Philip H. White was the dean of the UBC Faculty of Commerce, now the UBC Sauder School of Business, from 1966 until 1973. He passed away peacefully on February 25, 2017, at the Kiwanis pavilion in Victoria, BC, at the age of 92.

Born on August 28, 1924 in Belper, Derbyshire, England, Philip was the elder son of Edgar and Kathleen White (Woodhouse). He obtained his BSc and MSc degrees at the University of London, where he also lectured in the College of Estate Management. In 1958 he, with his wife and daughter, immigrated to Vancouver, BC.

Philip began his career at UBC as professor in the Faculty of Commerce and Business Administration. He was appointed dean in 1966, a position he held until 1973. Philip was the last dean who personally signed the degree certificates for all the BComm & MBA students—a task he accomplished in the boardroom of the Henry Angus building. He moved around the table signing degrees while his secretary removed the signed ones and replaced them with blank ones; no rubber-stamped degrees for his students. More than one student received a much-appreciated second chance from Dean White’s willingness to re-admit them to the faculty. One former student commented that he owed his success in life to that opportunity. Another related that the most useful advice he received from Dean White was that, although knowing the answer was useful, it was more important to know which question to ask.

Philip was a keen sailor. He served with the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve in WWII on motor torpedo boats. Once in Vancouver, he owned several sail boats, the last being a Haida 26, named Kana-O, in which he and his family sailed around English Bay and the Gulf Islands. When he and Nancy retired to Victoria in 1988, they went boating in their Grand Mariner and frequently moored at their property on North Pender Island. Philip was often heard to say that immigrating to Canada was the best decision he ever made.

He is survived by Nancy, his wife of 71 years, his daughter, Angela (Art), son Pip (Ruth), and his grandchildren Alexandra Monahan, Jeremy and James White; also by his brother Frank (Jennifer), niece Annabel Foster (Hugo) and nephew Mathew.

In Philip’s memory, please consider a donation to the P. White Chair in Urban Land Economics Endowment—which was established by Philip in the Faculty of Commerce and Business Administration, now known as the UBC Sauder School of Business, and is dedicated to research in urban land economics.

Your gift will pay tribute Philip’s life and career, by helping to fund scholarships, support research activities, and provide support to visiting professors.