Hosted by the Office of the Provost and Vice-President (Academic), the event honoured recipients of teaching awards, community engagement awards, Merit Awards, and those granted Tenure.

Dr. Michael Benarroch, President and Vice-Chancellor, and Dr. Diane Hiebert-Murphy, Provost and Vice-President (Academic), presented each award and expressed their gratitude to faculty members for their dedication, innovation, and meaningful contributions to the university.

Together, these faculty members are leading the change envisioned in our strategic plan – advancing knowledge, empowering learners, and strengthening connections with communities within and beyond the UM community.

Congratulations to all the honourees:

Olive Beatrice Stanton Award for Excellence in Teaching (2024)

• Sarah Cooper (Faculty of Architecture)

University of Manitoba Graduate Students’ Association (UMGSA) Teaching Award (2024)

• Nandika Bandara (Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences)

Dr. and Mrs. Ralph Campbell Outreach Award (2024)

• Deborah McPhail (Max Rady College of Medicine, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)

Community Engagement Fund Award (2024)

• Jacquie Dawson (Desautels Faculty of Music)
• Katrina Dunn (Faculty of Arts)
• Blair Fornwald (School of Art)
• David Herbert (Faculty of Science)
• Richard Milgrom (Faculty of Architecture)
• Victoria Sparks (Desautels Faculty of Music)
• Qiuyan Yuan (Price Faculty of Engineering)

Merit Award (2023)

Each year, Merit Awards are awarded to faculty members for their outstanding achievements in teaching, research, scholarly work and creative activities, and service in three different categories. View the 2023 recipient list here.

Tenure (2025)

• Karen Alley (Clayton H. Riddell Faculty of Environment, Earth, and Resources)
• Mandy Archibald (College of Nursing, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Ahmed Ashraf (Price Faculty of Engineering)
• Shawn Bailey (Faculty of Architecture)
• Matthew Bakker (Faculty of Science)
• Katherine Boyer (School of Art)
• Kirstin Brink (Clayton H. Riddell Faculty of Environment, Earth, and Resources)
• Jacob Burgess (Faculty of Science)
• Sean Carleton (Faculty of Arts)
• Jeremy Chopek (Max Rady College of Medicine, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Sarah Cooper (Faculty of Architecture)
• Bruno De Oliveira Jayme (Faculty of Education)
• Lucy Delgado (Faculty of Education)
• Elsie Duff (College of Nursing, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Katrina Dunn (Faculty of Arts)
• Paul Durkin (Clayton H. Riddell Faculty of Environment, Earth, and Resources
• Sherif Eltonsy (College of Pharmacy, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Amy Farrell (Faculty of Education)
• Moni Fricke (College of Rehabilitation Science, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Lauren Goegan (Faculty of Education)
• Gayle Halas (Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Sreemali Herath (Faculty of Education)
• Junyon Im (I. H. Asper School of Business)
• Meaghan Jones (Max Rady College of Medicine, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Muhammad Kabir (I. H. Asper School of Business)
• Aaron Kim (Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences
• Karl Kohut (Desautels Faculty of Music)
• Kaarina Kowalec (College of Pharmacy, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Susan Logue (Max Rady College of Medicine, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Shannon Moore (Faculty of Education)
• Vimi Mutalik (Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Shaylene Nancekivell (Faculty of Arts)
• Chris Pascoe (Max Rady College of Medicine, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Kiran Pedada (I. H. Asper School of Business)
• Beryl Peters (Faculty of Education)
• Julie Pfeffer (Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Dake Qi (College of Pharmacy, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Fabio Ragnelli (Faculty of Music)
• Diana Sanchez-Ramirez (College of Rehabilitation Science, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Jill Stobart (College of Pharmacy, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Patricia Thille (College of Rehabilitation Science, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Brandon Trask (Faculty of Law)
• Dana Turcotte (College of Pharmacy, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences)
• Miguel Uyaguari (Faculty of Science)
• Shaowei Wang (Faculty of Science)
• Jennifer Watt (Faculty of Education)
• Ratchel Zeng (I. H. Asper School of Business)

The year associated with each award differs due to the timeframe of program. Learn more about the awards on the Faculty Awards webpage.

We started the week with our St John’s College Student Council at the Welcome Day event, where we met thousands of first-year students as they began their University of Manitoba journey.   

In talking with students, both new and returning college members, you can feel the excitement as they return to campus and into hands-on learning again with their friends.   

We spoke with our student council, SJCSA, about the week, here’s what they had to say:   

“Seeing the smiles on people’s faces and feeling the buzz around campus, it’s great to be on campus and connecting with new college members. We can’t wait for what’s ahead this year!” 

If you aren’t a member or looking for a small community within the broad UM campus, sign up here so you can enjoy our events like Jumpstart last week!   

Speaking of Jumpstart, SJCSA continued to kick off the school year with a record-breaking numbers of students attending since before the pandemic. You can read more about what Jumpstart is here.   

With various students attending from all faculties, including Nursing, Science, Asper School of Business, Agriculture, Engineering, and Arts, it was a blast seeing students of all programs connect in one space again over food, games, prizes, and conversation.  

We can’t wait to see what’s in store for the rest of the year!   

View our membership benefits on our website, found here.   

Remember to become a member today!   

The futuristic kitchen – featuring height-adjustable counters and appliances that can be controlled with a mobile app – can be used to assess ergonomics.

The goal is to support aging in place and safe independent living.

For more innovations in health, read the full story in Teaching Life Magazine

For the month of July, we are exploring the theme of innovation and disruption. 
You can find more stories around these ideas in the “In Focus” section starting July 10, 2023.

The cover story highlights recent initiatives to support Indigenous inclusion, equity and advancement across the Rady Faculty. These include partnerships with Indigenous communities, efforts to increase the enrolment of Indigenous learners in Rady programs, and recognition of Indigenous achievement in research, education, health services and student leadership.     

The twice-yearly magazine, published in print and online, covers the latest news and student, faculty and alumni accomplishments from the five colleges of the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences: the Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry, Max Rady College of Medicine, College of Nursing, College of Pharmacy and College of Rehabilitation Sciences.

Rady researchers profiled in the Winter 2022 issue include Canada Research Chair Dr. Kristine Cowley, a neurophysiologist who studies exercise capacity in people with spinal cord injury; Dr. Christine Leong, an associate professor of pharmacy who uses health databases to reveal patterns in prescriptions; and Dr. Em Pijl, an assistant professor of nursing whose research focuses on harm reduction for people experiencing problematic substance use. 

Rady alumni showcased in this issue include Winnipeg dentist Dr. Carla Cohn, whose practice is devoted to children’s treatment under general anesthetic; pathology professor Dr. Yvonne Myal, whose lab investigates proteins involved in breast cancer; and Elizabeth Stoesz, a rehabilitation counsellor whose occupational therapy degree prepared her well for working with youth clients.

Other features include a Q and A with Dr. Peter Nickerson, the new dean of the Rady Faculty; a look at a pilot study of non-invasive brain stimulation paired with cognitive behavioural therapy; and a report on the new “smart suite” at Health Sciences Centre, a model apartment equipped with assistive living technologies, developed by the College of Rehabilitation Sciences.

Explore the Awards and Honours earned by faculty members and stay current on recent happenings in the Rady Faculty by checking out the Notable News section.

Read the latest issue of RadyUM now.

As 2022 draws to a close, I want to wish everyone in the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences community, and your loved ones, a healthy and restful holiday season.

It’s been quite a year! A year of incredible challenges as the COVID-19 pandemic has worn on, as we’ve transitioned back to in-person activities on campus.

Thank you all for your dedication to your health profession and to University of Manitoba learners and trainees. Many of you have spent countless hours on the frontlines of our health system and your commitment to treating and caring for patients and clients throughout the pandemic has been extraordinary.

Your efforts are appreciated and acknowledged.

Across the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, we continue to make a positive impact on our province’s health-care delivery and health human resources through education, research, clinical service and community engagement.

As health-care practitioners, we are in an incredibly privileged position and have wonderful opportunities to serve as leaders in our community.

I’m always inspired by the generosity of our students, faculty and staff and the efforts they make to reach out to those less fortunate in our community – especially at this time of year.

Thank you again for all your contributions to the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences and have a safe holiday season and happy new year!

“On behalf of the province of Manitoba, I wish to extend my congratulations to the award recipients as they begin their careers,” said Economic Development and Jobs Minister Jon Reyes. “The Manitoba government is pleased to support Research Manitoba to ensure our province continues to be a leader in conducting high-quality, innovative research that benefits people in Manitoba and beyond.”

Research Manitoba invested $993,905 and partners provided an additional $373,100 for the Trainee Awards. Partners include: CancerCare Manitoba, the Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba, the George & Fay Yee Centre for Healthcare Innovation at UM, Health Sciences Centre Foundation, Lung Association – Manitoba, UM Regenerative Medicine Program – WM Ross Scholarship.

“I’d like to congratulate all of the recipients on their world-class research projects and thank our partners, including the Province of Manitoba, for their commitment to innovation and research excellence.” said Karen Dunlop, CEO, Research Manitoba. “Supporting local talent, contributing to the economy, and creating a heathy future for Manitobans are just a few of the positive impacts of the research being funded through our programs and partnerships.”

The recipients of the 2021 Grants and Awards Competition are highly qualified new investigators and trainees in Manitoba. These awards enable recipients to prepare and train for their careers as independent researchers in industry or within the provincial research enterprise, establish independent research programs and achieve the skills necessary to compete on a national level.

“I congratulate all the awardees in this competition and thank our partners and the Province of Manitoba for this important support to the research ecosystem at UM,” said Dr. Digvir Jayas, Vice-President (Research and International) and Distinguished Professor at UM.

The complete list of recipients can be found on the Research Manitoba website.

Research Manitoba promotes, supports, and coordinates the funding of research excellence and innovation in health, natural and social sciences, engineering and the humanities in Manitoba. 

Originally from Birtle, Man., a small town near the Saskatchewan border, Parsons became interested in how the body functions as she played volleyball and other sports in high school. While working toward a science degree in Brandon, she started volunteering in the university’s athletic therapy clinic, which led her to pursue a physical therapy degree.

After earning U of M degrees in physiotherapy, kinesiology and applied health sciences, Parsons joined the College of Rehabilitation Sciences in 2014 as an assistant professor of physical therapy. She also leads the U of M’s Sports Injury Prevention Lab.

Parsons’ research is mostly focused on the use of strength and resistance training to prevent injury in young athletes. But she has recently been drawn to the use of this training for youth who aren’t athletes.

“Kids need to develop strength and power, not just to be good athletes who perform well, but to prevent injury and maintain health and function,” she says. “We know that as adults we are more inactive, so if we don’t build up a good reserve of muscle early on, we’re going to end up in trouble later in life.”

Parsons’ interest in strength training for youth was facilitated by a relationship she built with Grant Park High School, which has a forward-thinking vision about training and exercise. There she worked with Kayla Duna, a kinesiologist who provided physical activity and resistance training programs to the entire school community.

“She told me about the school’s philosophy and ideas around having a school kinesiologist in the weight room, and what kind of potential that can have for students,” Parsons says. “It’s not a role a lot of schools have.”

Parsons notes there is a myth born out of 1980s research that strength-building activities could lead to injury or stunted growth in youth. But that kind of thinking is out-of-date, she says, noting that recent studies show a link between low baseline strength in adolescence and an increased risk of dying early.

Strength and conditioning activities are too often thought of as a testosterone-fueled activity, she says. It’s an attitude she’d like to see change to something more inclusive.

“It’s really about making it accessible to everybody – to girls, to people who are not hyper-masculine. It’s a key ingredient to being healthy and functional at all ages,” she says.

One of Parsons’ studies was a randomized controlled trial that compared two groups of female athletes, ages 10 to 14. She found that strength training of the legs did not improve the athletes’ safe jump landing abilities any more than strength training of the arms. “This suggests trunk stability and strength may be more of factor, which has implications for the design of conditioning programs, if injury prevention is a goal,” she says.

Parsons is currently studying leg asymmetry in university athletes, with funding from the National Strength and Conditioning Association Foundation. The participants in the current pilot are U of M Bison track athletes. Bison athletes from football, soccer, volleyball, basketball and hockey will follow in the full study.

Using a device called a linear position transducer, she and her research assistant assess the athletes’ strength and power characteristics as they perform jumps under loaded and unloaded conditions, with the right and left legs alternately tested.

“These are athletes who are healthy and competing at their best, but we know that strength and power asymmetries can still be present in these athletes, which can increase risk of injury and negatively affect performance,” she says. “We’re looking to see if asymmetry is present, to what degree, and what some of the contributing factors might be.”

The “bliss of solitude,” as poet William Wordsworth once rhapsodized, may be lost on the graduate student hustling to meet deadlines, slogging through comps and filing necessary paperwork, all while trying to publish and present their research. Graduate school can be solitary, especially once coursework is completed or if a student is far from home.

Having a mentor can make a huge difference.

One of the key benefits of mentorship is the strong relationship that develops between the mentor and mentee, which may become vitally important to a student.

A supportive environment

Sean Byrne suggests that good mentors remember the stress of being students. For the past decade, Byrne was director of the Arthur V. Mauro Centre for Peace and Justice. He’s also a professor in peace and conflict studies and a recipient of the 2017 Faculty of Graduate Studies Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Mentoring.

Byrne believes that part of being a mentor is providing “a home away from home,” adding that students may need something as basic as a warm meal or a good conversation. Some students may be facing homesickness, culture shock or personal challenges such as health issues, divorce or even financial troubles. Each student has different needs, but all students need an open and supportive environment to ensure that they are able to be honest about challenges they are facing, whether professional or personal.

Beyond signing forms

For Juliette “Archie” Cooper, professor emeritus, College of Rehabilitation Sciences, mentoring similarly plays a role beyond simply directing students through their thesis or research projects and signing forms.

And being an advisor does not automatically mean that you are or will be a mentor, she notes in her “Mentoring Graduate Students” workshop at the Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning.

Cooper: “Mentors are chosen. You really can’t impose mentorship.” 

Cooper suggests encouraging students to approach different people, whether researchers in the field or faculty in other departments. As she puts it, “Mentors are chosen. You really can’t impose mentorship.” The key is to create a collaborative, nurturing environment for students.

Guidance, tangible support and suggestions play a significant role in mentorship. Tenured faculty members may forget how intimidating and challenging it was to be a graduate student learning the ropes, from ordering supplies to presenting at and attending a conference.

Whether it is identifying opportunities, such as publishing or applying for grants or preparing for conferences, a little guidance can make a huge difference, especially to an inexperienced graduate student. Megan Campbell, an M.Sc. student in community health sciences, stresses the importance of those opportunities. Assistance with applying for grants, constructive feedback or contributing a paper can help graduate students build confidence.

Empowerment to join in as a peer

The holistic approach used by her advisor Sean Byrne makes her feel empowered and included in the academic community, says Patlee Creary, who graduated in spring 2018 with her PhD in peace and conflict studies.

When she began her graduate degree, she had a larger concept of her work, but was unsure of what the research project would actually look like. As Creary explains, Byrne “gave [her] room to ask questions and to pursue storytelling [as a method].” She appreciated the respect he showed in providing a complete education experience, encouraging her exploration of different paths and empowering her as a researcher and academic.

Read the rest of the article in the current issue of TeachingLIFE, now online and out in print. TeachingLIFE is an annual publication mailed to U of M teaching faculty and staff.

And meet its inventor Takanori Shibata who will demonstrate PARO and speak about the innovative field of robot therapy at a public lecture presented by the College of Rehabilitation Sciences, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences.

Who: Takanori Shibata, PhD, Senior Research Scientist at Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology
What: Demonstration and Presentation on “PARO: Neurological Therapeutic Medical Robot.”
When: Thursday, March 30, 12 – 1PM
Where: Theatre C, Basic Medical Sciences Building, Bannatyne Campus
The presentation will be streamed live here.

Robot therapy uses robots as a substitute for animals in animal therapy and is applied in the fields of patient care and welfare. Interestingly, the inspiration for PARO came from a baby harp seal Shibata encountered off the coast of Quebec’s Magdalen Islands in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

“PARO can be used by children to the elderly, who have dementia, cancer, developmental problems and brain injuries,” Shibata says. “Interaction with PARO improves mood, depression, loneliness and improves communication and sociability. In the case of the elderly with dementia, because of these effects, it will reduce aggression and wandering as well as reducing the burden of care.”

Clinical trials with dementia patients, for example, have found that PARO improved symptoms such as depression, anxiety and stress. The need for symptom-related medications was also reduced for these patients.

PARO can also  be used in other kinds of therapy similar to real animals, such as palliative care for cancer patients and building social skills in children and adolescents with developmental problems.

First commercialized in Japan in 2005, PARO was certified as a ‘neurological therapeutic medical device’ by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2009. There are now 5,000 PAROS being used in hospitals and care facilities in over 30 countries around the world.

The Engaging in our Community #RFHScollaborate event at Bannatyne campus held last week helped these students by supporting them to learn more about each other while also discovering more about their local neighbourhood.

Organized by the Office of Interprofessional Collaboration, Services for Students at Bannatyne and the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, last week’s event drew more than 400 first-year students in the Max Rady College of Medicine and the Colleges of Dentistry, Nursing, Pharmacy and Rehabilitation Sciences to participate in community site visits, Indigenous Games, and an opportunity for reflection and debrief back on campus.

Gaining an understanding of the inner-city neighbourhood – especially one just a stone’s throw from the gleaming classrooms and state-of-the-art facilities in which most of the students will be honing their respective skills – is what makes the community site visits a vital learning exercise. Students visited such organizations as Siloam Mission, Pathways to Education, Dufferin Community School, Winnipeg Harvest, North Point Douglas Women’s Centre and Hugh John Macdonald School.

Simran Diocee, a first-year respiratory therapy student who went to Siloam Mission, found the community site visit enlightening.

“I always thought Siloam was mostly a homeless shelter,” he said. “I didn’t realize they supplied medical and dental services too.”

Following their bus tours, students returned to the Burton Cummings Community Centre where they participated in Indigenous Games, a series of fun teambuilding exercises that required students from across the Rady Faculty to work together while also getting to know one another better.

For Diocee, the Indigenous Games component represented more than just an entertaining diversion and informed him about a patient population he will serve in the future.

“They’re a big part of the community,” he said. “Learning from them can help bring all our professions together to work a little more closely.”

As part of the Rady Faculty Office of Interprofessional Collaboration initiatives, this year, students from each of the colleges are organized into inter-professional cohorts of seven. The students will remain in these cohorts for two years of their respective programs. At the end of each term, each cohort is given an assignment that’s meant to capture what the students have learned to date.

Laura Macdonald, one of the event organizers and an Associate Professor with the School of Dental Hygiene, said the collaborative aspects of the cohort will benefit the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences students in their school work and in their future careers as health-care professionals.

“This is the beginning of a two-year journey as these students learn to be inter-professionally minded as they proceed through the rest of their curriculum,” she says. “Now that these students have met each other they will learn how to draw on each other and learn to respect each other’s roles and responsibilities as they grow, develop and understand their own profession.”

[See image gallery at umtoday-wordpress.ad.umanitoba.ca]