About Us
Tracing the Symposium's Inception
In 2009, Wendy Crocker, Xiaoxiao Du, and Jordana Garbati were PhD students at Western University's Faculty of Education and the co-chairs of what is now the Doctoral Seminar Series. Dr. (Robert) Bob Macmillan, the then Associate Dean of Graduate Programs and Research at the Faculty, scheduled monthly meetings with the trio to discuss not only the seminar, but also strategies for connecting doctoral and masters students with the activities of the Faculty. The idea of a Symposium was born at one of those meetings.
With Wendy, Xiaoxiao, and Jordana as steering committee members and a dozen enthusiastic, hardworking volunteers to address the myriad of details, the inaugural Graduate Research in Education Symposium was held in April 2010. The Symposium was such a great success that it became an annual event, each year being organized by graduate students of the Faculty of Education. While initially conceived to showcase the research of graduate students within the Faculty of Education, in 2013 the Symposium expanded to provide graduate students from other faculties and departments across Western University the opportunity to share their education-related research with the wider education community.
After learning about his passing in 2012, the Symposium organizing committee felt it was fitting to rename the 2013 Symposium in Dr. Macmillan's honour. "Without his vision and support of the inaugural Symposium, the graduate students in Education would not have a mechanism for sharing the cutting-edge work being undertaken in our Faculty" explains Crocker.
We welcome you to join us each year at our annual Robert Macmillan Symposium in Education as we continue to honour Dr. Macmillan's memory and celebrate the education-related research undertaken by graduate students at Western University.
