THE OUR KIDS REPORT:
Upper Canada College

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Upper Canada College NOTABLE ALUMNI

Many private schools in Canada have numerous graduates who have gone on to great things. Learn about a school’s most influential, important, successful, and famous alumni.

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Facts and analysis
Qualitative insights

List of Alumni

Alumnus	Grad Year	Accomplishment
Robertson Davies	1932	One of Canada's most internationally celebrated novelist, playwright, journalist, and essayists
David Gilmour	1968	Journalist and Governor General's Award for English language fiction winning novelist
Stephen Leacock	1887	Celebrated writer, humourist and economist. The most widely read English-speaking author in the world between 1910 and 1925.
Peter C. Newman	1947	Peabody award-winning journalist and former editor of Macleans and the Toronto Star. Noted chronicler of the "Canadian Establishment"
Foster Hewitt	1921	Legendary broadcaster and Hockey Hall of Fame inductee
Galt MacDermot	1947	Grammy Award winning musician and co-author of the Broadway musical Hair
Geraint Wyn Davies	1975	Stage, film and television actor (Forever Knight)
Leonard Dick	1982	Emmy Award, Golden Globe, and Writers Guild Award winning producer and writer of Lost, House, The Good Wife and many other sitcoms
Michael Snow	1948	Internationally recognized modern artist, with public works featured prominently throughout Toronto. Exhibited around the world, including at MoMa.
Timothy Eaton	1852	Founder of the now-defunct Eaton's department store
William George Gooderham	1867	Owner of Gooderham Worts Distilleries and president of the Bank of Toronto
Tom Szaky	2001	Co-founder of TerraCycle, an innovative recycling company
Vivek Rao	1986	Youngest faculty member ever to join UofT's cardiac surgery division. Second youngest Chair of cardiac surgery ever in Toronto's University Health Network. Made Canada's Top 40 under 40.
Michael Ignatieff	1965	Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. Noted Harvard historian and journalist. Gemini Award winner. Lionel Gelber Prize winner. Shortlisted for Booker Prize.
Harold Ballard	1921	Owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, and Maple Leaf Gardens. Hockey Hall of Fame inductee.
Colin Greening	2005	Current NHL hockey player for the Ottawa Senators
Conn Smythe	1909	Owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs, founder of Maple Leaf Gardens, and coach of the 1928 Winter Olympics gold medal winning team. Namesake to the NHL's Conn Smythe Trophy
Stuart Lang	1970	Member of the Canadian Football League Edmonton Eskimos and winner of four Grey Cups
Stephen Clarkson	1954	Leading Canadian political scientist and Member of the Order of Canada.
George Grant	1936	Internationally renowned Canadian philosopher and theorist. Had a major influence on subsequent Canadian scholars and political culture. Considered one of Canada's most original thinkers.
Ted Rogers	1951	Visionary entrepreneur and Canada's ninth wealthiest man. Founder and Chairman of Rogers Communications.
Galen Weston	1958	Chairman of George Weston Limited and Canada's second wealthiest man. Grandson of George Weston and father of Galen Weston Jr., also UCC graduates
David Thomson	1975	Chairman of Thomson Reuters. Canada's wealthiest man, and sixth wealthiest in the world. Son of Kenneth Thomson, also a UCC graduate
Harry Crerar	1904	Military General, and Canada's leading field commander during World War II
Michael Wilson	1955	Federal Minister of Finance and Canadian Ambassador to the US. Co-architect of NAFTA. Chairman of Barclays Capital Canada. Order of Canada recipient. Chancellor of UofT.
John Godfrey	1961	Federal Minister of State for infrastructure and communities. Editor of the Financial Post. Oxford graduate
Bill Graham	1957	Leader of the Opposition and Interim Liberal Party of Canada Leader. Foreign Affairs Minister, National Defense Minister
John Black Aird	1941	Founder of Aird & Berlis LLP and 23rd Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
Robert Prichard	1967	President of the University of Toronto, President and CEO of Torstar, Chairman of Bank of Montreal. Officer of the Order of Canada and Member of the Order of Ontario.
George Connell	1947	President of the University of Toronto, President of the University of Western Ontario. Officer of the Order of Canada.
Charles Watchter	1993	Emmy Award winning executive producer of "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution"
Michael MacMillan	1974	Founder and executive chairman of Alliance Atlantis Communications. Academy Award winner. Member of the Order of Canada.
Jim Cuddy	1974	Juno award–winning musician Jim Cuddy is one of Canada’s best-loved singer/songwriters and a founding member of Blue Rodeo
Doug Bassett	1958	Founder of CFTO-TV. President of the CTV Television Network. Member of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame.
Patrick Graham	1984	Journalist for Harper's, the New York Times Magazine, and television correspondent for CBC
John Stackhouse	1981	Editor-in-Chief of The Globe and Mail
Brian Stewart	1960	Award winning Senior Correspondent for the CBC's "The National" . Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs at UofT. Member of the Order of Ontario.
James Greig Arthur	1962	World's leading mathematician in representation theory and creator of the General Trace Formula
Timothy Endicott	1979	Dean of Law at Oxford University. Legal scholar and philosopher.
Mark Cohon	1985	Commissioner of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Director of corporate and game development for MLB. VP of business development for the NBA. Chair of the Ontario Science Centre.
Barney Williams	1996	Silver medal winning Olympic rower (Athens 2004) and Oxford University graduate
Michael Evans	1984	Chairman of Goldman Sachs Asia. Gold medal-winning Olympic rower (Los Angeles 1984).
Tom Wright	1971	Commissioner of the Canadian Football League (CFL). President of Adidas Canada. Director of Operations for UFC Canada
Sir Henry Pellat	1876	Financier, Major General, and builder of Toronto's Casa Loma
Hal Jackman	1950	Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, philanthropist, and financier. Chancellor of the University of Toronto, chairman of National Trust Company and The Empire Life Insurance Company. Member of the Order of Canada.
Gordon Cheesbrough	1971	Prominent Canadian investment banker. Chairman and CEO of Scotia Capital Markets. Co-founder of Blair Franklin Capital Partners
Ernest McCulloch	1943	Pioneering biologist and the co-discoverer of the existence of stem cells. Lasker award winner, member of the Orders of Canada and Ontario, and Canadian Medical Hall of Fame inductee
Alexander Roberts Dunn	1848	First Canadian to receive the Victoria Cross, the highest honour recognizing gallantry in the face of the enemy awarded in the British Commonwealth
John Robert Cartwright	1912	Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada
Andrew Heintzman	1986	Noted author and venture capitalist. President of Investico Capital, an environmental investment company. Co-founder of Shift magazine and editorial board member for The Walrus.
David R. Beatty	1959	Noted international businessman and diplomat with extensive board experience, serving on 29 boards (and Chairing 5). Honorary Consul General for Papua New Guinea. University of Toronto professor
Brendan Fraser	1987	Hollywood actor
Nicholas Campbell	1970	Canadian film and television star. Two-time Gemini winner
John Fraser	1963	Editor of Saturday Night Magazine and master of Massey College. Member of the Order of Canada. Chaired the Canadian Journalism Foundation until 2008. Multiple award winner for journalism. Published worldwide.
Jeffrey Kofman	1977	Peabody Award winning ABC news correspondent, reporting for World News with Diane Sawyer, Nightline, and Good Morning America. Toured Iraq and Afghanistan as an embedded reporter. Two-time Emmy winner
John William Bosley	1964	Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons
Conrad Black	1962	Notorious newspaper magnate and accomplished historian. At one point controlled the third-largest media empire in the word as Chairman and controlling shareholder of Hollinger International. (Did not graduate).
Greg P. Meredith	1976	Chairman and CEO of HSBC Bank USA. Professional NHL hockey player (Calgary Flames)
Andy Chisholm	1977	Chief Strategy Officer for Goldman Sachs (Global)
Blake Hutcheson	1980	Canadian real estate icon: has been called the Warren Buffet of Canadian real estate. President and CEO of Oxford Properties Group.
James Cockburn	1833	Father of Confederation and first Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons
Alan Macnaughton	1921	Speaker the Canadian House of Commons. Canadian Senator
Michael Cassidy	1954	Leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party. Federal Member of Parliament
Matthew Cartwright	1979	Current US Democratic Congressman. Assigned to Committee on Natural Resources and Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
Norm Kelly	1959	Federal Member of Parliament and Toronto's Deputy Mayor (and unofficial acting mayor). Governor General's Award winner for historical writing. Also taught history at Upper Canada College
Andrew Hutchison	1956	Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada (Archbishop)
Rocco Rossi	1981	President and CEO of Prostate Cancer Canada. CEO of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario. National Director of the Liberal Party of Canada. Princeton graduate
James George	1936	Ambassador and environmental activist. Rhodes Scholar. Served as Canada's ambassador to Iran and the Gulf States
Jameel Jaffer	1990	Deputy legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union. Litigated Freedom of Information Act request on U.S. torture of prisoners. Served as law clerk to the Supreme Court of Canada.
John Graham	1955	CIA spy on Cuba after the missile-crisis. Canadian ambassador and diplomat
Daniel Lang	1936	Canadian Liberal Senator
Modris Eksteins	1961	Renowned and award-winning historian of Germany. Rhodes Scholar.
Terry Grier	1954	President of Ryerson University. Transformed Ryerson from a college to a university. NDP Member of Parliament
Allan Lamport	1923	Mayor of Toronto, member of the Order of Canada
Alan Tonks	1961	Mayor of Toronto and Liberal MP
John Thomson	1961	Chairman of Toronto-Dominion Bank Financial Corporation. Vice Chairman of IBM. 20th Chancellor of The University of Western Ontario.
Galen Weston, Jr.	1992	Executive Chairman and President of Loblaws Companies Limited
Shafiq Qaadri	1982	Ontario Member of Provincial Parliament for Etobicoke North. Medical doctor and popular writer on Andropause.
Avi Lewis	1986	Award winning journalist and documentary filmmaker. Host of CBC's "On the Map" and Al Jazeera's "Fault Lines".
Ben Dunkelman	1930	Israeli war hero and commander of the 7th Brigade, one of Israel's most celebrated armored brigades. Also known as Benjamin Ben-David.
Brian Conacher	1961	All-Star NHL hockey player. Was on the 1967 Stanley Cup winning Leafs team. Olympian.
John Ridpath	1955	Award-winning professor, historian, and philosopher. Was a noted proponent of Objectivism, serving on the board of directors of the Ayn Rand Institute.
John Julius Cooper	1947	British historian, travel writer and television personality. Member of the British House of Lords.
Edward Blake	1851	2nd Premier of Ontario. Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada. Founder of Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP (law firm).
Tom Clark	1971	Host of CTV's "Power Play". Chief political correspondent for Global News. Host of Global's "The West Block". Substitute anchor for CTV's National News.
Oliver Aiken Howland	1863	31st Mayor of Toronto. Member of the Order of St. Michael and St. George.
George Stewart Henry	1892	10th Premier of Ontario
Sir Arthur Edward Grasett	1906	Canadian born Lieutenant-General in the British Army. Field Commander during WWII. Military Cross; Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire; Companion of the Order of the Bath.
Thomas Symons	1947	Founding president and chancellor of Trent University. Chairman of the Ontario Human Rights Commission. Companion of the Order of Canada. Order of Ontario. Governor General's Award for Canadian Studies
John Strathearn Hendrie	1875	11th Lieutenant Governor of Ontario.
Andrew Saxton	1982	Conservative Member of the Canadian Parliament for North Vancouver
Walter L. Gordon	1922	Canada's Minister of Finance. President of the Privy Council. Chancellor of York University. Companion of the Order of Canada. Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
Bruce Matthews	1927	Commander of the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division during the Second World War. Major General. President of Argus Corporation. President of the LIberal Party of Canada.
Alexander Gordon McKay	1942	Award-winning Canadian academic and scholar of Virgil. Officer of the Order of Canada. President of the Royal Society of Canada.
Arnold Cantwell Smith	1932	Canadian diplomat and the first Commonwealth Secretary-General. Rhodes Scholar. Officer of the Order of Canada.
Joseph Tyrrell	1878	Discoverer of dinosaur bones in Alberta. Canadian geologist, cartographer, and mining consultant.
William Johnston Tupper	1881	12th Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba.
William Morley Kilbourn	1944	Author, historian, and noted chronicler of Toronto. City councillor. Harvard Professor. Member of the Order of Canada. Founder of many philanthropic organizations and boards.
Jeff Dennis	1976	Noted serial entrepreneur, best-selling author ("Lessons from the Edge"), public speaker, and public company director.
Sir Charles Kingsmill	1873	Admiral. Considered the father of the Royal Canadian Navy.
Humphrey Hume Wrong	1909	Canadian ambassador to the United States. Key architect of the North Atlantic Treaty, (later giving rise to NATO). Professor of history at University of Toronto.
Lewis Wallbridge	1834	Chief Justice of Manitoba.
Eugène-Étienne Taché	1849	Noted architect and engineer. Designer of the Quebec Parliament Building. Designed Quebec's coat of arms and motto, "Je me souviens".

What Upper Canada College says about their alumni network:

For an overview of notable alumni please visit: https://www.ucc.on.ca/welcome/our-history/notable-alumni

Qualitative insights

These insights are based on conversations with parents, alumni, and school leadership. Handpicked and curated by our editor, they offer a close look at how the school is experienced and perceived by those who know it best.

The alumni have lifelong connections.

Comments from alumni highlight the extensive networking opportunities and enduring personal relationships fostered through the Upper Canada College community, which provide ongoing support and mentorship well beyond graduation.

The Common Ties Network is incredible, the UCC Alumni Association, which is helpful to introduce boys who have just left the school to people who have attained a certain level of success in the field that those boys might be interested in. It also is really useful for keeping boys linked to the school as they grow up. So in my case, for example, I've been in the UK for 14 years now. Still, not a year has gone by where I haven’t met with dozens of Upper Canada College boys via the UK London-based Alumni Reception, which is always really fun. On some occasions, it is actually held in the Canadian High Commission, the embassy.

—Chris Birks, alum (see full interview)

When I first left, I was incredibly grateful that the school backed me up and was there for me when I was falling behind and helped bring me to where I wanted to be, so that I could go where I wanted to go. That has added to my appreciation for the fact that the Upper Canada College experience is not limited to the number of years that you are at the school. It lasts far, far longer. That has been particularly important, and has only come into my awareness as I get older. That would be the primary thing that has evolved in my thinking about Upper Canada College.

—Chris Birks, alum (see full interview)

Once you graduate, you will never be without a network of old boys to depend on, both in a professional sense, and much more importantly in a personal sense. So I'd say, from being at the school and benefitting from the programs, the facilities, and the teachers that Upper Canada College has to offer, which are unparalleled, all the way through to even being late in your career, and having the very fond memories that are brought back by a meeting at whatever alumni reception, those are all very important things.

—Chris Birks, alum (see full interview)

There were speakers that came to Upper Canada College that became my mentors. The Administration Department helped get internships for students in the Toronto area by setting them up with Upper Canada College alumni. We had small classes at Upper Canada College, which was one of the things I was looking for in my university experience. Each professor and I were able to have really strong relationships; we were able to ask questions, whether it was in class or out of class, to get a deeper knowledge and understanding of the topic you're learning.

—Sevion DaCosta, alum (see full interview)

Having the Upper Canada College alumni database at your fingertips is an amazing aspect of the Upper Canada College experience as well. I have mentors who are Upper Canada College alumni that I call weekly or monthly to update them on how everything's going, get advice, and they are always there for me. So my perspective that Upper Canada College as a community has grown even more for me because I'm able to connect with those and find different aspects of the community that will help me grow and find out what I want to do professionally for the latter years of my life.

—Sevion DaCosta, alum (see full interview)

The Upper Canada College community is just amazing. It’s one of those values that just can't kind of be quantified. They have Upper Canada College alumni programs across the globe where you can go and meet other graduating Upper Canada College alumni. Being in LA, I was able to go to the Canadian Consulate General's house and meet with different Upper Canada College alumni that had graduated all the way from the early 80’s up until my current graduating class. They were able to talk about their different experiences, how it felt to move from Canada, then become like a lawyer, or pursue their passion for film, etc. in LA. I got to learn a lot of different perspectives, and that's one of those things where it's always going to be available. If you message someone on the ‘Common Ties’ network, they will get back to you and try and help you as much as possible.

—Sevion DaCosta, alum (see full interview)

The sense of community is 100% what I appreciate the most from attending Upper Canada College to this day, my best friends are people from Upper Canada College. When I look back on my experience, it is all very, very positive. Talking to other people who came from other schools, generally, that's not the kind of the sense that they have. High school isn't necessarily the time where they made the most amount of friends or those kinds of things. For me, from immediately going there, to this day, I still talk to my best friends who are people that I met at Upper Canada College.

—Darwin Jimal, alum (see full interview)

In terms of the opportunities that provided me later on, I now work with a neurologist who graduated from Upper Canada College in 2001. I had seen that he went to Upper Canada College, so I sent him a message, and now we're working together. I just got a reference letter from my track coach for a scholarship I'm applying to. Those kinds of relationships are very, very strong and important to me. It's something that when I look back, it was always there.

—Darwin Jimal, alum (see full interview)

I think the Upper Canada College community is one of the biggest draws for people. To this day, I communicate with people from Upper Canada College, I work with people who went to Upper Canada College When I see my friends, there's some type of relationship there that was developed within Upper Canada College. My relationships with my friends from Upper Canada College and my teachers from there, that's only growing, and it's not something that just ended after graduation. Having that community, not just within the school but also when you graduate, is something that I think is unique to Upper Canada College.

—Darwin Jimal, alum (see full interview)

They uphold a rich legacy and tradition.

Observations from current and former students, as well as school administrators, reveal that the long-standing traditions and rich history of Upper Canada College profoundly influence the sense of community and belonging among students, alumni, and faculty.

Yes, tradition is important, and you can't avoid 192 years of history and tradition. There's a palpable sense that people have gone before you when you walk through the halls of the school. There's a wonderful network of alumni and a wonderfully strong community in the school.

—Sam McKinney, Principal (see full interview)

It's an extreme privilege to have graduated from Upper Canada College. The school is really good at giving you opportunities to serve something bigger, to help out in a way that goes beyond the general stuff that you normally think of as volunteering.

—Darwin Jimal, alum (see full interview)

The community is supportive and motivated.

Insights from current students and alumni indicate that the driven and ambitious atmosphere at Upper Canada College significantly contributes to both personal and professional success and inspires them to excel in their pursuits.

Here's a number that surprised me. We have over 1000 people who volunteer for the school every year. That number staggered me when I arrived that a thousand different individuals are involved in all kinds of activities, alumni who organized branch events in London or New York or San Francisco or Hong Kong. There are individuals who are involved in those parent organizations, members of our board, members of our foundation, library volunteers, volunteer coaches, parents will find their niche and their opportunity to be involved, and a great many do. And those who aren't able to are still incredibly vibrant members of our community.

—Sam McKinney, Principal (see full interview)

Everybody at Upper Canada College is so driven to do well and succeed in whatever they're doing. It's contagious. That's partly what I attribute to my success post-Upper Canada College, because everyone around me was so into what they were doing.

—Darwin Jimal, alum (see full interview)

Upper Canada College shaped me just in the sense of my drive, ambition, and motivation. It all started in Grade 9, and going forward by having those teachers who were able to bring the best out of me, and help me excel in what I wanted to do.

—Darwin Jimal, alum (see full interview)

Upper Canada College has an incredibly engaged community. Parents are always the most involved when it comes to organizing major events which includes Winterfest, A-Day and many more. UCC also has a very strong relationship with alumni or 'Old Boys'. Alumni frequently return to the college for speeches and to talk about their successes and challenges at the school and in their current life. I always enjoy the alumni who talk about overcoming their challenges because I think that I can always improve in that aspect. There is never a shortage of people volunteering to participate at sporting events, theatre performances, or debate nights. We always find many generations of families attending school events. Overall, I think that the college has an extremely lively community that strives to make everyone feel appreciated.

—Will Huang, student (beginning 2012) (see full review)

They share a deep appreciation for education.

Reflections from alumni reveal a deep appreciation for the educational opportunities and the personal growth facilitated by Upper Canada College, emphasizing that the experience is recognized as a significant privilege that shapes ambition and motivation.

Since graduating from Upper Canada College in 2017, I started going to Claremont McKenna College in Southern California. It's a small Liberal arts College where I'm majoring in philosophy, politics and economics with a legal studies sequence, and I've really been able to build off of the skills and the different activities that I did at Upper Canada College. I played football at Upper Canada College, then played football for my first two years at Claremont McKenna College. I founded the Mock Trial Club at Upper Canada College, and now I'm President and CFO of the Mock Trial Club at Claremont McKenna College, and I've also been a part of a multitude of other clubs that have related directly to the skills that I learned at Upper Canada College. I'm also a research assistant at the Rose Institute of State Local Government, and then during the summer I've been able to expand myself and do a lot of different experiences.

—Sevion DaCosta, alum (see full interview)

I'm extremely grateful for my opportunity to be able to attend Upper Canada College. I've been extremely grateful for the opportunities that I had, and how much I was able to take advantage of those opportunities and build myself up in different ways that I might not have if I did not attend Upper Canada College. The main thing students learn from Upper Canada College is understanding how to balance and manage your time. So applying that to university, my first year I was able to balance all the different things that I was doing because I already had that perspective in mind before attending So for me, it's allowed me to say, ‘oh, wow, there's all these different opportunities’ I was able to now succeed in the different aspects because I've had that understanding and a foundation developed in me at a younger age. When I'm doing these things currently, I'm able to have that new perspective.

—Sevion DaCosta, alum (see full interview)

I’ve realized more and more that my ability to get my education at Upper Canada College, and have had that opportunity provided to me is a very, very significant privilege. Whereas before, I didn't think about it in that way. Now I really realized that my success, my current ambition, and the way I currently am is so largely solidified in that education I was able to receive.

—Darwin Jimal, alum (see full interview)

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