Fonds 1785 - Lawrence Berk Smith fonds

Identity area

Reference code

UTA 1785

Title

Lawrence Berk Smith fonds

Date(s)

  • 1966-1997 (Creation)

Level of description

Fonds

Extent and medium

1.82 m of textual records (14 boxes)

Context area

Name of creator

(1939-)

Biographical history

Lawrence Berk Smith (1939 - ) was a housing specialist and Professor of Economics at the University of Toronto between 1966 and 1998.

Born in Toronto in 1939, Professor Smith graduated from Forest Hill Collegiate Institute in 1958. He then attended University College, University of Toronto, where he received his Bachelor of Commerce in 1962. Professor Smith went on to study economics at Harvard University. There, he acquired an AM in 1964 and Ph.D in 1966.

While attending Harvard University, Professor Smith was a Teaching Fellow and Instructor in Economics. Upon completing his doctorate in 1966, he joined the faculty of the University of Toronto as an Assistant Professor in Economics. In 1969, he was appointed Associate Professor and in 1972, full Professor. He remained in this position until his retirement in 1998. In addition to teaching at the University of Toronto, Professor Smith was also visiting scholar in the Graduate School of Management at the University of California, Los Angeles, from 1973 to 1974. His research interests are housing and mortgage markets, monetary theory and policy, as well as macro-economic policy.

During his teaching career, Professor Smith held numerous administrative positions in the University of Toronto. These include Member of the Presidential Advisory Committee on Student Housing, 1969-1971, as well as Director of Economics and Associate Chairman of Department of Political Economy, 1975-1979.

In addition to being an academic, Professor Smith has also served as a private consultant to various government and private organizations, most notably the Task Force on the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

Archival history

Immediate source of acquisition or transfer

Content and structure area

Scope and content

This accession consists of the professional records of Lawrence Berk Smith and documents his career as an economist and professor at the University of Toronto. Most of this accession pertains to Professor Smith’s teaching, publishing and consulting activities. Types of records include professional correspondence, subject files, research notes, course outlines, exams, manuscripts, speeches, consultant’s reports, and committee briefs. No personal or family records are contained herein.

The accession is arranged in the following six series:
Series 1: Subject Files
Series 2: Teaching
Series 3: Publications
Series 4: Administration
Series 5: Addresses and Conferences
Series 6: Consulting

Series 1 consists of subject files broadly documenting Lawrence Smith’s teaching, publishing, administrative and consulting activities. Series 2 and Series 3, the largest series in this accession, contain records pertaining to Smith’s teaching and scholarly writings. Series 4 contains records dealing with administrative matters when Professor Smith was Director of Economics and Associate Chairman of Department of Political Economy. Series 5 documents speeches given and conferences attended by Smith in his capacity as an academic and consultant. Finally, Series 6 pertains to Lawrence Smith’s career as an economic consultant for various public and private organizations.

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling

Accruals

System of arrangement

Conditions of access and use area

Conditions governing access

Series 6 (student recommendation files) are restricted. All other records are open.

Conditions governing reproduction

Language of material

    Script of material

      Language and script notes

      Physical characteristics and technical requirements

      Finding aids

      File lists for series 1, 3, and 6 only.

      Uploaded finding aid

      Allied materials area

      Existence and location of originals

      Existence and location of copies

      Related units of description

      For records related to the administration of the Department of Economics, please see the following accessions from the University of Toronto Department of Political Economy: A1965-0065, A1969-0007, A1974-0004, A1976-0025, and A1979-0028.

      Notes area

      Alternative identifier(s)

      Accession

      B1998-0022

      Access points

      Subject access points

      Place access points

      Name access points

      Genre access points

      Description control area

      Description identifier

      Institution identifier

      Rules and/or conventions used

      Dates of creation revision deletion

      -Original finding aid by Loryl MacDonald, Nov 1998
      -Added to AtoM by Karen Suurtamm, May 2016

      Language(s)

        Script(s)

          Sources

          Accession area