchewan (USask) campus. He has held several academic administrative appointments including provost and vice-president academic at USask (1997–07), as well as associate vice-president academic at McMaster University (1995–97). He has published extensively in political science, public administration, and public policy, and beginning in 2008 served as the founding executive director of the Johnson-Shoyama School of Public Policy (2008–15).

Heather McWhinney has been teaching and coaching writing at the University of Saskatchewan for more than 10 years. She teaches academic writing at Johnson Shoyama, where she also works with students and faculty on editing dissertations and grant proposals. Earlier in her career, Heather worked in the academic publishing industry in Toronto, where she was publisher and editorial director of the college division of Harcourt Brace, Canada. Heather and Michael now reside on Vancouver Island. We talked to them about their USask history and decision to offer support for USask students.

MICHAEL: When I came to USask to be vice-president academic, I found a campus in need of direction, resources, and reassurance.  It was 1997 and the province was still reeling from economic hard times. It was easy to be glum. What I didn’t realize was that it was actually the beginning of a new era. So, my fondest memories are wrapped up with being part of that new era. I remember vividly how the new Council found its footing, how a new president (Peter MacKinnon) challenged us to raise our game, how faculty welcomed new academic initiatives, and how governments began to supply one of their most treasured institutions with the resources we needed to complete internationally. The physical face of the campus changed over that period, and I felt a growing sense of confidence that I hope remains to this day.

HEATHER: I have many fond memories of our time at USask. I remember how welcoming people were when Michael and I moved here from Toronto in 1997. My relationship with the university was deepened when I started teaching graduate-level writing on campus in 2011 and when I became graduate writing help specialist at the library. I met so many wonderful people, many of whom were international students who had given up a lot to come to Saskatchewan to study.  Although many students encountered challenges while working on their thesis, I always found them to be enthusiastic, keen to learn, and appreciative.

MICHAEL: I knew when I came to USask that this is where I would spend the rest of my academic career. I certainly never had plans to leave. To this day, I stay in touch with the students I taught and the colleagues I worked with. They are among my closest friends and my tie to those wonderful years. Of course, it was not all wonderful. There were struggles of various kinds, and I learned a great deal about leadership, collegiality and perseverance. But for all the stumbles and scrapes along the way, I will always be grateful to the university for taking a chance on a person from Ontario and to my colleagues for helping me out whenever I needed it, whether I knew it or not.

HEATHER: My USask experience is ongoing as I continue to teach academic and professional writing to students in the GENI program (Governance and Entrepreneurship in Northern and Indigenous Areas). I love teaching in this program—a joint initiative between Johnson Shoyama and the Arctic University of Norway. Students in my online classes come from all over the world, and I am always fascinated to learn about their life experiences and views. I am also continuing in my role of writing coach to students at Johnson Shoyama, both at USask and the University of Regina.

MICHAEL and HEATHER: Walking onto the campus you get an instant connection to the thousands of students and faculty who have preceded you. You appreciate their legacy and you want to be part of that legacy, making it as strong as it can possibly be. Having spent 30 years in Ontario, with its dozens of post-secondary institutions, we weren’t ready for just how important a single university could be. But you learn quickly that people in the province rely on the University of Saskatchewan to provide it with cultural capital, professional talent, research breakthroughs, and opportunities for families of all kinds. USask is vital to the province’s future. Working with people who feel the same way, including international students from all over the world, will always be a source of pride for us. Anyone who attends the University of Saskatchewan or who is privileged to work there cannot help but become emotionally invested in its success.

MICHAEL and HEATHER: The fund began as a gift to thank Michael for getting Johnson-Shoyama started and for being its first executive director. We did not suggest the idea, but we embraced it as a way of helping students who come to the school with few resources and big dreams. Teaching in the school gave us both a sense of the enormous challenges involved in earning a professional degree in an area with exacting expectations and doing so without a lot of personal and financial support. Along with colleagues we have worked with over the years, we have contributed to the fund to help sustain it and make sure that it will always be there for students who are both academically promising and financially challenged.

MICHAEL and HEATHER: The university has many needs, and so in a sense any choice will be a good one. Support for research is always welcome, and if you can help fund a chair in an area of passion, our faculty will be forever grateful. For us, and for many who have been to university themselves, helping students will always be top of mind. In an era of high fees and a high cost of living, any help you can provide will go to someone who needs it. That is, and always will be, the Saskatchewan way.

-To learn more about the Michael Atkinson and Heather McWhinney Scholarship for Student Success, please visit their website.

- This project is part of the University of Saskatchewan’s Be What the World Needs campaign.