Ryerson signs come down as the Toronto Metropolitan University era begins

It's the end of an era for a local educational institution, as the university formerly known as Ryerson sheds all visible signs of its controversial old name.

Roughly six months after the academic institution unveiled its new name of Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), signs of the cancelled branding are still in the process of being removed, including the recent literal teardown of the old Rye High signage spotted along Gould Street.

On Thursday afternoon, a photo was shared on social media showing a stack of letters resting at the base of the newly renamed TMU Library Building next to a scissor lift.

RU… outta here! pic.twitter.com/5S0Jcj5SGq

— Sean Marshall (@Sean_YYZ) October 13, 2022

Previously mounted to the western roofline of the library tower, the now-removed letters that spelled out the institution's former name are a physical representation of the much-discussed update to the university's identity.

TMU announced that it would change its name from Ryerson University in the wake of grisly discoveries on former residential school sites in 2021.

The university's former namesake, Egerton Ryerson, was an architect and proponent of the residential school system that stole Indigenous children away from their families for forced, government-sanctioned indoctrination.

In light of these recent revelations, the university announced that it would cut all ties with the Ryerson name in Aug. 2021, revealing its current name in April 2022.

Most recently, TMU revealed its new and extremely Ukrainian-looking logo as the rebrand accelerates into fruition.