Frederic Henry Sexton

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(June 9, 1879 – January 12, 1955) was a Canadian engineer and higher education administrator. On April 25, 1907, Sexton was appointed the first Principal of the

Nova Scotia Technical College The Technical University of Nova Scotia (TUNS) was a Canadian university located in Halifax, Nova Scotia. TUNS was officially founded as the Nova Scotia Technical College on 25 April 1907, and was renamed as the Technical University of Nova Sco ...

(NSTC) and held the dual posting as the provincial government's Director of Technical Education, in which he oversaw the development of a network of vocational schools to provide technical training across the province. In this capacity, he gave an address on January 11, 1909 to the

Canadian Club of Toronto Canadian Club Toronto, formerly known as The Canadian Club of Toronto, is a non-profit speakers' forum in Toronto, Ontario. It meets several times a month to hear speeches given by invited guests from diverse fields, including politics, law, busi ...

entitled "The Need of a National System of Technical Education". In 1925, Sexton saw the position of Principal changed to President and he retained this position until his retirement in 1947, following a 40-year career administering NSTC. Upon Sexton's retirement, the administration of the province's technical education program was removed from the President's duties under changes to the ''Technical College Act''. Throughout his tenure as Principal and President at NSTC, Sexton was heavily involved in numerous organizations in the City of Halifax, including the Education Committee of the Halifax

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...

's Red Triangle Hut, the Maritime Board of the

Canadian National Institute for the Blind The CNIB Foundation () is a Canadian charitable organization and volunteer agency dedicated to assisting Canadians who are blind or living with vision loss, and to provide information about vision health for all Canadians. Founded in 1918 as th ...

, the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy; the Central Advisory Committee of the Carnegie Corporation; the Biological Board of Canada; the Canadian Education Association; the Rotary Club of Canada; the Commission on Highway Dust Prevention; the

Halifax Conservatory of Music The Halifax Conservatory of Music (HCM) was a Canadian music conservatory in Halifax, Nova Scotia that offered courses in higher education in music during the late 19th century and first half of the 20th century. In 1954 the HCM merged with the M ...

, and on the Board of Governors of the Nova Scotia Museum of Science from 1948-52. From 1924-27, he served as President of the

Victoria School of Art and Design NSCAD University, also known as the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (NSCAD), is a public art university in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The university is a co-educational institution that offers bachelor's and master's degrees. The unive ...

, during which it was renamed to the Nova Scotia College of Art in 1925. Upon Sexton's retirement in 1947, NSTC alumni raised funds to purchase a new

Plymouth automobile Plymouth was a brand of automobiles produced by Chrysler Corporation and its successor DaimlerChrysler. The brand was launched in 1928 to compete in what was then described as the "low-priced" market segment that was dominated by Chevrolet and ...

, which was presented by Premier

Angus L. Macdonald Angus Lewis Macdonald (August 10, 1890 – April 13, 1954), popularly known as 'Angus L.', was a Canadian lawyer, law professor and Politics of Canada, politician from Nova Scotia. He served as the Nova Scotia Liberal Party, Liberal premier o ...

. At the spring convocation, Sexton received an Honorary Doctorate from the Nova Scotia Technical College.Profile
alumni.dal.ca. Accessed 19 March 2024.

May Best Sexton

Sexton's first wife, Edna May Williston Best (June 25, 1880 – December 14, 1923), graduated from the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

in 1902 and was a researcher for

General Electric Co. General Electric Company (GE) was an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the years, the company had multiple divisions, including aerospace, energy, ...

In 1908, she lobbied to establish a Technical Institute for Women, reflecting her commitment to industrial training and gender equality. She was an officer in the

Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire The Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire (IODE) is a women's charitable organization based in Canada. It provides scholarships, bursaries, book prizes, and awards, and pursues other philanthropic and educational projects in various communities ac ...

, the

Canadian Red Cross Society The Canadian Red Cross Society ()Local Council of Women of Halifax The Local Council of Women of Halifax (LCWH) is an organization in Halifax, Nova Scotia devoted to improving the lives of women and children. One of the most significant achievements of the LCWH was its 24-year struggle for women's right to vote ...

. She was a well-known

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

who worked for women to become eligible for technical education and is honoured each year with the "May Best Sexton Memorial Scholarship for Women in Engineering" to demonstrate her value on high academic achievement and community involvement.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sexton, Frederick Henry Canadian Officers of the Order of the British Empire Canadian engineers 1879 births 1955 deaths