- John Spinks
:"For the guitarist and lyricist of the British
rock group The Outfield , see John SpinksJohn William Tranter Spinks, C.C., S.O.M., M.B.E., (
January 1 ,1908 –March 27 ,1997 ) was the President of theUniversity of Saskatchewan from 1960 to 1975.Born in
Methwold, England , he received a BSc (1928) and his doctor of philosophy degree (Ph.D.) in chemistry (1930) from the King's College at theUniversity of London . He emigrated to Canada in 1930 to join the chemistry faculty of the University of Saskatchewan as an assistant professor and was promoted to professor in 1938, head of the Department of Chemistry in 1948, and dean of the college of Graduate Studies in 1949. He was appointed President in 1960. During his tenure, the university grew from 4,500 to 13,500 full-time students.He spent the 1933-34 academic year at the
University of Darmstadt ,Germany , where he first met Dr.Gerhard Herzberg and helped him emigrate to Canada.During
World War II , he developed search and rescue procedures for missing aircraft and was awarded the M.B.E.. After the war, he pioneered the use of radioactive isotopes in agricultural and chemical research.The University of Saskatchewan
open source computer labs were named the Spinks Labs.He married Mary Strelioff in 1939.
He died in Saskatoon in 1997.
Honours
* In 1970 he was appointed a Companion of the
Order of Canada .
* In 1982 he was inducted into the Saskatchewan Agricultural Hall of Fame
* In 1985 he was named Saskatoon's Citizen of the Year.
* In 1996 he was awarded theSaskatchewan Order of Merit .References
* [http://www.canadianencyclopedia.ca/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0007615 John William Tranter Spinks] at
The Canadian Encyclopedia
* [http://esask.uregina.ca/entry/spinks_john_william_tranter_1908-_97.html John William Tranter Spinks] at The Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan
* [http://www.usask.ca/archives/history/president4-hondegree.php University of Saskatchewan Honorary Degree citation]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
