Trent University welcomed hundreds of alumni, faculty, staff, and special community guests to the 50th Anniversary Alumni & Friends Reunion Weekend from August 7-10, 2014. It was a wonderful opportunity for alumni to reconnect with classmates, meet new friends, and introduce their families to the University’s beautiful nature setting, its warmly inviting atmosphere, and the brilliant intellectual discussions that take place across campus and beyond.

The celebrations began on Thursday, August 7 with the Opening Reception and Book Launch, where alumni and friends were welcomed to campus by Trent’s eighth president, Dr. Leo Groarke; its founding president, Professor Tom Symons; and Julie Davis, vice president of External Relations and Advancement. D’Arcy Jenish, author of Trent University: Celebrating 50 Years of Excellence, spoke about the deep history he encountered while writing the book. From Trent’s very first students registered in 1964 to the newest graduates, alumni spent the weekend visiting the Symons Campus colleges as well as Peter Robinson College and Traill College, celebrating 50 years of sport at the Athletics Centre, and took in a special reunion show by Blue Rodeo and The Burning Hell at the Peterborough Memorial Centre.

As Dr. Groarke put it in his introduction at the Symposium Keynote, “Any great party is enlivened with serious discussion.” On Friday, August 8 and Saturday, August 9, alumni and faculty were joined by community visitors for the Ideas That Change The World Symposium, led by a fascinating keynote address by Trent chancellor Dr. Don Tapscott on the topic of "Rethinking Civilization: Five Modest Proposals for a World that Needs Changing." The Symposium featured 15 focused panels with 75 of Trent’s renowned alumni and faculty leading insightful discussions on critical issues within the themes of Education, Critical Cultural Inquiry, Indigenous Peoples in Canada, Life and Health, and Sustainability and the Environment. Symposium attendees emerged feeling re-engaged in academic conversations, enlightened on important topics, and inspired to make a difference.

Trent University would like to extend a special thank-you to the many individuals and organizations who helped to make the weekend such a successful kick-off to the coming year of celebrations.

“I want to express my personal thanks to the hundreds of volunteers, to the speakers, to the overwhelming number of alumni who attended, and to everyone who supported the weekend's events in one way or another,” Dr. Groarke said. “I am impressed by the passion that Trent alumni have for their alma mater and their engagement with its ideals.”

Visit Trent University’s Facebook page to see photo galleries from all the events of the 50th Anniversary Kick-Off Weekend, and to watch videos of Symposium speakers. Find out more about all the exciting events to come as Trent embarks upon a year of anniversary celebrations, including the Chancellor’s Gala, a Community Parade, and fascinating lectures by distinguished alumni.

The University would especially like to thank the corporate and media sponsors, without whose generosity the Reunion Weekend would not have been possible:

The Symons Trust Fund for Canadian Studies
Trent University Faculty Association
The City of Peterborough
LLF Lawyers
TD Insurance Meloche Monnex
Perkins + Will
Stephen Stohn '66
The Peterborough Examiner
Scotiabank
Curve Lake
Industrial Alliance
Flying Colours Corporation
Bell Canada
Bank of Montreal
MBNA
Stuart Butts '65
C&C Insurance Consultants
Holiday Inn
Best Western Otonabee Inn
The Village Inn
Rehill Building Supplies
Peterborough Agricultural Society
Peterborough Inn & Suite Hotel
TCSA
Follett

Media Sponsors:
TV Cogeco
CHEX TV
The Wolf 101.5
Kruz FM 100.5
The Breeze 107.9
Magic 96.7
Star 93.3
GE Canada
Extra Talk Sports
Peterborough This Week
Energy 99.7
BOB FM
Country 105
Kawartha NOW
PTBO Canada
Lakefield Herald

Posted on Tuesday, August 12, 2014.