H
appy New Year to all
from the faculty, staff
and
students
of
McGill’s School of Physical and
Occupational Therapy (SPOT).
Our “Big Event” of the fall
season was the annual Edith
Aston-McCrimmon Lecture-
ship. This year the keynote
speech was delivered to a full
house by Her Excellency
Dr. Sharon Johnston, wife of the
Governor General of Canada
and former McGill principal
David Johnston. Her Excellency
shared her experiences and
insights of 50 years of being a
rehab grad (she earned her MSc
and PhD in rehabilitation
sciences at McGill). She was an
intriguing speaker, able to con-
nect with the audience through
her down-to-earth stories of life
as a busy clinician, mom, ma-
ture student, and currently,
world traveler! In response to a
question from the floor during
an interactive and dynamic Q &
A period, her Excellency’s
words of wisdom hinged on the
concept of “benevolent neglect”
– to much laughter from the au-
dience and her Aide-de-Camp!
Prior to her Excellency’s
Lectureship, she inaugurated a
very special place at the school:
the Benefactors’ Lounge. This
area is hung with panels detail-
ing the major benefactors of the
school and we were very proud
to have it officially opened by
her Excellency.
SPOT had some great suc-
cesses in the late fall, including
the “Movember” challenge –
money was raised for men’s
health, as students from the
school celebrated the end of the
scruffy look! First year profes-
sional masters’ students dressed
it up at the Moustache/Masquer-
ade party; over $130 was
donated to the Movember effort.
The most impressive mous-
taches were worn by the ladies!
Faculty member Suzanne
Rouleau has been re-elected to
the Board of Directors of the
Order de L’ergothérapie du
Québec (OEQ). She fills one of
only four representative posi-
tions from the Montréal area;
congratulations Suzanne!
SPOT
director
and
associate dean, Dr. Annette Ma-
jnemer represented the school at
an international conference on
Academic Freedom in the
fall. Read more at
http://publica-
tions.mcgill.ca/reporter/2012/10/
a-fundamental-value-conference-
considers-academic-freedom/
McGill’s SPOT students
continue to overachieve – nearly
two dozen of these bright lights
also complete on our varsity
teams and clubs, and/or perform
at a high level in the arts.
Special mention goes to
Stephanie Antoniades, who is an
elite triathlete, qualifying for
Team Canada World Champi-
onships 2012 and again in 2013.
Other students fill out the ranks
of the following varsity teams
and clubs:
• Three in men’s or women’s
McGill rugby;
• Three on McGill’s synchro
team;
• Two play McGill Martlet
volleyball;
Alongwith students active in:
• McGill track and field;
• McGill Martlet soccer;
• McGill Martlet basketball;
• McGill Redmen football;
• McGill swim team;
• McGill ski team;
• McGill rowing;
• McGill Club Ultimate Fris-
bee; and
• Karate.
In the arts, OT students
play the autoharp, guitar, and
love both photography and
dance!
In other news, undergradu-
ate third year (U3) students
broke the ice with their newly
admitted qualifying year (QY)
classmates at a wine and cheese
reception in November. McGill
red was a predominant colour!
Check out school events
and activities on the website,
www.mcgill.ca/spot
or join
the group on Facebook (McGill
SPOT).
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News from McGill
From left: Dean of Medicine
Dr. David Eidelman, H.E.
Dr. Sharon Johnston, and SPOT
director Dr. Annette Majnemer.
Suzanne Rouleau
Dr. Sharon Johnston
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