William Teron, honorary degree, 2013

William Teron, O.C., F.R.A.I.C. (Hon.), M.O.A.A (Hon.), was awarded the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, “in recognition of outstanding contribution to business and commitment to philanthropic endeavours and the community.”

Teron is the founder of Teron International Building Technologies and is known as the “Father of Kanata” for his influence in shaping and building the west-end neighbourhood in Ottawa. He is responsible for two suburban developments in the Ottawa area – the development of the former hamlet of Bells Corners, Ont. into a garden suburb (through the development of housing estates called Lynwood Park and Arbeatha Park in the early 1960s) – and the development of Beaverbrook, the beginning of the city of Kanata (later amalgamated into greater Ottawa) from a greenfield site in the Township of March, west of the Ottawa greenbelt.

From 1973 to 1979, he was the chairman and president of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). He has been active in the community through his work with the National Arts Centre, Canadian Housing Design Council, the Ottawa General Hospital and the African Students’ Foundation.

He is an Officer of the Order of Canada. In 1978, he was made an honorary Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada. He has won three national and four regional awards for housing from the Canadian Housing Design Council. He has also received the Queen Elizabeth ll Silver, Golden and Diamond Jubilee medals.

Teron is a generous supporter of architecture at Carleton. Through a gift from the Teron Foundation in 2007, the Teron Scholars program at Carleton is able to challenge students to push their creative and technical boundaries to be leading Canadian architects.