Alison Keith | Judy LaMarsh Lecture Celebrating Women in Leadership
Lessons in Leadership from Ancient Greece and Rome
Isabel Bader Theatre
Everyone is welcome.
Date: March 6, 2024
Speaker: Alison Keith
Alison Keith is Director of the Jackman Humanities Institute and University Professor of Classics at the University of Toronto, where she also holds cross-appointments at the Centre for Medieval Studies and the Women and Gender Studies Institute. A senior fellow at Victoria College for thirty-five years, she has taught in the Chambers Stream of Vic One and enjoyed it immensely. Her research focuses on the intersection of gender and genre in Latin literature and Roman society, and she has authored five books and edited or co-edited another ten volumes on Latin poetry and Roman culture. A past Editor of the classical journal Phoenix and past President of both the Classical Association of Canada and the Ontario Classical Association, she is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and President of the Society for Classical Studies, the largest classical association in the world. Her current research projects include a biography of Sulpicia, the earliest female Latin poet whose work survives, and a monograph on Latin literature and Roman philosophies of hedonism.
The Judy LaMarsh Lecture Celebrating Women in Leadership
This annual lecture aims to facilitate a college-wide discussion on the intersection of politics and gender, while celebrating women who have succeeded in the political arena. Proposed by alumna Linda MacRae and initiated by Equal Voice Victoria (now the VUSAC Equity Commission),this lecture is named in honour of Julia (Judy) Verlyn LaMarsh, (1924-1980), who attended Victoria College before going on to make meaningful contributions to Canadian political life. Serving under Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson, she became Canada’s first female Liberal cabinet minister in 1963, and contributed to progressive legislation that established the Canada Pension Plan and Canada’s Medicare program.
About Vic One Plenary
The Vic One Plenary session is a weekly guest lecture series, exposing students to different areas of investigation. The plenaries are meant to encourage open-minded discussion and ignite intellectual curiosity. Rather than an academic commitment, these sessions present another opportunity for students to gather and reflect.