Our school, established in 2017, is named for Sylvia Olga Fedoruk in recognition of her innumerable achievements in science, education, athletics and public service at provincial, national and international levels.
Born in Canora, Saskatchewan in 1927, Fedoruk attended the University of Saskatchewan (U of S), graduating in 1949 with a Bachelor of Arts, and went on to attain a Master's degree in physics. She had a distinguished career in medical physics, specializing in radiation therapy for cancer patients. Fedoruk served as chief medical physicist for the Saskatoon Cancer Clinic and director of physics services for the Saskatchewan Cancer Foundation. She was also a professor of oncology and associate member in physics at the U of S.
Fedoruk participated in the development of the world's first Cobalt 60 unit and one of the first nuclear medicine scanning machines. The device and techniques she helped develop are still used to treat cancer around the world. She was the first female member of the Atomic Energy Control Board of Canada and served as a consultant in nuclear medicine for the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Her vast public service includes a term as chancellor of the U of S. She was appointed as Saskatchewan's first female lieutenant-governor in 1988, serving until 1994. She was also a nationally recognized athlete, competing in track and field, golf, softball and curling.
Fedoruk was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada and received the Saskatchewan Order of Merit. The naming of the Sylvia Fedoruk Canadian Centre for Nuclear Innovation on the U of S campus recognizes her contributions to science. Sylvia Fedoruk died on September 26, 2012, at the age of 86.
