When Tori McCarvell became the 2025 Class President, she knew graduation activities would be a big part of her final year; what she didn’t anticipate was making history.

Last spring, McCarvell, who earned her Bachelor of Science (biopsychology, biochemistry) and Certificate in Foundations of Health, donned ceremonial robes in honour of Grace Annie Lockhart at the 2025 Convocation ceremonies — part of the 150th anniversary celebrations of Lockhart’s graduation from Mount Allison as the first female in the British Commonwealth to receive a bachelor’s degree. Lockhart was not allowed to wear graduation robes in 1875 — this symbolic ceremony sought to correct that omission.

“I can only describe it as a surreal moment, it was magical,” says McCarvell. “For me, the event started back to the graduands walking across campus to Convocation. As planned, I was wearing a white dress and was the only person who didn’t have academic robes. I didn’t expect to be, but I was very cognizant of it. This feeling really helped to reinforce the idea of why we were doing this. I can only imagine how Grace would have felt in 1875.”

The ceremony was part of a year-long celebration to mark Grace Annie Lockhart’s graduation and the impactful trail of historical accomplishments by Mount Allison alumnae she helped to inspire.

The Convocation robes, originally worn by Muriel McQueen Fergusson (’21, DCL ’54), first female Senator from New Brunswick and first female speaker of the Canadian Senate, were placed on McCarvell by the Honourable Catherine Callbeck (’60, LLD ’96), the first woman elected in Canada to become a premier, and Jeanne Inch (’71), honorary co-chair of the Grace Annie Lockhart Sesquicentennial Celebrations Committee (GAL 150).

“It was really special to have Catherine at the ceremony. She and my grandmother (Jean Probyn ’59) have been lifelong friends since meeting at Mount Allison,” says McCarvell. “It really speaks to the power of a small community, where things like this can happen. It inspires me to give back to the people that worked so hard to earn these accomplishments.”

Among those inspired is Gita Anand (’82), honorary co-chair of the GAL 150 Committee and member of the University’s Board of Regents. Anand helped organize this milestone moment, participating in Convocation and Reunion Weekend events to share the story of Grace Annie Lockhart’s history — with a personal connection.

“The GAL 150 Committee’s work this year is special to me. I received an academic award in Lockhart’s name as an incoming student in 1979. There were two lines about her achievements in the award description at the time,” says Anand. “I felt indebted to her and her legacy, having a scholarship in her name. It was a push to succeed.”

Anand has continued to use this as motivation. Following her Mount Allison degree, where she graduated as Valedictorian, she earned her graduate degree at the London School of Economics. She then went on to law school and has worked as a lawyer, specializing in labour and human rights.

“Mount Allison has always been good at keeping in touch — and it is because of people’s experiences that they give back. This is one of the reasons why I chose to stay involved,” says Anand. “I love coming to campus and meeting students and their families over Convocation Weekend. Everyone at the University works together to make this magic.”

Honorary GAL 150 Committee co-chair Jeanne Inch echoes the sentiment around the story of Lockhart’s legacy and her impact on future generations at Mount Allison and beyond.

“It’s a wonderful story about women’s advancement and how welcoming Mount A was and continues to be — it’s always had a sense of community and acceptance. It deserves to be told and celebrated” says Inch. “These aren’t just facts, there were real people behind this history. That’s why I got involved in this project.”

Now retired, Inch was the first woman and non-conservation scientist to serve as Director General and Chief Operating Officer of the Canadian Conservation Institute. In this role, she oversaw the development services, advice and information to help museums and art galleries across Canada preserve their collections. Prior to her work there, Inch was a journalist and worked in public relations and in various government positions, including university research policy.

With this professional background, she’s obviously a perfect choice for the GAL 150 Committee. And that’s before you learn her Mount Allison family history.

Inch grew up next door to the Mount Allison campus where her father was Director of Alumni and Public Relations for many years. She comes from a long line of Allisonians, including her great uncle James Robert Inch. Dr. Inch served as the principal of the Ladies’ Academy and subsequently as the University’s third President. In 1872 he proposed a motion to the Board of Regents to admit women to the University. Three years later Grace Annie Lockhart graduated. As they say, the rest is history.

She recently discovered that as President of Mount Allison, her great uncle encouraged women students in the Ladies’ Academy to enter the University. One of them did — in another Mount Allison and Canadian first — Harriet Starr Stewart was the first woman to be awarded a Bachelor of Arts in 1882 and a Master of Arts in 1885.

Inch likes to think that her father was influenced by his forward-thinking uncle. She recalls her father saying to her when she was a student, “You can be married and have a career too.”  She has inherited several boxes of Inch family correspondence, photos and documents and is writing stories of her family to help preserve their history.  

“Mount A plays a big part of these stories. The University has been connected to my family for 170 years,” says Inch.

As part of this year’s GAL 150 celebrations, Mount Allison has introduced the Grace Annie Lockhart Pin Recognition Program. The program honours women who have made significant contributions to their communities or professions or ground breakers in their fields. The inaugural pins will be presented in alumni chapters across Canada over the coming months.

For University Archivist David Mawhinney, the story of Grace Annie Lockhart and Mount Allison is one that will be forever continuing. Mawhinney has served as co-chair of the GAL 150 planning committee and has been an invaluable resource, researching Lockhart’s story for many years.

“We actually don’t know a lot about Grace Annie Lockhart, the person,” says Mawhinney. “But we’re learning more about her life each year from many sources. As a Minister’s wife, she seems to have had a quiet existence. At the same time, social justice, and in particular women’s education, appeared important to her — I think she was much more than meets the eye.”

Mawhinney has connected with descendants and friends of the Lockhart family who share that while her accomplishment of obtaining a degree was known in the family, she didn’t seem to make a big deal of this achievement.

“We started thinking about this [the anniversary] quite a while ago. The events over the past year have helped to share this important story around women’s education more widely,” he says. “It’s a tribute not just to Lockhart but to the legacy she inspired at Mount Allison and beyond around education and equality.”