Dr. John W. Chalmers, after a career as a teacher, principal and administrator with the Alberta Department of Education, joined the staff of the Faculty of Education in 1969 as an associate professor of Educational Foundations. He also acted as the director of an intercultural program aimed at training teachers planning to work in northern native communities. He retired as a professor emeritus in 1975. He has been a prolific author of textbooks, poetry and local histories, including a biography of educator Milton Ezra LaZerte.