Esteemed alum’s archival photos captivate

In one of the perfectly captured, black-and-white shots, Governor-General Vincent Massey stands at a lectern, addressing students at the laying of the cornerstone for the current Upper School building in 1959.

“I maintained an interest in photography at UCC and joined the camera club,” says Beatty, former chair of the UCC Board of Governors (1992–1997) like his father before him. “In 1958, I was a member of the #7 Rebel platoon and volunteered to be the school’s student photographer to get out of Battalion drills.”

Beatty’s own portrait hangs in the Upper Dining Hall with those of other former board chairs, and it cleverly refers to his UCC bonds. In a nod to his days as College Times photographer, he’s depicted holding a curled-up rugby photo from 1905, a team for which his two grandfathers played in 1906. It’s an appropriate reference, since many of the photos he was tasked with taking illustrate stories of victory and defeat on the fields of play, whether at cricket, track or rugby. He also documented campus events such as the student reaction the day the previous Upper School building was condemned in March 1958, and the construction of the new edifice in 1959. (A massive community fundraising effort had paved the way for the renovations.) 

The photos provide an excellent representation of UCC student life in the late 1950s, says Jill Spellman, the College’s archivist.

“Photographs play an important role in connecting us to our past and reminding us of people, places, events and stories,” says Spellman. “The images that make up this collection are memories that contribute to the story of UCC. They offer a visually exciting representation of a particular chapter, serving as a nostalgic touchpoint for classmates and a resource for future generations.”

They are also an indication of the varied talents possessed by young Beatty, a winner in the UCC photo-art contest as a student, who has gone on to have an illustrious career. His academic success at UCC earned him a full scholarship to the University of Toronto where he earned a degree in development economics and international development, followed by a master’s degree from the University of Cambridge in the same field of study. 

Beatty’s past includes serving for 10 years as president of George Weston Foods (Loblaws’ parent company); as the chief economic planner for Papua New Guinea as it formed its first independent government; as the founding managing director of the Canadian Coalition for Good Governance, which manages more than $3 trillion in assets for institutional investors; and as a creator of the Canadian Directors’ Education Program with the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD). He currently serves as the chair of the David and Sharon Johnston Centre for Corporate Governance Innovation and professor of strategy in the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. 

Despite a busy life, Beatty has always been devoted to UCC. Generations of his family have attended the College, including both grandfathers, his father, his sons and his grandsons. He’s grateful for the care UCC took of his father, a boarding student at Seaton’s, when his grandfather went bankrupt in 1938.

“The school paid for his last two years of high school,” Beatty says. “UCC looked after him.”