Dr. Diana Austin passed away on August 19, 2024, from ovarian cancer. Diana will be missed by all who knew her.
Originally from Newcastle Creek, near Minto, Diana obtained degrees from UNB (BA’73), Queen’s University (MA’74) and Oxford University (DPhil’83). She began working in the English department on UNB’s Fredericton campus in 1983.
The focus of Dr. Austin’s research was twentieth- and twenty-first-century British poetry and fiction, with a particular interest in areas such as World War I, women’s writing, and contemporary fiction. She published and presented papers in Canada, the United States, and England on a range of topics in her field and is a contributor to the twentieth-century British section of the Yale Feminist Companion to Literature as well as a reader for various journals on submissions in her areas of interest.
Throughout her career at UNB, she was an exemplary educator, earning several accolades for her teaching prowess. Her award collection includes the Arts Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching, the Allan P. Stuart Award and recognition as a University Teaching Scholar. She also received the Association of Atlantic Universities’ Distinguished Teaching Award and a 3M National Teaching Fellowship—the most prestigious teaching award in Canada. She retired in 2016 after 33 years of service and was appointed professor emerita in 2017.
Known for being equitable, diligent, dynamic and demanding, Diana drew numerous generations of students to her classes. The high regard students held for Diana’s pedagogical skills was highlighted when Maclean’s Magazine featured her. Her teaching spectrum covered extensive ground, from large introductory courses to specialized honours and graduate seminars.
Diana guided 10 graduate thesis projects, the last of which was awarded the Governor General's Gold Medal at the same convocation that awarded her the status of professor emerita. Another highlight was the “Antiques Rhodes Show” she co-organized with Ed Biden from the faculty of engineering, which helped UNB students secure six Rhodes Scholarships over approximately nine years. But Diana worked equally hard to help other students progress from Ds to Cs and maybe Bs. An award for improved students is being established in her name. Dr. Austin also played a pivotal role in shaping future educators by initiating the English department’s teaching apprenticeship program for PhD candidates—a model later adopted by other departments.
In addition to her educational contributions, Diana actively advocated for increased accessibility at UNB. In the 1990s, during her tenure as Associate Dean of Arts—when she was the first woman to hold this position—she championed initiatives to enhance wheelchair access and support students with visual impairments on campus. Her later advocacy efforts eventually led to Carleton Hall being equipped with an elevator, making it accessible to everyone.
Diana’s legacy is a testament to her unwavering dedication to education and advocacy, even in the face of a terminal ovarian cancer diagnosis she received in June 2023. As a teacher who believed knowledge is power, Diana immersed herself in research about this silent killer. She tirelessly worked to spread awareness about groundbreaking Canadian research from the University of British Columbia which offers hope that other women may be able to protect themselves from the disease that ultimately took Diana’s life. Her advocacy efforts have inspired many to join the fight against ovarian cancer.
Read Diana’s words, honour her life and continue her mission.
