Media Releases
PhD Fellowships Established at UofT’s Rotman School of Management
February 17, 2011
TORONTO, ON – A professor emeritus at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto is honouring four former faculty members who were pivotal in the establishment of the school’s PhD program by creating four fellowships for doctoral students.
Professor Emeritus William Waters, MBA’62, has committed up to $1,000,000 in matching funds towards the fellowships in honour of the late Myron J. Gordon, Professor Emeritus of Finance, the late Warren Main, a professor emeritus and former Dean of the school, the late James Poapst, a professor emeritus of finance, and Robert J. House, Joseph Frank Bernstein Professor of Organizational Studies; Professor of Management, Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania. Funds raised for these fellowships will also be matched by the University of Toronto, thus tripling each donor’s investment.
Prof. Waters joined the school in 1964 and taught generations of students during his thirty-five year career. He collaborated with his colleagues on the continual expansion and growth of the school and its programs such as the launch of Canada’s first doctoral program in business in 1969 and also the country’s first Executive MBA program in 1983.
“I know that all of us were, or thought we were, good at what we did, but experience in the training and mentoring of Ph.D. students was not in our repertoires,” says Prof. Waters. “These four colleagues took leadership in the training and mentoring of PhD students and in the process molded the faculty. As a result, we are able to take great pride in our PhD graduates today.”
Prof. Myron Gordon, who passed away in 2010, wrote more than one hundred books and articles on topics including: the cost of capital and valuation of corporations; the regulation of public utilities; growth and security under welfare capitalism; and economic development in China. He was known especially for the Gordon Growth Model, first published in 1959, and still used extensively by financial professionals in the valuation of common stock. He received his B.A. from the University of Wisconsin in 1941, and his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1952. He held faculty appointments at Carnegie Mellon University (1947–1952), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1952–1962), and the University of Rochester (1962–1970).In 1970, Prof. Gordon came to the University of Toronto. He contributed significantly to the School’s development through his teaching, his mentoring, and his research. In 1985 he became a Professor Emeritus.
Warren Main was a Professor of Economics and Director of UofT’s School of Business from 1960 to 1971.Dr. Main joined U of T’s Institute of Business Administration in 1953 from the University of Saskatchewan. In 1960, the year he was appointed its director, the institute was renamed the School of Business. During his time as director, he increased the number of full-time academic staff at the School to 27 from 12. Dr. Main also succeeded in the convincing the University’s administration to support the establishment of the first Ph.D. program in business in Canada. He was an alumnus of UofT, having obtained an M.A. (1943) and Ph.D. (1953). He completed undergraduate studies at McMaster University in 1938. Following his term as Director of the School, he continued to teach and even returned to an administrative role as an associate dean for a period, before fully retiring in the mid-1980s. Warren Main passed away on June 26, 2005.
James Poapst was Professor Emeritus at the Rotman School. After serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force in World War Two, Prof. Poapst graduated from McGill University with a B.Com. in 1947; he obtained his M.Com. in 1950. He first worked as an economist at Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation in Ottawa before joining the Institute of Business Administration at U of T in 1956 as Professor of Finance. He taught at the University of Toronto for over 35 years, ultimately becoming Associate Dean (Executive Development) in the Faculty of Management Studies. James Poapst passed away on September 16, 2009.
Robert House is Joseph Frank Bernstein Professor of Organizational Studies and Professor of Management at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, a position he has held since 1988. His research areas include leadership, motivation, personality and performance, and cross-cultural organizational behaviour. He has published over 130 journal articles; in total, his articles have been reprinted in approximately 50 anthologies of readings in Management and Organizational Behavior. Prior to his appointment at the Wharton School, Dr. House was the Secretary of State Professor of Organizational Effectiveness at the Rotman School of Business (1986–1988). He joined the University of Toronto in 1973 as Shell Professor of Organizational Behaviour. Previously, Dr. House held faculty appointments at Ohio State University, University of Michigan and City University of New York. He received his Ph.D. in management from Ohio State University in 1960.
Today, the PhD Program at the Rotman School attracts a highly diverse group of students from many countries, cultures and backgrounds, Rotman PhD alumni lead in their fields of research and are aggressively sought after by universities worldwide. Graduates of the program can be found in leadership and tenure-track positions at some of the world’s most prestigious business schools. The program is designed to prepare individuals for academic, and research careers. The Rotman PhD is offered with specializations in Accounting, Finance, Marketing, Operations Management, Organizational Behaviour and Human Resource Management, and Strategic Management. Further details are online at www.rotman.utoronto.ca/phd.
The Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto is redesigning business education for the 21st century with a curriculum based on Integrative Thinking. Located in the world’s most diverse city, the Rotman School fosters a new way to think that enables the design of creative business solutions. The School is currently raising $200 million to ensure Canada has the world-class business school it deserves. For more information, visit www.rotman.utoronto.ca.
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For more information, please contact:
Ken McGuffin
Manager, Media Relations
Rotman School of Management
University of Toronto
Phone: 416–946-3818
mcguffin@rotman.utoronto.ca
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