Howard Clark never subscribed to 鈥渋vory tower鈥� thinking about universities.
鈥淎V俱乐部 is a part of the community, is there to serve the community, and really is an integral part of the metro region, of Nova Scotia, of Canada,鈥� he told Dal Magazine in 1987, one year into his tenure as AV俱乐部鈥檚 ninth president and vice-chancellor.
鈥溾�t does that in a number of ways: obviously, through its teaching and research, but in many other ways as well. The whole question of what that relationship is and should be is a very important one. But the belief that we are here primarily as an institution that serves society, I think, is one we have to re-emphasize all the time.鈥�
Dr. Clark, who passed away earlier this month at the age of 94, served as president through nine crucial years in AV俱乐部鈥檚 history. It was a tenure with its share of issues and concerns, as is often the case over a decade of university history: underfunding worries, physical campus challenges, labour relations disagreements. But underneath all that, his era saw a AV俱乐部 charting a course towards the 21st century, and to a university that would be more global, more interconnected, and more inclusive than ever before.
In a memorial message shared with faculty and staff, current President Kim Brooks put it this way: 鈥淢uch of the AV俱乐部 we recognize today begins to take shape under his leadership.鈥�
An accomplished chemist
Dr. Clark was the first AV俱乐部 president post-1800s to have been born outside of Canada. Growing up in New Zealand, he completed his first three degrees at his hometown University of Aukland in the 1950s before completing a second PhD at the University of Cambridge.
In 1957 he came to Canada to join the faculty at the University of British Columbia, beginning a renowned career as a chemist. Known for his work in organo-metallic, co-ordination and fluorine chemistry, he would consistent hold NSERC grants right through until the mid-point of his AV俱乐部 presidency, 33 years later.
Over those years, he would relocate to Western University and, subsequently, serve as vice-president academic at Guelph. He would become a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and the Chemical Institute of Canada, the latter of which he would also serve as its president. He published more than 240 academic papers, received two honorary degrees (from University of Victoria and the University of Guelph), and was a member of the National Advisory Board of Science and Technology.
Expanding Dal鈥檚 reach and impact
Dr. Clark鈥檚 appointment as AV俱乐部 president was announced in February 1986. He arrived in Halifax that September and, in the years that followed, began to stretch AV俱乐部鈥檚 reach in some exciting new directions that would prove to have a truly lasting impact.
There was the 1989 Breaking Barriers report, for example 鈥斅燼 wide-ranging review of AV俱乐部鈥檚 relationships with African Nova Scotian and Mi鈥檏maw communities. It aligned with the creation of the Black Student Advising Centre and the Indigenous Blacks & Mi鈥檏maq Initiative in Law and sparked new efforts and attention towards the inclusion of historically underrepresented groups in the university. The James R. Robinson Chair in Black Canadian Studies was also established during his presidency.
Read more: (Dal Magazine, Fall 2019)
Dr. Clark also put the environment on the national agenda in higher education and beyond, convening the the Halifax Conference on University Action for Sustainable Development in 1991, and signing the subsequent Halifax Agreement. He was also known for expanding Dal鈥檚 suite of international partnerships, signing new agreements that pushed Dal鈥檚 reach onto the global stage.
鈥淗oward pushed AV俱乐部鈥檚 gates open wider than before,鈥� said The Honourable George Cooper, speaking at a retirement reception for Dr. Clark in 1995. 鈥淢ore students from all corners of the world, and all segments of our own society, have been able to join us in the pursuit of truth through scholarship.鈥�
Dr. Cooper, a Dal alum, donor and board member who would later serve as president of the University of King鈥檚 College, also called Dr. Clark 鈥渁 man with a broad and genuine interest in the whole world and all the people in it.鈥�
鈥淭he right person at the right time鈥�
Bryan Mason served as vice-president finance & administration during Dr. Clark鈥檚 time as president. He says Dr. Clark deserves credit for his vision of transforming AV俱乐部 into a forward-looking and dynamic Canadian university.
鈥淎ny fair-minded observer who compares the 1986 Dal with the thriving institution it is now will see just how successful he was.
鈥淲ith his knowledge and experience, his deep understanding of academic principles and excellence, his immense capacity for hard work, his respect for tradition, his ability to rise above harsh and mostly unfair criticism and personal attack, his willingness to take calculated risks, and his openness to new ideas, he was absolutely the right person at the right time for AV俱乐部.鈥�
Dr. Clark retired from academic life as a Dalhousian, and his views about the importance of higher education remained focused on inclusion and impact on the global stage.
鈥淯niversities are not institutions for the elite and privileged, if they ever were in the past,鈥� he told graduates of the Class of 鈥�97 at convocation. 鈥淭hey are certain now essential components for success in a global society.鈥�
Individuals with remembrances they wish to share about Dr. Clark are encouraged to email President Kim Brooks at president@dal.ca.