Dr. Bill Brown, professor of Agricultural Economics, sits at his desk.

Bio/Historical Note: Dr. William J. (Bill) Brown earned a BSc in Agriculture at the University of Manitoba (1973) and an MSc from the University of Alberta (1977). Dr. Brown in Professor Emeritus of Agricultural and Resource Economics (2022).

Dr. William S. (Bill) Bulmer, CEO of Prairie Diagnostic Services, the first provincial veterinary laboratory diagnostic service to be incorporated in Canada.

Bio/Historical Note: Image appeared in 30 Oct. 1998 issue of OCN.

Three men, including Dr. Bill Howell (centre), professor of Animal and Poultry Science, standing in front of posters which depict the pros and cons of dehorning by inheritance.

Head and shoulders photo of Dr. Bill Howell, professor of Department of Animal and Poultry Science.

Bio/Historical Note: Dr. William Edwin (Bill) Howell was born 23 March 1923 in Toronto. Dr. Howell served in the Royal Canadian Navy during World War II, first in the North Atlantic and later in the Mediterranean and Pacific. He earned his DVM from Ontario Agricultural Clinic. After obtaining his PhD at the University of Minnesota in 1952, he joined the Department of Animal Husbandry (later Animal Science), retiring in 1993. Bill Howell died 30 May 2009 in Qualicum Beach, British Columbia.

Head and shoulders image of Dr. Bill Howell, professor of Department of Animal and Poultry Science.

Bio/Historical Note: Dr. William Edwin (Bill) Howell was born 23 March 1923 in Toronto. Dr. Howell served in the Royal Canadian Navy during World War II, first in the North Atlantic and later in the Mediterranean and Pacific. He earned his DVM from Ontario Agricultural Clinic. After obtaining his PhD at the University of Minnesota in 1952, he joined the Department of Animal Husbandry (later Animal Science), retiring in 1993. Bill Howell died 30 May 2009 in Qualicum Beach, British Columbia.

Head and shoulders image of Dr. Bill Howell, professor of Department of Animal and Poultry Science.

Bio/Historical Note: Dr. William Edwin (Bill) Howell was born 23 March 1923 in Toronto. Dr. Howell served in the Royal Canadian Navy during World War II, first in the North Atlantic and later in the Mediterranean and Pacific. He earned his DVM from Ontario Agricultural Clinic. After obtaining his PhD at the University of Minnesota in 1952, he joined the Department of Animal Husbandry (later Animal Science), retiring in 1993. Bill Howell died 30 May 2009 in Qualicum Beach, British Columbia.

Dr. Bill Orban, director, School of Physical Education, reads the 5BX plan he created.

Bio/Historical Note: Dr. William Robert Orban was born in 1922 in Regina, Saskatchewan. His parents were immigrants from Hungary. Dr. Orban played many sports at the Jesuit high school he attended. In 1941 he was offered a hockey scholarship to attend the University of California, Berkeley, where he initially studied engineering. Dr. Orban then attended the School of Physical Education at McGill University and graduated in 1949. He went on to complete a PhD in 1953 at the University of Illinois. Dr. Orban took a position at the Department of National Defence and created a fitness programme for Royal Canadian Air Force pilots, a third of whom were not considered fit to fly. In response to this brief he created the 5BX (5 Basic Exercises) plan for men and the XBX (10 Basic Exercise) plan for women. The plans were innovative in two respects. Firstly, they did not require access to specialized equipment. Many Air Force pilots were located in remote bases in northern Canada, with no access to these facilities, so it was important to offer a means of keeping fit without their use. Secondly, the plans only required 11 minutes (for men) or 12 minutes (for women) per day to be spent on the exercises. While studying the effect of exercise at the University of Illinois in the 1950s, Dr. Orban noticed when testing oxygen intake that long periods of exercise did not necessarily lead to significant improvement. This led him to the conclusion that the intensity of exercise was more important, than the amount of time spent on it. This aspect of the plan drew a negative reaction from others in the field but the 5BX programme proved its worth. 23 million copies of the booklets were sold and translated into 13 languages. The popularity of the programs in many countries around the world helped to launch modern fitness culture. Dr. Orban, as a public servant, received no additional income from the success of the plan.
Dr. Orban was himself a superb athlete, active in many sports of which football and hockey were his favourites. He played professional football with the Regina (now Saskatchewan) Roughriders (1941) and later with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (1945), and was an excellent basketball player and boxer. Dr. Orban was a Junior A hockey player and continued to play hockey right up to age 60 and ran 14 kilometers every day until age 73.
In 1958 Dr. Orban became dean at its new Physical Education program at the University of Saskatchewan. While there he initiated the Saskatchewan Growth Study - a pioneering study of physical development in boys aged 7 to 17. In 1966 Dr. Orban returned to Ottawa to become a professor of the University of Ottawa's Human Kinetics department and became dean of that department in 1968, a position he occupied until 1976. He continued as a professor in Kinanthropology until his retirement in 1987. Dr. Orban died 18 October 2003 in Ottawa.

Dr. Bill Orban, director, School of Physical Education, reads the 5BX plan he created.

Bio/Historical Note: Dr. William Robert Orban was born in 1922 in Regina, Saskatchewan. His parents were immigrants from Hungary. Dr. Orban played many sports at the Jesuit high school he attended. In 1941 he was offered a hockey scholarship to attend the University of California, Berkeley, where he initially studied engineering. Dr. Orban then attended the School of Physical Education at McGill University and graduated in 1949. He went on to complete a PhD in 1953 at the University of Illinois. Dr. Orban took a position at the Department of National Defence and created a fitness programme for Royal Canadian Air Force pilots, a third of whom were not considered fit to fly. In response to this brief he created the 5BX (5 Basic Exercises) plan for men and the XBX (10 Basic Exercise) plan for women. The plans were innovative in two respects. Firstly, they did not require access to specialized equipment. Many Air Force pilots were located in remote bases in northern Canada, with no access to these facilities, so it was important to offer a means of keeping fit without their use. Secondly, the plans only required 11 minutes (for men) or 12 minutes (for women) per day to be spent on the exercises. While studying the effect of exercise at the University of Illinois in the 1950s, Dr. Orban noticed when testing oxygen intake that long periods of exercise did not necessarily lead to significant improvement. This led him to the conclusion that the intensity of exercise was more important, than the amount of time spent on it. This aspect of the plan drew a negative reaction from others in the field but the 5BX programme proved its worth. 23 million copies of the booklets were sold and translated into 13 languages. The popularity of the programs in many countries around the world helped to launch modern fitness culture. Dr. Orban, as a public servant, received no additional income from the success of the plan.
Dr. Orban was himself a superb athlete, active in many sports of which football and hockey were his favourites. He played professional football with the Regina (now Saskatchewan) Roughriders (1941) and later with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (1945), and was an excellent basketball player and boxer. Dr. Orban was a Junior A hockey player and continued to play hockey right up to age 60 and ran 14 kilometers every day until age 73.
In 1958 Dr. Orban became dean at its new Physical Education program at the University of Saskatchewan. While there he initiated the Saskatchewan Growth Study - a pioneering study of physical development in boys aged 7 to 17. In 1966 Dr. Orban returned to Ottawa to become a professor of the University of Ottawa's Human Kinetics department and became dean of that department in 1968, a position he occupied until 1976. He continued as a professor in Kinanthropology until his retirement in 1987. Dr. Orban died 18 October 2003 in Ottawa.

Dr. Bill Orban, director, School of Physical Education, reads the 5BX plan he created.

Bio/Historical Note: Dr. William Robert Orban was born in 1922 in Regina, Saskatchewan. His parents were immigrants from Hungary. Dr. Orban played many sports at the Jesuit high school he attended. In 1941 he was offered a hockey scholarship to attend the University of California, Berkeley, where he initially studied engineering. Dr. Orban then attended the School of Physical Education at McGill University and graduated in 1949. He went on to complete a PhD in 1953 at the University of Illinois. Dr. Orban took a position at the Department of National Defence and created a fitness programme for Royal Canadian Air Force pilots, a third of whom were not considered fit to fly. In response to this brief he created the 5BX (5 Basic Exercises) plan for men and the XBX (10 Basic Exercise) plan for women. The plans were innovative in two respects. Firstly, they did not require access to specialized equipment. Many Air Force pilots were located in remote bases in northern Canada, with no access to these facilities, so it was important to offer a means of keeping fit without their use. Secondly, the plans only required 11 minutes (for men) or 12 minutes (for women) per day to be spent on the exercises. While studying the effect of exercise at the University of Illinois in the 1950s, Dr. Orban noticed when testing oxygen intake that long periods of exercise did not necessarily lead to significant improvement. This led him to the conclusion that the intensity of exercise was more important, than the amount of time spent on it. This aspect of the plan drew a negative reaction from others in the field but the 5BX programme proved its worth. 23 million copies of the booklets were sold and translated into 13 languages. The popularity of the programs in many countries around the world helped to launch modern fitness culture. Dr. Orban, as a public servant, received no additional income from the success of the plan.
Dr. Orban was himself a superb athlete, active in many sports of which football and hockey were his favourites. He played professional football with the Regina (now Saskatchewan) Roughriders (1941) and later with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (1945), and was an excellent basketball player and boxer. Dr. Orban was a Junior A hockey player and continued to play hockey right up to age 60 and ran 14 kilometers every day until age 73.
In 1958 Dr. Orban became dean at its new Physical Education program at the University of Saskatchewan. While there he initiated the Saskatchewan Growth Study - a pioneering study of physical development in boys aged 7 to 17. In 1966 Dr. Orban returned to Ottawa to become a professor of the University of Ottawa's Human Kinetics department and became dean of that department in 1968, a position he occupied until 1976. He continued as a professor in Kinanthropology until his retirement in 1987. Dr. Orban died 18 October 2003 in Ottawa.

Head and shoulders of William W.E. (Bil)l Slights, Department of English.

Bio/Historical Note: Image appeared in 4 May 2001 issue of OCN.

Bio/Historical Note: Dr. Bill Slights earned three degrees: a BA (Amherst College, Massachusetts), an MA (Cornell, New York state), and a PhD (Illinois). He is Professor Emeritus of the Department of English (2021).

Head and shoulders image of Dr. Bill Waiser, Department of History; outdoor image.

Bio/Historical Note: William Andrew Waiser (b. 1953) earned a BA in History (Hons) from Trent University in 1975 and an MA in History from the University of Saskatchewan in 1976. He was awarded a Queen's Fellowship from The Canada Council in 1975-1976. He earned a PhD (History) from the U of S in 1983. Dr. Waiser was also awarded a Doctoral Fellowship, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada from 1979-1981. Dr. Waiser joined the Department of History at the U of S in 1984 and served as department head from 1995 to 1998. He was Yukon Historian for the Canadian Parks Service prior to his university appointment. He was named the university's Distinguished Researcher in 2004 and received the College of Arts and Science Teaching Excellence Award in 2003. Dr. Waiser was awarded the Saskatchewan Order of Merit, the province's highest honour, in 2006, and elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada the following year. He was awarded an honourary Doctor of Literature (D.Litt) from the U of S in 2010. Dr. Waiser retired from the university in 2014. He was named a Member of the Order of Canada on 30 June 2017. He is the 2018 recipient of the Royal Society of Canada J.B. Tyrrell medal, presented for “outstanding work” in Canadian history, as well as the 2018 Governor General’s History Award for Popular Media: The Pierre Berton Award. Dr. Waiser has published several books, including Park Prisoners: The Untold Story of Western Canada's National Parks and (with Blair Stonechild) Loyal till Death: Indians and the North-West Rebellion, which was a finalist for the 1997 Governor General's Literary Awards for non-fiction. Dr. Waiser's book All Hell Can't Stop Us: The On-to-Ottawa Trek and Regina Riot won the 2003 Saskatchewan Book Award for non-fiction. His award-winning centennial history of the province, Saskatchewan: A New History, was published in 2005. In 2020 he was honoured with a lifetime achievement award for Prairie history by the Canadian Historical Association (CHA). Dr. Waiser is Distinguished Professor Emeritus of History (2023), and is a full-time writer and speaker.

Head and shoulders image of Dr. Bin Yan, Technology Transfer Manager; taken outdoors.

Bio/Historical Note: Dr. Bin Yan earned her PhD in molecular biology from the University of Florida and her JD from the University of Saskatchewan.

Bio/Historical Note: Image appeared in 4 Sept. 1998 issue of OCN.

Head and shoulders image of Dr. Blaine Holmlund, Professor Emeritus of Planning and Development. Outdoor image possibly taken near time of presentation of an honourary Doctor of Laws degree by the University of Saskatchewan.

Bio/Historical Note: Image appeared in 16 Oct. 1998 issue of OCN.

Head and shoulders image of Dr. Blaine Holmlund, lecturer, Department of Electrical Engineering.

Bio/Historical Note: Dr. Blaine Adrian Holmlund was born at his family’s home (Section 11, Township 27, Range 7, west of the 3rd meridian), roughly 9 miles west of Strongfield, Saskatchewan, on 27 July 1930. His career began at age 12, as a hired farm labourer. He worked variously at the general store and as a mechanic at the local garage prior to joining the CPR as a relief station agent and telegraph operator (December 1948-May 1955). One of his supervisors at the CPR strongly urged Blaine to consider University – not an option considered before by Blaine or one expected by his family. Dr. Holmlund entered engineering at the University of Saskatchewan and put himself through, earning his BE in 1955 and his MSc in 1961. Following graduation in 1955, Blaine worked as a development engineer for Shell; for Atomic Energy of Canada at Chalk River, Ontario; and as a communications engineer for Sask Power. He was briefly also a lecturer in electrical engineering at the University; and in 1958 returned, joining the faculty of the University of Saskatchewan where he remained for the rest of his career. From 1958-1992 Dr. Holmlund served the University in a variety of capacities: as a professor of electrical engineering; of biomedical engineering; of computational science; of finance and quantitative methods. He established, and served as first director of: the Biomedical Engineering Program; the Computational Science Department; the Hospital Systems Study Group; and the University Studies Group. Dr. Holmlund was named VP (Special Projects) in 1980 and VP (Planning and Development) in 1985. Blaine served as Acting University President in 1989. He served on the Board of the Saskatchewan Indian Federated College from 1982-1993, and from November 1990-June 1991 was on secondment from the University to serve as Acting President of the Saskatchewan Indian Federated College (now First Nations University of Canada). Dr. Holmlund was awarded an honorary doctorate by the U of S in 1998. Following his retirement he volunteered for Saskatoon Habitat for Humanity, helping to initiate partnerships with employment programs and to establish the Re-Store. Blaine Holmlund died 17 June 2006 in Saskatoon.

Head and shoulders image of Dr. Blaine Holmlund, associate rofessor, Biomedical Engineering and Computational Science; and director, Hospital Systems Study Group.

Bio/Historical Note: Dr. Blaine Adrian Holmlund was born at his family’s home (Section 11, Township 27, Range 7, west of the 3rd meridian), roughly 9 miles west of Strongfield, Saskatchewan, on 27 July 1930. His career began at age 12, as a hired farm labourer. He worked variously at the general store and as a mechanic at the local garage prior to joining the CPR as a relief station agent and telegraph operator (December 1948-May 1955). One of his supervisors at the CPR strongly urged Blaine to consider University – not an option considered before by Blaine or one expected by his family. Dr. Holmlund entered engineering at the University of Saskatchewan and put himself through, earning his BE in 1955 and his MSc in 1961. Following graduation in 1955, Blaine worked as a development engineer for Shell; for Atomic Energy of Canada at Chalk River, Ontario; and as a communications engineer for Sask Power. He was briefly also a lecturer in electrical engineering at the University; and in 1958 returned, joining the faculty of the University of Saskatchewan where he remained for the rest of his career. From 1958-1992 Dr. Holmlund served the University in a variety of capacities: as a professor of electrical engineering; of biomedical engineering; of computational science; of finance and quantitative methods. He established, and served as first director of: the Biomedical Engineering Program; the Computational Science Department; the Hospital Systems Study Group; and the University Studies Group. Dr. Holmlund was named VP (Special Projects) in 1980 and VP (Planning and Development) in 1985. Blaine served as Acting University President in 1989. He served on the Board of the Saskatchewan Indian Federated College from 1982-1993, and from November 1990-June 1991 was on secondment from the University to serve as Acting President of the Saskatchewan Indian Federated College (now First Nations University of Canada). Dr. Holmlund was awarded an honorary doctorate by the U of S in 1998. Following his retirement he volunteered for Saskatoon Habitat for Humanity, helping to initiate partnerships with employment programs and to establish the Re-Store. Blaine Holmlund died 17 June 2006 in Saskatoon.