UC Registrar Ryan Woolfrey awarded 2025 Jill Matus Award for Excellence in Student Services
Ryan Woolfrey, University College registrar, has been named a 2025 Jill Matus Award for Excellence in Student Services recipient alongside Kimberly Elias-Cartwright, a graduate of UC's Canadian Studies minor and current Student Life Administration & Operations staff.
Established in recognition of Professor Jill Matus’s exemplary service to the University of Toronto, the award is bestowed upon staff members who demonstrate excellence in student services and whose contributions go above and beyond the expectations of their job.
“Ryan is exceptionally deserving of this recognition. He not only meets the needs of students—he anticipates them, creating programs and services that set a new standard for excellence in student support,” writes Melinda Scott, former UC Dean of Students and current Vice-Provost, Student Affairs of the University of Guelph.
During Mr. Woolfrey’s time at the college he has overseen the advisory of tens of thousands of University College students through personal adversity, major college building renovations and a global pandemic.
"Ryan’s goal was to ensure that all UC students have the advising support they need, no matter the constraints they might face,” says faculty member and former UC principal Donald Ainsle, “this was especially important during the disruption of the Revitalization project and served the college well during the far greater disruptions of the pandemic."
When COVID-19 became widespread, Mr. Woolfrey deftly transitioned the registrar’s office online and went above and beyond to ensure academic advising services were available to students during this crucial time. To capitalize on the merits of the transition, UC’s Academic Advising and Registrar’s Office (AARO) retained a hybrid work model to increase flexibility for staff and offer greater service access for students. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Woolfrey oversaw a team reorganization to accommodate the addition of seven new advising positions — which he advocated for and managed across two separate office spaces.
“Ryan has been approachable, thoughtful, calm, diplomatic, empathetic, resourceful and an excellent listener,” attests faculty member and UC vice-principal Emily Gilbert, “in all this time, he has worked tirelessly to support students at UC, especially those students who face daunting challenges while at university.”
A consistent advocate of equity, diversity, and inclusion, Mr. Woolfrey and his office have established ten financial awards with the Office of Advancement in support of Black, Indigenous and international students. He has also made great strides to address UC’s response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s calls to action.
In 2023, Mr. Woolfrey initiated a joint professional development day with First Nations House to ensure the AARO could confidently advise and refer students who may benefit from the supports available through First Nations House and other Indigenous student services, which has resulted in more comprehensive and coordinated service delivery. Mr. Woolfrey and his staff have also continued to proactively reach out to self-identified Indigenous students and invited them in to discuss the academic and financial supports available during key times of need, in some cases creating these supports if none previously existed.
Paired with proactively working alongside Faculty of Arts & Science recruiters to help articulate how UC can best support prospective Indigenous students, the combination of all these initiatives has resulted in a small year-over-year increase in the number of Indigenous applicants who have enrolled at the college. These efforts have ensured that all members of the college, founded on the principles of openness and diversity, benefit from one of the most enriching student cohorts in its history while simultaneously reconciling that history for the better.
UC Vice-Principal Emily Gilbert“That is the kind of person Ryan is. He makes you aspire to be better at what you do and to be a better person while you are doing it.”
“That is the kind of person Ryan is,” says Emily Gilbert, “he makes you aspire to be better at what you do and to be a better person while you are doing it.”
As the awards committee has acknowledged, “Mr. Woolfrey embodies the qualities championed by the Jill Matus Award — ‘going beyond’. In so doing, he has made a lasting and positive impact not only on the quality of student services at the university, but also on the legacy of support and collegiality he bequeaths to the world through the students who have been shepherded through his care.”
On behalf of University College and the wider university, we extend our heartfelt congratulations for this well-deserved recognition!