Purchase Mount Royal University: A Work of Art, today!
Don't miss out on this beautiful commemorative art book, telling the story of MRU's first 100 years, using our mural mosaic images. Available at the Mount Royal BookStore until supplies last.
Leave your lasting legacy
Donate to the centennial mural project and receive your own piece of history.
Going for gold
Once Mount Royal’s highest award for academic achievement, the prestigious Henry Birks and Sons Gold Medal was given each year from 1935 to 1985, to the student with the highest standing in the university transfer program.
The Birks award was established just four years after Mount Royal had become a junior college affiliated with the University of Alberta in 1931 and began offering first-year university transfer courses.
Its recipients all attained top academic status while studying at Mount Royal, and many went on to achieve great success in their careers as well.
The first recipient, Arthur A. Ryan, set the bar high. In 1934, he earned marks of 100% in five courses at Mount Royal.
Eventually, after completing an MA and PhD, he worked as a Provost at the U of A and later became president of the Canadian Association of Academic Staff and, subsequently, president of the Canadian Student Affairs Association.
A continuing legacy
In 2011, the Centennial Medal award was created to commemorate the deep tradition of student academic achievement and leadership at Mount Royal in its 100-year history.
Patterned after the Birks medal, the 10-karat gold Centennial Medal is embossed with the Mount Royal crest on one side and the recipient’s name above a crescent of wheat sheaves on the reverse.
The first Centennial Medal will be awarded at the June 3, 2011, Convocation to the students graduating from a Mount Royal University degree program who simultaneously demonstrate academic excellence and leadership in campus and/or community activities.
Mount Royal will continue to award this prestigious award going forward.
This page regularly showcases the collections of the Mount Royal University Archives. Thanks to the Director of the Archives, Patricia Roome, PhD, and her staff for their assistance in selecting artifacts and conducting research.