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We had a full program in our June 6 convocation gathering, where we celebrated the achievements of our Spring 2025 doctoral, master’s and bachelor's graduates, several awards at the graduate and undergraduate level and the inaugural DSR Faculty Awards recognizing excellence in research, teaching and departmental service.
It was an opportunity, too, to mark the award of the Dean's Distinguished Long Service Award to our beloved graduate administrator and to congratulate recent DSR faculty promotions.
With proud family and friends in attendance, along with donors and DSR academic supervisors, faculty, and staff, it was a joyful occasion and a wonderful reminder of the energy and spirit of inquiry that the study of religion embodies.
The Class of Spring 2025
MA
- Nicole Smith — "Expressions of Harm as a Limit of Toleration between the University of Toronto and People’s Circle for Palestine " (Supervisor: Sol Goldberg)
PhD
- Sukshmadarshi Maharaj — "The Harivaṃśa and its Kṛṣṇa" (Supervisor: Ajay Rao)
- James Shire — "From Beatific Sanctuary to Besieged Stronghold: Syriac Monastic Conflicts and Early Islam" (Supervisor: Kyle Smith)
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Professor Sol Goldberg presents Nicole Smith, MA |
Professor Ajay Rao presents Dr. Sukshmadarshi Maharaj |
While Professor Barton J. Scott, Director of Graduate Studies, was unable to attend in person, he sent his regards – and admiration for the achievement of these graduate student scholars – in a video message recorded in Los Angeles where he is currently engaged in research.
Bachelor's Degrees
with Amy Huynh, Undergraduate Administrator (left) and Professor Srilata Raman, Associate Chair Undergraduate (second left)
(Note: The following list shows students who requested to graduate)
Specialist in Buddhist Studies
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Specialist in Religion
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Major in Religion
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Minor in Religion
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Celebrating DSR Awards
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We also celebrated several awards at both the graduate and undergraduate level, which recognize academic excellence and community service. Some of our awards come thanks to our generous donors, and we were very pleased to welcome Bryan Levman to our celebration. The generosity of Rosi Levman and Bryan made possible the establishment of the Bill and Belle Levman Graduate Award. We consistently look for additional ways in which to recognize and honour our students, and are always open to suggestions for how we can do so. Please be in touch if you would like to discuss your ideas with us.
Also, new this year, the DSR has instituted awards to celebrate faculty who have gone above and beyond in their research achievement, teaching contributions, and service to the department.
Finally, we celebrated the award to Fereshteh Hashemi, our longstanding graduate administrator, of the Faculty of Arts & Science Dean's Distinguished Long Service Award.
Graduate Awards
Bill and Belle Levman Graduate Award .
Recipient Andrew Dade. Established through the generosity of alumnus Bryan Levman, with Rosi Levman, this award supports students focusing on Pali or Theravada Buddhism. The award is given to one or more MA or PhD students studying in this area, especially in support of language study.
Helen Mo Memorial Scholarship
Recipient Ankita Choudhary. Helen was a PhD candidate in the DSR. Through the many communities who loved her, this scholarship was created in the spirit of Helen's warmth, integrity and unflinching intellectual boldness. The award is based on academic merit and preference is given to students who have achieved candidacy and are in the fieldwork and/or writing stages of their dissertation.
Phool Maya Chen Scholarship in Buddhist Studies
Recipient Albert Yang. This award was established by a generous gift from Christina and Peter Jose in memory of Christina’s grandmother to honour her faith and deep respect for higher education. The award is given on the basis of academic merit.
DSR Graduate Student Service Award
Recipients Grace Feeney, Albert Yang .This award was created to acknowledge the amazing contributions that our students make to the life of the department.
Undergraduate Awards
DSR Justice & Equity Award (Production of Work)
Recipient Arist Bravo Awarded to an undergraduate student whose academic work (essay, project, or creative piece) for a DSR course explores themes of equity, diversity, or social justice. Nominated by their course instructor, the recipient demonstrates critical insight and a strong commitment to these values through their scholarly work.
DSR Justice & Equity Award (Community Activity)
Recipient Emma Li. Awarded to an undergraduate student who has demonstrated leadership and initiative in promoting equity, diversity, and social justice within the DSR or broader university community. The recipient is recognized for their meaningful contributions to building inclusive spaces, raising awareness, or advancing justice-oriented projects.
DSR Faculty Awards
New this year, the DSR has instituted awards to celebrate faculty who have gone above and beyond in their research achievement, teaching contributions, and service to the department. The awards are decided by the departmental Progress Through the Ranks (PTR) Committee. For 2024-25, we are delighted to honour the professors below. Two of the winners were unable to come to the celebration, but sent their thanks – Professor Hampton was delivering a lecture in Italy at the University of Messina and Professor Harris is beginning a sabbatical year.
Research Excellence Award
Recipient Professor Alexander J.B. Hampton. This year, Alexander Hampton’s outstanding research accomplishments included several publications, with the highlight being The Metaphysics of Divine Participation, a book published by the prestigious Cambridge University Press. While on sabbatical at Notre Dame University in Australia, Alex also gave several invited lectures. His research excellence also extended into his role as a mentor to students: this year, for the second time, one of his undergraduate students won the Undergraduate Essay Prize from the Canadian Society for the Study of Religion.
Teaching Excellence Award
Recipient Professor Jennifer Harris. Jennifer Harris’s excellence as a teacher is legendary in the DSR. A leader in pedagogical innovation who guided many faculty through the difficult transition to online teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic, Jennifer has designed and taught many of the core courses in the DSR, to astonishing numbers of students. 2024-25 was her last year of teaching, as next year she is on sabbatical, and will then retire. She taught three of her most popular courses: RLG215H, New Religious Movements, RLG233H, Religion and Popular Culture, and a fourth-year seminar that is now a classic, RLG407H The World of World Religions. She also supervised many TAs, as well as a PhD Teaching Fellow, continuing her distinguished record as a mentor to future generations of university teachers.
Service Excellence Award
Recipient Professor John Marshall. John Marshall inaugurated the role of TA coordinator in the DSR and has served in the position since 2020. He established a much more transparent and smoothly-running system for matching graduate student teaching assistants with course assignments. At a time when student enrollments in DSR classes continue to grow, ensuring good teaching teams of professors and TAs is crucial for good student experience. John’s commitment to excellent service extended to carrying on the role of TA Coordinator even while on a six-month sabbatical.
Faculty of Arts & Science Dean's Distinguished Long Service Award
This award is presented to a non-academic staff member who, over the course of their years of service to the Faculty of Arts & Science, has distinguished themselves in ways that are beyond the expectations of administrative peers, academic colleagues and students. A spirit of generosity, community and dedication to the work and to the people of the unit are essential criteria for the award. We are so delighted to be celebrating Fereshteh Hashemi, our dedicated Graduate Administrator, as this year’s winner. A formal Faculty of Arts & Science presentation ceremony was held on June 2, but we naturally took the opportunity to acknowledge Fereshteh's achievement at this gathering of the DSR family.
See our article about Fereshteh
Faculty Promotions in the DSR
Effective July 1, 2025 we are delighted to note the following promotions:
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| Reid Locklin is promoted to Full Professor | Libbie Mills is promoted to Associate Professor, Teaching Stream (part-time) |
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| J. Barton Scott is promoted to Full Professor | Ken Derry is promoted to Full Professor, Teaching Stream |
