The University of Manitoba is honoured to announce that Tyler Grant, a student in 4th year engineering, is the recipient of a Rhodes Scholarship for 2010. This continues the excellent record for University of Manitoba students winning Rhodes Scholarships, bringing the total to 93 students, more than any other university in Western Canada. Grant is also the only Rhodes scholarship recipient from Manitoba this year.

A highly motivated and driven student, Grant has his eyes set on becoming a biomedical researcher and an orthopaedic surgeon. He was moved to learn more about biomedicine after watching his grandfather’s recovery from hip replacement surgery. He finds orthopaedics a “worthy undertaking, particularly in light of the aging population and their expectation for mobility for life.”

A graduate of Springfield Collegiate in Oakbank, Grant was not only good academically but was also athlete of the year six years in a row. He credits his high school physics teacher Kevin Kitching as a source of inspiration who made physics fun but also cared about the world, motivating and encouraging his students.

In the Faculty of Engineering, Grant helps with student activities and works as a teaching assistant. He’s won numerous awards for his undergraduate research, presented papers at international conferences and will be graduating this coming Spring, likely near the top of his class. He also is active on volleyball teams, volunteers with a food bank and is a highly proficient classical guitarist, having performed at the master class level under international instructors.

“I learn through repetition and instruction,” Grant notes. “I have good hands and I seem to be free of performance anxiety.”

He adds: “Those gifts are traits that can help make a great surgeon.”

As for how he has managed to excel in so many fields, Grant explains he is a “big fan of prioritization.” He actually has a large chalkboard in his bedroom on which he writes his tasks each week, ordering them from A through D. His mother is a dedicated special needs educator, while his father is a professor in agribusiness at the University of Manitoba. He has two sisters; one is in business at Queen’s University and the other is at the U of M in Environmental Design.

“Our father taught us how to look for creative solutions to problems,” Grant notes. “His students sometimes call him the ‘Nutty Professor’ because he is a lot of fun to learn from and has a unique way of dealing with problems.”

Grant’s altruism may stem from his family tree. His great-grandfather, Charles Smith Rutherford, was a recipient of the Victoria Cross at the age of 26. He singlehandedly captured two German pillboxes and 80 soldiers in The Great War, without firing a single shot.

“He was actually a pacifist,” Grant says proudly.

Although his career path may seem a bit unusual, Grant explains it this way: “One of the best engineering professors was originally a mechanic. His understanding of how machines worked allowed him to apply his knowledge in research, design and teaching. I want to do the same thing, learning the way in which bones and joints work and then being able to say, ‘I can fix that.’”

Grant says that having had the benefit of an “exceptional learning environment,” he is motivated to “give freely” of his gifts in order to help others, as “gifts come with responsibility.”
For more information, contact Tyler Grant at: 204-781-5657 (cell), or John Danakas, public affairs, University of Manitoba, at: 204-474-8551 or 204-228-9527 (cell).