Frank Cyril James (October 8, 1903 – May 3, 1973) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

academic and principal of

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

from 1939 to 1962.

Biography

Born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, he won a Sir Ernest Cassel Travelling Scholarship that allowed him to study at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

in 1922, where he received his Ph.D. In 1927, he became assistant professor in the

Wharton School of Business The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania ( ; also known as Wharton Business School, the Wharton School, Penn Wharton, and Wharton) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in ...

. In 1938 he had published the two-volume ''The Growth of Chicago Banks'' ( Harper & Bros.), a masterful history of banking in America's second most important banking center. In 1939, he became the head of the commerce department at McGill University. After becoming friends with the Chancellor, Sir Edward Beatty, he was appointed principal and vice-chancellor in January 1940 and served until 1962. From 1941 he was on the original standing committee of the

Foundation for the Study of Cycles The Foundation for the Study of Cycles (FSC) is an international nonprofit organization that fosters, promotes, and conducts scientific research in respect to rhythmic and periodic fluctuations in any branch of science. It was incorporated on Janu ...

. In 1941 he was appointed to head the Dominion Government's Advisory Committee on Reconstruction, serving until the fall of 1943 when the Committee was terminated. In 1947, he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws from the

University of Saskatchewan A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

. He died in England in 1973.

Biography

Further reading