Ivor Shapiro is Ryerson’s new School of Journalism chair

A familiar face at J-Source is Ryerson University’s new School of Journalism Chair.

Ivor Shapiro is the founding editor of our very own Canadian Journalism Project and its website J-Source.ca. (He’s currently our ethics editor.) In addition to his work at J-Source, Ivor also chairs the ethics advisory committee of the Canadian Association of Journalism.

Ivor joined Ryerson’s J-School as an assistant professor in 2001, then moved into the role of associate professor and, in 2009, became director of the school’s undergraduate program. He has strong interest in the field of ethics, media law, feature reporting and excellence in journalism.

Ivor started his career in South Africa, where he was born and where he completed his undergraduate studies in theology at the University of South Africa and his M.A. in religious studies (ethics) at the University of Cape Town. While in South Africa, Ivor worked as an editor and freelance reporter.

He moved to Canada in 1985, where he has worn a variety of hats. Among them: contributing editor of Saturday Night magazine, managing editor of Chatelaine magazine, and a freelance feature writer for several magazines, including Toronto Life, Maclean’s, The Walrus, and Report on Business magazine. His critically acclaimed book What God Allows: The Crisis of Faith and Conscience in One Catholic Church was published by Doubleday in New York in 1996.

His work has been honoured six times at the National Magazine Awards. What’s more, in 2004 Ivor was a finalist for the Canadian Association of Journalists Award for Outstanding Investigative Journalism.

In addition to this mountain of accomplishments, Ivor has also produced numerous papers for refereed journals, conferences and associations.  In 2009, he edited The Bigger Picture: Elements of Feature Writing, and most recently, he contributed the chapter “What’s a good story? Recognizing quality in journalists’ work” in The New Journalist: Roles, Skills and Critical Thinking.   

Ivor’s term is set for five years; he will replace Suanne Kelman, who has been Interim Chair for the past academic year.

According to a Ryerson press release: “Ivor will have overall responsibility for the School’s academic and operational affairs including the ongoing review of the future direction of the School’s undergraduate and graduate programming. In both curriculum development and [scholarly, research and creative] activities within the School, he will also facilitate the development of a strategy which builds on program partnerships with industry as well as other academic institutions at national and international levels.”

Congratulations, Ivor!