Last year may not actually be the last time graduating students are handed a diploma emblazoned with the name of Ryerson.
The Ryerson University Act of 1977 has not been legally amended by the Ontario government to reflect its new Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) name. Pending the completion of that process, president Mohamed Lachemi says all official documents will continue to bear the former name.
In addition to diplomas, documents affected include trademarks, official contracts signed with partners, collective agreements with unions, and Canada Revenue Agency filings.
“I will repeat what I have said, I’m very positive about the change of the University Act being made in the near future,” said Lachemi. “We are in October and the next convocation season is going to be in June. So I am very positive about it. However, I don’t have control.”
The Ontario ministry of universities and colleges did not respond to a request for comment from On The Record on Monday.
“I’m not seeing any negative reaction to the name change from any of the political parties that are at Queen’s Park,” Lachemi said. “We continue to have positive discussions with the government and they are supportive of our name change.”
The delay also impacts the renaming of TMU’s first international satellite campus in Egypt, Ryerson Cairo.
“We are only able to resubmit documentation to have the Egyptian presidential decree updated to reflect our new name once our new name is changed legally,” said Lachemi.
However, he also said that the Egyptian government is aware of the pending name change and “will welcome our submission to update our name on the decree” once the legislation goes through.
While TMU isn’t officially recognized by law yet, replacement of the old name is underway in several places. That includes new campus signages, website links, social media handles, merchandise, OneCards and promotional materials at events like the Ontario Universities Fair.
Lachemi said the university is looking to update the following materials with the new name by the end of 2022:
- Contractors are currently working on external and internal signage replacements, ranging from on building facades to washroom information signs. While some signage can be replaced in a relatively short period, others require additional permits and coordination with the city of Toronto services and building owners.
- Computer and Communication Services will work on digital infrastructure such as RAMSS, myryerson.ca services and Google Workspaces over the winter break.
- The @ryerson.ca domain also remains in use until the winter break, when it will be shut down for a couple days for change to happen in the least disruptive way.
Copy editor, On The Record, Fall 2022.
