Educator, administrator.
Born on 8 April 1931 to Anna Martina Ohrn (1896-1970) and Duncan MacPherson (1899-1953), he spent his first six years on the homestead farm near Hawkeye, Saskatchewan. In 1937 the family moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, where he received degrees in Nuclear Physics, Mathematics, and Education at the University of British Columbia. He then worked as a teacher, Department Head, and Vice Principal in the West Vancouver School Division. In 1957, he married Fern Bolger (?-2017) and they went on to have three sons.
In 1960 he accepted a joint appointment between the Faculty of Education and Department of Mathematics at UBC, where he completed his Masters of Education in Educational Psychology. In 1966 he completed a PhD degree at Washington State University in Mathematics Education, Mathematics, and Higher Education. After becoming a full professor in the faculty there, he was appointed to Associate Dean of the Faculty in 1971. During this time, he produced a Science Series for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and was awarded the Wilderness Award for the Best Public Affairs Television Broadcast in Canada. He also co-authored several textbook series, which became some of the best-selling mathematics textbooks in Canada. During the 1970s and 1980s, he was one of the leading mathematics educators and keynote speakers in North America, which included the honour of authoring a chapter of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Yearbook.
From 1974 to 1983 he was the Dean of the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba, after which he taught and lectured there as a Full Professor, was awarded Dean Emeritus in 1993, and Senior Scholar in 1995. He continued teaching until days before his passing. He impacted mathematics education and influenced thousands of former students, many of whom name him as a mentor.
With the help of his sons, he built a family summer cottage from the ground up at Lake of the Woods. He had broad interests and was never afraid to jump into a new activity, including card games, golfing, rock hounding, astronomy, competitive chess, and coaching his sons’ teams. He also enjoyed his many years of playing bridge with close friends.
He died at Winnipeg on 13 November 2009.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 21 November 2009.
Obituary [Fern MacPherson], Winnipeg Free Press, 16 December 2017.
“Eric Duncan MacPherson,” MacPherson Family Tree, Ancestry.
This page was prepared by Lois Braun.
Page revised: 3 April 2025
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