Two Arts & Science alumni are boosting support for doctoral studies with a new fellowship in the Department of Physics.

David and Heather Boal’s generous donation, matched by the University of Toronto, enabled the establishment of the Boal Family Distinguished Doctoral Fellowship at the Faculty of Arts & Science.

“We’d been thinking about making a significant donation to recognize our family for some time,” says David Boal. “But the deciding factor was U of T's matching fund — that was the thing that made us say, ‘It’s now or never.’”

The Boal Family Distinguished Doctoral Fellowship celebrates the Boals’ belief in the value and importance of education, recognizes their children Adrienne and Alexander and honours the memory of their son Christopher, who died in infancy.

The Boals’ generosity also helps the faculty advance its mission of investing in students. The university’s limited-time 150 per cent matching program for Distinguished Doctoral Fellowships reflects the profound importance of competitive PhD funding for driving research breakthroughs.

Awards like the Boal Fellowship encourage top minds from around the world to pursue their PhD studies at U of T. These students then become the backbone of U of T’s vibrant research community.

“Our graduate students are doing the research that keeps us at the cutting edge of physics. Supporting them through generous awards such as this fellowship is extremely important,” says Paul Kushner, Chair of the Department of Physics.

More information here: https://www.artsci.utoronto.ca/news/arts-science-alumni-establish-new-fellowship-support-doctoral-research-physics