Honouring Harry Rosen

“Involvement like Harry’s deserves to be recognized,” said Mitch Frazer at a reception on April 13, 2018, to dedicate the Harry Rosen Learning Lounge at Student Learning Support (SLS) in the Ryerson Student Learning Centre (SLC).

The event was the culmination of a months-long fundraising campaign to pay tribute to Rosen for his outstanding contributions to the university and Ryerson students over two decades. Frazer, vice-chair of Ryerson’s Board of Governors and founder of the National Institute on Ageing at Ryerson, served as chair of the campaign that raised $170,000 for crucial programs and services in SLS.

“Harry has been a member of our Board of Governors, a member of the Make Your Mark Campaign Cabinet, helping to raise over $200 million dollars for Ryerson and, quite fittingly, a program advisor to the Retail Management Program at the Ted Rogers School of Management,” said Frazer. “Harry even enrolled in humanities courses here so he could realize his dream of attending university.”

Rosen's son, Larry Rosen, Chairman and CEO of Harry Rosen Inc., and daughter-in-law Susan Jackson made a $50,000 gift to kick off the fundraising. Rosen’s friends and colleagues also contributed, including generous donations from Janice Fukakusa, chair of Ryerson’s Board of Governors, Phyllis Yaffe, former chair of Ryerson’s Board of Governors, and many other members of the Ryerson community.

"I am so proud of my dad’s contribution and involvement with Ryerson University, which we all feel is such an essential part of Toronto," said Larry Rosen.

"Harry contributed to the oversight of Ryerson as a member of the Board of Governors from 2007 to 2016, a period of profound growth and accomplishment for the university," said Fukakusa.

On the fourth floor of the SLC, Student Learning Support offers math, English, writing, study skills and academic accommodation for students living with a disability. In the coming academic year, SLS expects to facilitate over 25,000 accommodated tests for students living with a disability, and have their services accessed over 52,000 times by 8,000 unique users.

“On behalf of the staff and students of Student Learning Support, I would like to offer my thanks to Harry Rosen and the generous donors who have supported this campaign,” said Sonia Prancho, a fourth year Fashion Design student who works part-time at SLS. “The funding will go a long way to help SLS expand and improve their services both on campus and online, and help them continue to provide the best learning environment and resources for student success.”

This is not the first time Rosen and his family have been at the centre of philanthropic activity at Ryerson that benefits students. The Harry Rosen Lecture Theatre in the Ted Rogers School of Management was named in recognition of Rosen’s and Harry Rosen Inc.’s $1 million gift to the Ted Rogers School of Management. And the Harry Rosen Research Commons, which opened in support of the Institute of Stress and Wellbeing Research, has helped raise the profile of Ryerson’s world-class Psychology program and offers a state-of-the art hub of labs, workstations, and equipment for students and faculty to use to advance their research.

“We are deeply grateful to Harry Rosen and his family,” said Michael Benarroch, provost and vice-president, Academic. “Thank you for your leadership, for your dedication to the university, for giving so freely and for so many years. You are, and forever will be, a true friend to Ryerson.”

In Rosen’s characteristically humble way, he cast the praise away from himself. “Being a part of Ryerson has been a great experience for me and enriched my life,” he said. “The university has become part of the fabric of this city, an institution that I am very proud to be associated with. Thank you for being here today, and for your support.”