Former Kamsack resident awarded honorary degree form USask

The University of Saskatchewan (USask) will honour four remarkable individuals proudly associated with the university who have gone on to make significant contributions to their communities and to Canadian society throughout their careers.

During this year’s virtual USask Spring Convocation online celebration beginning May 31, the university will award honorary degrees to celebrated writer, Elder and community worker Maria Campbell, award-winning author and social justice advocate Trevor Herriot, distinguished legal scholar Ed Ratushny, and innovative entrepreneur and philanthropist Dr. That Ngo (PhD). This is the most prestigious award that can be bestowed upon a member of the USask community and is granted to those who have made a significant contribution to their community.

Born in the small Saskatchewan town of Kamsack, Ed Ratushny said his hometown had a profound impact on his journey. Ratushny went on to earn bachelor’s (1964) and law degrees (1965) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) before embarking on an award-winning legal career. His contributions to the law profession and to legal education culminated in being made a Member of the Order of Canada in 1991, being inducted into the Order of Ontario, and awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws from the Law Society of Upper Canada.

From ground-breaking work with Canada’s Department of Justice and serving on Royal Commissions, tribunals and inquiries, to his exemplary contributions as a legal scholar, author and professional hockey agent, Ratushny has achieved great distinction over a lifetime in law.

Ratushny was appointed the first special advisor on judicial affairs to the Minister of Justice of Canada in 1973, helping fundamentally changing the way judicial appointments are made in the country. He went on to be named independent arbitrator for the newly created Canadian Centre for Drug-Free Sport, and later appointed arbitrator for the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada and a member of the International Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Ratushny served as a law professor at the University of Ottawa from 1976 to 2009 and wrote extensively throughout his career as a legal scholar, including Self-incrimination in The Canadian Criminal Process, a book often cited by the Supreme Court of Canada, and The Conduct of Public Inquiries, winner of the Walter Owen Book Prize.

Ratushny received the prestigious Justice Award in 1999 from the Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice “as a mark of distinction and exceptional achievement,” and earned the first annual CCAT Medal in 2004 presented by the Council of Canadian Administrative Tribunals for his “outstanding contribution to the Canadian Administrative Justice System.” Ratushny was awarded the Commemorative Medal for the Golden Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 2002 for his service to fellow citizens, the community and the country, and the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012 for his contributions to Commonwealth society.

Outside of the legal profession, he has also been extremely active in volunteering to support amateur sports, coaching minor hockey teams and helping develop competitive hockey for girls and women in the Ottawa area.

Ratushny and his wife Lynn—also a USask alumna—took part in the Golden Grads Celebration during USask’s virtual Alumni Week in 2020.

USask President and Vice-Chancellor Peter Stoicheff said he is looking forward to the university recognizing the extraordinary achievements of these four individuals.

“We are proud to celebrate the impact these honorary degree recipients have made throughout their remarkable careers,” said Stoicheff. “Their respective achievements span a broad spectrum of fields and disciplines, and most importantly, they have all been committed to the concept of community and service. We are grateful to have this opportunity to bestow the University of Saskatchewan’s highest honour on them during this year’s Spring Convocation celebration.”

Here is a brief look at this year’s recipients:

Maria Campbell (Honorary Doctor of Letters):

A dedicated volunteer, activist and advocate for Indigenous rights and the rights of women and children for more than 40 years, Campbell opened doors for Métis writers when she authored her best-selling autobiography, Half-breed, in 1973. She has since written eight books and dozens of stage plays, including Flight, the first all-Indigenous theatre production in Canadian history. For the past 30 years, Campbell has been a mentor for young people, including USask students, and is the cultural advisor at USask’s College of Law after previously being an Indigenous scholar and writer in residence, and working as an assistant professor and lecturer in the College of Arts and Science. Campbell was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2008 and named to the Saskatchewan Order of Merit in 2005.

Trevor Herriot (Honorary Doctor of Letters):

An award-winning writer, social justice activist and influential naturalist from Regina, Herriot has authored six books, and has had several stories, essays and articles published in the likes of the Globe and Mail and Canadian Geographic magazine. He has produced radio documentaries for the CBC, is a regular guest on media broadcasts, has appeared in and consulted on several video/film documentaries and has taught university creative writing courses. Herriot, who earned a bachelor’s degree with honours in English from USask in 1979, has received multiple awards and honours, including the prestigious Cheryl and Henry Kloppenburg Award for Literary Excellence in 2017.

That Ngo (Honorary Doctor of Science):

After earning his bachelor’s degree and PHD in the 1970s at USask, Ngo went on to become a celebrated biochemist, researcher scientist and innovator, serving as president and CEO of a number of companies in Canada, the United States and China. Ngo has published more than 140 researcher articles, edited seven books, holds 14 different industry patents, and was the co-inventor of the Ngo-Lenhoff Assay, a groundbreaking technological procedure that benefits diabetes patients worldwide. In 2016, he was selected one of the USask College of Arts and Science’s Alumni of Influence and now opens doors for other enterprising students after establishing the That Ngo Fund for Study Abroad at USask.

Ed Ratushny (Honorary Doctor of Laws):

A nationally regarded legal scholar, author and certified NHL hockey agent, Ratushny earned bachelor’s and law degrees at USask in the 1960s before embarking on an award-winning legal career. He became a trusted advisor to public servants, administrative tribunals, cabinet ministers and Chief Justices from across Canada. In turn, these symbiotic relationships imported broader experience and deeper understanding into Ratushny’s classrooms and his related academic writing. His professional achievements have been recognized by the Order of Canada, the Order of Ontario, an honorary Doctorate from the Ontario Law Society and a variety of additional, prestigious legal awards.

Honorary degrees are the highest honour USask can award, and acknowledge the worthy and unique contributions recipients have made to their community and to the world. The university recognizes individuals who have achieved outstanding accomplishments in research, scholarly and artistic works; performed exceptional public service; contributed greatly through their professional or philanthropic activity; and demonstrated extraordinary athletic prowess.