The unusual complement of positions has also allowed her an interesting, interdisciplinary perspective, she says. She has a broad network from business, social activist and academic research communities, and acts as regional co-chair of Poverty Action Research Program. The emphasis on community is integral to the courses she teaches; her Asper courses incorporate organizationplacements, so that students not only learn in a hands-on environment but also start to “give back,” which is key to her values, along with the idea of sustainable practices. In fact, giving back is what she most enjoys about her work: “There are so many needs in the community, and I like that I can help to make a difference, and see students make a difference. From education to co-ops to social enterprise to partnering, there are many different ways to improve the community, to share prosperity, to reach out — to shine a light in the dark places,” she says.

Q & A

Name one thing that not too many people may know about you.  My husband and I are taking harmonica lessons right now.

What puts a smile on your face? My kids (23 and 21) tell me stories and I can tell that they are doing well.

Where did you grow up? Calgary. I lived there for 23 years.

What did you like about your childhood? I grew up with four siblings. Lots of energy, adventures in a loving family and
we all care about each other now.

Childhood heros? My mother (Ukrainian and French) married my father (Cree) at a time of great opposition from their families on grounds of religion and ethnicity. As a result, I love perogies and cabbage rolls as well as bannock, drumming and singing our songs.

Guiding principle or motto:  No one owes me anything and I have done nothing except through God’s grace.

A memorable dinner with friends: A friend and colleague came to town last week. We have known each other for 20 years. My husband and I took him to Wok Box for a relaxing meal and a chat. It was memorable because he enjoyed it as much as we did and since he was getting over the flu — and kept the food down. It was memorable!

What do you appreciate or admire in another person? Integrity, honesty, faith and compassion.

Everyday essential: Fibre One followed by a run, a walk or a circuit training session with weights, exercise ball, kettle bell and tension band.

One of the most unusual experiences you’ve had is: Being named one of Canada’s 100 Most Powerful Women last year was unusual because that kind of recognition doesn’t happen every day. I had a sense of unreality (why me?) through the whole recognition event. The best part was I got to take my 21-year-old daughter. We talked most seriously about her dreams and so now she wants to be a graphic artist. She never
had the confidence before to pursue her artistic talent.

Something eye-opening you’ve experienced. I survived a head-on collision and I can still see the car doing 60, and we had nowhere to go. What do you do when that happens? I closed my eyes and relaxed. There was nothing I could do, anyway. There were five people in two cars. All survived, thanks to seat belts. It was an eye-closing experience.

A recent book you enjoyed? I am reading T.D. Jakes’ Reposition Yourself: Living Life Without Limits. I am a bit of a careful person sometimes so his statement, “You cannot win against that which you will not see and confront,” is very challenging.

Favourite TV show, film, blog or website: “The Voice,” “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Dancing with the Stars.”

People on campus recognize you because … um, of my hair.

Anything else you’d like people to know about Wanda Wuttunee? For my kids, I think it is important to acknowledge that I earned a PhD, enjoyed and continue to enjoy a productive work life as an academic with wonderful recognition all after I was diagnosed with a mental illness following the car crash I mentioned 20 years ago. I am not crazy (except after eating too much chocolate sometimes) but count all my blessings that I can be bipolar and fit right in and make a contribution in this world. I can’t ask for anything more… with a loving husband and family by my side.

Coffee With a Co-worker is a regularly appearing column that features staff and faculty of the university. This article first appeared in the November 22, 2012 edition of The Bulletin.

Over the time he’s been at the university, Dyck has done a lot of “traveling.” Working with English as Another Language (EAL) students and faculty, he’s taught, coordinated and planned curricula for international students of all ages and nationalities.

In the 10 years since he’s been director of the English Language Centre (ELC) within Student Affairs, it’s doubled in size. What began as a relatively small program in the 1990s has become a unit that sees over 800 international pre-university, undergraduate and graduate students per year come through its “doors” on the fifth floor of University Centre.

The ELC offers English for Academic Purposes (EAP) to international students and tests English proficiency for both undergraduate and graduate students via the CanTEST — the Canadian standardized English proficiency test which determines whether students are able to meet admission requirements of Canadian post-secondary institutions or fluency requirements of professional licensing associations.

Courses taught through the ELC include both part-time and full-time programs, including a full-time Intensive Academic English Program (IAEP) and the full-time Academic English Program for University and College Entrance (AEPUCE). Upon graduating from the programs, most of its students continue on to university studies.

With a staff of about 50, its instructors, program coordinators and other staff provide a strong link for these international students to the university, including enrolment services, student life, ELC’s homestay program, the International Centre for Students and other university units.

Dyck loves the university because he shares many of the values it embodies. He finds the educational environment exciting and enjoys the diversity he encounters here. In his role as director of ELC, he has also represented the U of M on councils and associations of international education and EAL learning.

Dyck’s modest demeanor and genial, respectful style make it easy to envision working for him (full disclosure: I DID work for him one summer many years ago, in an EAL program for Korean nursing students!). He is definitely a people person. In fact, he’d rather go next door and talk with his colleagues than sit at his computer emailing them, he says.

“Even if it means that sometimes we’re missing a paper trail,” he laughs.

Q + A with Garry Dyck

Name one thing not too many people may know about you: To relax, I enjoy playing the mandolin. I also play violin and banjo. At family gatherings, I enjoy playing with my children, nephews and nieces. We play traditional Irish melodies, hymns and carols. Many years ago, I played banjo in a small blue grass band with a few friends who played upright bass, guitar, and mandolin.

What puts a smile on your face? Having our whole family over and visiting over a meal.

A favourite place you’ve visited: A few years ago, my wife, Faith, and I went to Ireland to visit some old friends. We traveled along the west coast to see the Cliffs of Moher and stayed at a BB nearby. We found a small pub where we had supper and heard a local band playing traditional music. It was great music in a wonderful little village. More recently, we visited Faith’s relative and his wife in a small town in Northumbria, England. We had never met before but our visit was the highlight of our trip. Although we have enjoyed the sights of big cities, the highlights of our trips often feature the people we have met in rural towns and villages.

Something you find essential or enjoyable to do every day? In order to have a productive day, I need to get up early in the morning. When I get up, I spend time reading the Bible (currently Luke and Isaiah), meditating and praying.

You are thrilled to spend any free time: My wife and I own a double kayak. I have been on day trips with each of our children on the Assiniboine and Red Rivers. It is a good time to talk as we see the city from another angle. In my office, I have a photo of our kayak on an island in the middle of South Cross Lake. My wife and I paddled through the tunnel from Caddy Lake to get to South Cross Lake.

A goal (or two) for the next week, month, or year: Every May for the past three years, I have participated in the Motorcycle Ride for Dad to raise money for prostate cancer research and awareness for prevention of prostrate cancer. This was the cancer that took my father. For May 2014, I hope to raise enough money to earn a place in the Captain’s Club. My eldest son and I both have Vulcan 900s and have ridden together in this event.

Childhood hero? As a teenager, I read Through Gates of Splendor, based on the diary of Jim Elliot, who was martyred for his faith in Ecuador. I was very impressed by his passion for God and how he lived out his faith.

Underrated: Walking to work in Winnipeg winters.

Overrated: Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. I have had accounts in each of these for several years but I really don’t understand social media.

Describe something eye-opening you’ve experienced: My wife and I became grandparents this year. Our oldest son and daughter-in-law gave birth to twin boys in mid August. Having three children is amazing but having grandchildren is great in a whole new way.

Favourite Musicians: Leon Redbone, The Quebe Sisters Band, Alison Kraus, Natalie MacMaster

Reading: I enjoy historical fiction and biographies. I have just finished reading An Officer and a Spy by Robert Harris, describing the Dreyfus affair in France. My wife and I recently read Robert K. Massie’s Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman together and are now reading James L. Snyder’s The Life of A. W. Tozer: In Pursuit of God.

Coffee With a Co-worker is a regularly appearing column that features staff and faculty of the university.

Providing day-to-day support and resources to the coaches and athletes who comprise Bison Sports is a significant part of what Dufresne does. Sometimes it’s brainstorming about strategies, sometimes it’s just talking with coaches about their teams and how best to instill cohesion and success, she says.

“Student athletes give such a big commitment to their sport and to their team — to their university. Coaches do what they can to nurture and support that commitment,” she says. “I love coaches because I love that kind of person — someone who works for others with passion and dedication.

“Working with these young student athletes during a very formative time of their lives, coaches have lot of influence on them. They play a large role in the development of a young person, and they take it very seriously,” she says.”It’s an intense, demanding job,”

And she should know, since she started her career at the U of M as basketball coach for the Bison Women’s Basketball team — a position she held for 17 years before moving into her current one.

“My focus is always on high performance, and how we create the best environment for student athletes to be as successful as they can,” she says.

The former Olympian knows a bit about high performance herself. She was a member of the Canadian Women’s Basketball team, and got to compete in front of family and friends at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal.

She was recruited here to coach after then-athletic director Fromson saw her New Brunswick team play at the championships hosted by U of M. Dufresne had quit her job as a high school teacher to pursue coaching, taking her master’s degree in sports psychology after she realized that she wanted to make coaching her career.

In addition to daily administrative tasks and her duties representing the U of M in regional and national university sports associations or committees, the athletic director also represents Bison Sports at many faculty and university meetings. But on weekends you’ll find Dufresne at games, cheering on all of the Bison athletes including her son Nicholas, who plays for the Bison Men’s Volleyball team.

“When I got here 25 years ago, I didn’t necessarily think that I would be here forever,” she laughs.

“But the U of M has been a great environment for me — the people, the programs. It’s provided me an opportunity to grow as an individual and to follow my passion.

“I love going to work.”

Q & A with Coleen Dufresne

Athletic director Coleen Dufresne.

One thing not many people know about you: I love to play cards and pretty much any kind of board game.

What puts a smile on your face? Chocolate.

Dinner with friends: Out or at home? Describe a recent memorable meal. Ribs and chicken or out at a restaurant. A few weeks ago I was in Ottawa for a wedding. My three siblings, their spouses, my 90 year old Dad, my husband and I had the chance to have a few meals together which rarely happens as none of my family members live in the same city. Can’t truly remember much about the meals themselves, but the joy on my Dad’s face sitting at the table with all his kids was something pretty special!

An unusual experience: Riding an elephant in Thailand.

Favourite place you’ve visited: I’ve been fortunate to have visited over 30 countries in the world and all because of sport. One of my favourite countries to visit was Izmir, Turkey and it was because both the country and the people were beautiful. But my favourite place has to be … HOME.

Something you find essential or enjoyable to do every day: Hug my son.

You are always thrilled to spend any free time: Shopping. I even love grocery shopping!

Something you do better than anyone else you know: Play Catchphrase.

Guiding principle or motto? Be committed to whatever you choose to do and do it to the best of your ability.

A goal: Find a housekeeper.

Where did you grow up? In the small town of Dorion, 25 miles west of Montreal.

Favourite childhood memory: Skipping – double Dutch – for hours in the driveway.

What you appreciate or admire in another person: Honesty.

Underrated: Saying hello to people. I’m always amazed at how simply saying “hello” can bring a smile to someone’s face.

Overrated: CROCS

Something eye-opening you’ve experienced: Watching my parents jitterbug and have the crowd form a circle around them and cheer.

Reading: I like to read books about successful coaches and athletes when I’m looking for inspiration. I also like to sit in the sun and read anything that doesn’t require any thinking.

Favourite TV show, blog or website: Love The Good Wife, Grey’s Anatomy and Hostages. I think it may be because they all have strong women in them.

Anything else you’d like people to know about Coleen Dufresne? My Mom was a talented Highland dancer and a beautiful singer who played the piano by ear. I do none of those things. I love to laugh, though.

It’s one example of exciting areas of exploration and experimentation of music and composition in relation to technology.

Sandred: ‘Art is very close to research — you are reaching to the unknown’

Sandred uses computers a lot, he says, but he is a composer of both instrumental and computer music. His instrumental works range from music for Symphony Orchestra to solo instruments, and several of his later compositions expand the “expressitivity” of acoustic instruments with live electronics.

Sandred uses technologies within his pieces and in composing them, and also teaches methods of composition in the Faculty of Music’s Studio FLAT, the studio he founded for computer music research and production.

Many of his own compositions are the result of his search for new methods of composition and use computerized rule-based systems (a sub-branch of artificial intelligence) to formalize the musical structure.

For Sandred, composition is very closely linked with his research and he is fascinated by the complexity of music. And it’s fascinating to hear him discuss music, as well as composition and art more generally.

When I ask Sandred where “Ice Fog” started, for instance, he politely defers, smiling. “I prefer to talk about music in different terms. As a composer, you deal with how to communicate, and music is about communicating.”

Sandred: In music composition, ‘the tools you use will affect the outcome.’

The method you choose will influence the result, however. “I do believe the tools that you use will affect the outcome — and you can do that unintentionally but often deliberately as well,” he explains.

“If you are a painter, for instance, you choose your tools with a very clear aim for how you want it to look, for the expression you intend. So I pick my tools for the result I want, and if I’m not happy with them perhaps I could switch my tools.”

The question of intuition is also interesting, he says.

You apply a lot of structure, knowledge, experience and rules that you have internalized or that are in your unconsciousness. “As a professional composer, I want to bring those into consciousness in order to work with them compositionally. If you only rely only on intuition, you tend to repeat a lot, because you are not aware, and you fall into similar patterns.”

It starts with composition rules or formalizations from 100 years ago applied to the computer, he says.

“So if they formalized certain rules for composition in the old days, say — for example, it could be rules about what chords generally follow after one another, or a rule such as returning to the tonic to end a piece – you can use the same language of formalization, so to speak. But you might end with another chord, maybe it’s not the tonic but a newer-sounding chord.”

And there are many other details as well, which the computer can track and analyze, and that Sandred can then alter. “That just would not have been possible before,” he says.

That modernist expectation of “making something new” is still very strong in art music, he says.

“As in other forms, rather than repeating something that has already been done, [the motivation is] to go to the unknowns. This is where research comes in.

“Art is very close to research, I think — you are reaching to the unknown. Sure, art is self-referential to some extent, but it is also about expressions of human mind and perception and emotion. Ultimately, I think that is where you end up .”

Q & A

Activities outside work: Since I spend my working days mostly at my desk, I try to be physically active with my family over the weekends. This winter, I enjoyed the river trail very much: a unique possibility in Winnipeg.

Best place to visit: This year I enjoyed revisiting Shanghai, which is a very interesting city. Every year I go back to Paris for work: a city full of life and cultural events.

Favourite music: I tend to like composers that were active during periods when music changed. Monteverdi brought music into a new phase in the early 17th century, just as György Ligeti did in the early 1960s.

Faculty Profile is a regularly appearing column that features faculty of the university in the context of their research. This article first appeared in the April 5, 2012 edition of The Bulletin.

Her academic work is focused on designing better systems for pedestrians, especially older pedestrians — research she “loves every moment of,” almost as much as working with and mentoring her students, whose passion for what they do inspires her daily, she says. She sees the university as “the cradle of ideas” in society, and feels it is “the best place” one could possibly work. In 2012, she was also honoured with a YMCA Women of Distinction Award in the Leadership and Management category.

Montufar always had a knack for both numbers and language, and she is currently writing a new book, entitled My Longest Walk, which will combine the story of her own life with a chronicle of her fundraising journey for the scholarship fund. That journey will begin with a 500 km walk this summer, a portion of the Camino Frances from Burgos to Santiago de Compostela, Spain.

Montufar_Cover

You can tell that bringing out her book, 20 Love Poems and Some Random Thoughts, was an exhilarating experience. Montufar has been writing poetry since she was 14, and also writes short stories. She “loves literature,” she says, and finds poetry a “wonderful way” to express herself and reflect on her experiences. “The book is about different kinds of love,” she says.

“Love as a mother, a friend, a lover. I really believe that our experiences with love — or lack of it — really make us who we are today.”

The Hummingbird Education Fund Montufar is establishing the Hummingbird Education Fund to give underprivileged women in Winnipeg an opportunity for a post-secondary education in engineering, natural sciences, health sciences, medicine or law.

Why did Montufar choose to name the fund after a hummingbird? “A hummingbird symbolizes many things related to hope, endurance, persistence and the capability
to overcome obstacles,” she explains.

“Like the hummingbird, I hope the fund will represent an opportunity for women, an opportunity to obtain a better education and a new tomorrow for those facing tremendous barriers in our community.

“I believe in second chances,” says Montufar, “in giving opportunities. Many things have not come easy for me, but because I have had opportunities in my own life, I want to give back. I see it as a responsibility, really.”

This summer, Montufar, who is also a dedicated runner, will walk a 500 km portion of the Camino Frances in Spain to kick off fundraising for the Hummingbird Fund. The fund is supported by The Winnipeg Foundation. Montefur encourages others to donate funds towards “in order to make an impact” in their community. “Every $200 donated will get me one kilometer closer to my goal of raising $100,000 on this journey,” she says.

For information on how to make your donation, see The Winnipeg Foundation at www.wpgfdn.org and look for the Hummingbird Education Fund or visit the fund online on FaceBook at HummingbirdEducationFund.

Q&A

What puts a smile on your face? Almost everything puts a smile on my face!

Where did you grow up? Define growing up … I shaped my ideas and opinions in Winnipeg but I was born in Guatemala.

What did you like about your childhood? I most enjoyed the weather.

Childhood hero: My father. He was a very intelligent man.

Something you find essential to do every day: Read non-technical material. I like reading most types of books but one of my favourite authors is Isabel Allende.

You are always thrilled to spend any free time: Chatting with my 12-yr old daughter and learning about her dreams, plans, frustrations, challenges. She is an endless fountain of entertainment!

What is your guiding principle or motto? Make every day count by making someone else’s life better thanks to you.

Dinner with friends: In or out? I prefer to cook at home because it’s more personal and it allows me to treat my guests to meals they really enjoy. I will cook just about anything a friend would ask for when invited over for dinner.

Favourite place: I have been blessed with the opportunity to travel the world. And although I have seen many places and met many people, I always enjoy Costa Rica. They people there are very friendly and warm — and the beaches are fantastic!

A goal: My main goal at this point is to raise $1,000,000 for the Hummingbird Education Fund.

What you appreciate or admire in another person? Compassion and determination.

Underrated: The University of Manitoba

Overrated: Apple pie

Favourite TV show, film, blog or website: Three films: The House of the Spirits, Midnight in Paris, Scent of a Woman

Favourite music: Anything by Leonard Cohen, Billy Joel, Johnny Cash, or Bob Dylan.

What do you like to read? I like most kinds of books. I recently finished The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli for the tenth time. My favourite book of all time is The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Everyone should read that book.

Anything else you’d like people to know about Jeannette Montufar? I will change the world — I just have to figure out how and when!

 Coffee With a Co-worker is a regularly appearing column that features staff and faculty of the university. This article first appeared in the June 6, 2013 edition of The Bulletin.

Immigrating to Canada from her native France, Portet spent several years in Edmonton before accepting a position in mathematics at the U of M, which she and her partner decided upon because it offered him a position as well.

Over the years, she’s used mathematical modeling over a number of disciplines, something she greatly enjoys. Much of her work is interdisciplinary, primarily math-biology. Perhaps adeptness across the disciplines is also what helps her to find the necessary analogies to elucidate her work for students. Explaining it to a severely math-challenged layperson like me, she resorted to analogies from child’s play, but not without delight. It seems even the simplest analogy brings her joy and satisfaction. “What I’m doing is Lego,” she says with a laugh.

In fact, the research in which Portet is engaged is a first in mathematical modeling. She’s found a unique niche, “acting as another type of microscope” for the cell structure, as she puts it.

Her work is rooted in cell biology but requires a multidisciplinary approach that encompasses different domains such as mathematical biology, biophysics and image analysis for research about the complex but dynamic scaffolding or skeleton contained within a cell’s cytoplasm, called the cytoskeleton.

According to Portet, math modeling is “translating a problem into a new language,” and her research goes into understanding the relationship between structure and function in the cell, in order to “develop a computational and mathematical modeling framework to study the shaping and reorganization processes constituting the structural pathways of cell signalling.”

The field is relatively new to mathematical modeling, and therefore it gives her the “luxury of being wrong,” says Portet. Because it’s such a new area, “the goal is to find more data.”

And learning is else something she values in her work. “The freedom to discover and start new prospects is important to me in my work. I’m paid for learning new things — and that I like,” she says.

However, sometimes when you are in the work, she says, it feels like you are not getting anything done. Apparently mathematical modeling research is nothing at all like administrative work, which has been added to her plate. There, she says, at least she can check things off her list. And because, perhaps because of that, she oddly enough enjoys administrative work — also for the human aspect of it, she says. “I can’t stay alone for too long doing research, especially when nothing is advancing.”

Immigrating to a country where they knew no one, the assistant professor and now-associate head of the mathematics department says, “We had to smile when we called home and say everything was fine, and work harder.” Teaching and interaction with students helped them to learn the language. Eventually they made friends. And they worked hard.

“Sometimes you feel like you haven’t done anything, but then when you look back over your shoulder, you realize that you have, after all, gotten some things done,” Portet says. She sounds a little surprised herself.

“We’ve done a lot in a short time,” she says.

Q + A with Stephanie Portet

Something that inspires you today: Spring is coming back.

What activities do you engage in outside of work? Art classes at the WAG: sculpture, pottery, drawing, painting, mosaic.

Best place you’ve visited and why: Banyuls sur mer (France) — Best unknown little paradise and very good memories. New York — a kid’s dream and an old song by a French band named “Telephone.”

A book  you’ve read and enjoyed recently? John Cardinal mystery series by Giles Blunt.

Favourite piece of music or film: An album entitled “Bleu Petrole” by Alain Bashung.

Faculty Profile is a regularly appearing column that features faculty of the university in the context of their research. This article first appeared in the May 23, 2013 edition of The Bulletin.

She also recalls a stint as switchboard operator a la Lily Tomlin before the age of wireless connection. Now she heads a team of more than 200 employees in ancillary services, which includes everything from food and conference and catering services to the pharmacy and book store to student residences.

Described by others of “having a spark,” Reid is clearly passionate about her work and the university community. (She says that over the years, her passion has transformed from a bull dog into a beagle.) As she puts it, “I felt like I’d found my place.”

Reid: ‘I felt like I’d found my place.’

Pat Reid with her team, clockwise from left: Leta Beyak, assistant director, ancillary services, Murray Elfenbaum, administrative coordinator, Julia Panchyshyn, admin. assistant for the U of M Bookstore.

The key word is “team,” she says. It’s been her own good fortune, both to work with “the outstanding people here” — some life-long friends — and to learn from many others over the years, she continues. “The biggest thing I can do is to acknowledge the intelligent, committed,
passionate people here and strong work and service ethic they represent, and pass forward those values,” she adds.

Reid counts it a privilege to work at the university and she feels a strong responsibility to model the values she’s encountered in others and holds to in her own work. It begins with the staff, she says, who are also the university’s biggest advocates. “It’s important to support and deal fairly with them and to hold to a collaborative vision of delivering exceptional service, while displaying tolerance and respect for the diversity of people in our community,” she says. A strong service ethic, a compassionate spirit and authenticity are things she values.

In large part, her role is one of advocate, she says. Having a position of responsibility “is about projecting those values and demonstrating confidence in what we deliver,” she says. It’s in building trust and credibility; and we gain that confidence in how we build our team, allowing people to learn, giving them room to make mistakes, helping them to grow in their capacity.”

The day-to-day work includes “all levels of surprise,” she says — from being on hand to help out at the book store on busy days (during the fall, there can be as many as 5,000 people through the checkouts in one day) to working with unions and UMSU and developing a respectful and collaborative relationship with them.

The hands-on nature of the job is something Reid greatly enjoys. “Our best practices are developed so that we can move quickly when we need to, and we roll up our sleeves, and do what we have to do. We work with all the on-campus groups, but in a hands-on way. We’re on the ground — often in the eye of the hurricane,” she notes.

“Part of the joy of this job is being able to give people opportunities to learn and work here at the U of M. The kind of support I have had, as well.

“It’s been a privilege to be able to grow up here at the U of M, and the people I’ve worked with here have given me so much. I’m so grateful — it’s a privilege to have the opportunity to give back.”

Q & A

What puts a smile on your face? I love dogs, horses and my friends and family!!

Places you like to visit and why: London, anywhere in Ireland, The Grand Canyon, The Rocky Mountains near Banff, Yellowstone, the Black Hills, Victoria Beach. It’s the spirit of the place.

What is something you find essential or enjoyable to do every day? Breathe and fill up with gratitude. When I make it a priority and have the time, work out.

You are always thrilled to spend any free time: Horseback riding. Sitting by water. Jogging in the heat.

Where did you grow up? Besides the U of M? Winnipeg, Calgary, Moose Jaw, Regina, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary and Winnipeg. Summers with my grandparents in Keewatin, Ontario, on the beautiful Lake of the Woods.

Do you have a favourite childhood memory? Horse-napping a horse from the riding stable where I worked when I was 10 years old in Moose Jaw, SK, and hiding him in our backyard tiny, one-car garage. I got caught and had to take him back. He was a black and white, stocky, walleyed Pinto named Rags.

Childhood hero: J.F.K., John Lennon, Mahatma Gandhi.

Goals: Connecting with significant people in my life and working on those relationships. Appreciating the good in people, offering love and support and allowing compassion and tolerance to win over shortcomings and intolerance. Get in better shape. Have time to focus, read, write.

Something eye-opening you’ve experienced: Walking into the Poet’s Corner in Westminster Abbey and having the spirit of the place move me to tears of joy. Experiencing the natural world on the high plains of South Dakota and Wyoming.

Overrated: Misplaced political correctness disguised as diplomacy or protocol. Smoke and mirrors.

Guiding principle or motto: We are collectively stronger and more intelligent than on our own.

I thank you God for most this amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and the blue true dream of sky, and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is Yes.  — e.e.cummings.
What do you appreciate or admire in others? Compassion and tolerance.

Coffee With a Co-worker is a regularly appearing column that features staff and faculty of the university. This article first appeared in the May 2, 2013 edition of The Bulletin.

Farrell Racette research interests lie in Metis and First Nations women’s histories and indigenous art histories that reclaim women’s voices through re-contextualized museum collections; she teaches in the Native studies and women’s and gender studies departments. As a young person of mixed ancestry, including Algonquin, Cree, Mohawk and Irish heritage, Farrell Racette says she formed a strong identity with the Metis community, something that has shaped her career.

She holds an undergraduate degree in fine arts from the U of M, as well as a teaching certificate, a master’s of education from the University of Regina, and a PhD from the U of M. She has several publications to her name.

According to Farrell Racette, the interdisciplinary nature of the work is essential because her research interests surrender scant historical records.

“Most of what I do is related to women’s history or other areas — mostly of history — that are absent or marginalized, and I really have to turn every stone. If you stick exclusively in one discipline, then you’re limited to the resources of that discipline. I find that I just look everywhere.”

Also a visual artist, Farrell Racette works in a variety of mediums, including painting, multi-media work and illustrating children’s books. Her current project is an historical analysis of Metis clothing and beadwork, a craft that is a big part of her own life. She learned to bead as a teen and she now teaches beading to her students in preparation for studying historic beadwork.

“You can’t really see it until you have experienced [creating] it,” she says of studying the clothing pieces. “When I’m looking at beadwork I’m really looking at it as a maker, because I can think ‘Okay, where did she start?’ You can really appreciate what you’re seeing.”

In addition to appreciating the technical accomplishment of the beadwork, which took hours and hours of intricate work, Farrell Racette also grasps the personal connection to history in studying the artifacts close-up.

“You’re really touching what someone else has touched. You can almost see a person’s fingerprints, and you can see sometimes where they made a little mistake— you can see the human being within that piece.”

Q & A with Sherry Farrell Racette

Coffee or tea?
Coffee, from morning to night — black, dark roast. The occasional cappuccino, for a treat.

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in Manitoba, in Pine Falls. My parents were from Quebec.

What did you like about your childhood?
I really liked the environment. Lake Winnipeg — it’s very sad that it’s so polluted now, but to me that’s my lake and I share it with people. And I just liked the rock and the trees and growing up there being so free. I spent a lot of time at the lake with my dad, just running around, barefoot for months.

Childhood hero or role model?
My dad. He’s this kind of larger-thanlife person, very artistic — taught me to draw before I could walk, mind you I was a slow walker.

Guiding principle or motto?
A long, long time ago, someone told me you don’t need to be too afraid of making mistakes as long as you do it in a good way.

What are you currently working on?
I’m working on changing my doctoral dissertation into a book. It’s a pretty broad historical look at Metis clothing and beadwork. One of the things that I’m looking at is how the way people presented themselves visually mapped out a terrain,= claimed a territory because [the fashion] was distinct, it was recognizable.

A recent book you’ve enjoyed?
Gregory Scofield’s Louis: The Heretic Poems. It’s a series of poems, most of them through [Louis] Riel’s voice, and one of them I just can’t get out of my head, and I’m actually thinking of making it –with his permission — the focus of a very significant artwork project.

What ’s the upcoming project ?
I’m thinking of making a short film with puppets, with Scofield’s poem — literally performing the poem using puppets.

What qualities do you appreciate or admire in others?
Honesty and a sense of humour — not necessarily in that order!

What do you like to do in your free time?
Free time — that is a bit of an issue. Does it exist? Not much. But when I actually have real free time, I like to go to casinos. I love casinos, I’ll pick up my mom and we’ll go hit the slots. Another thing is I just like to get out of the city and go to my lake, go see some trees and some rock. I love the ballet, the symphony, the theatre.

Coffee With a Co-worker is a regularly appearing column that features staff and faculty of the university. This article first appeared in the April 4, 2013 edition of The Bulletin.

The distinguished professor of psychiatry recounts an anecdote from Michael Bliss’s biography of William Osler, Canadian forefather of modern medicine. In the story, a colleague knocks at the great professor’s door only to be greeted by choking and gagging sounds from within the room. He enters upon the scene of Osler threading a tube down his own throat.

“Is everything all right? What are you doing?” he asks, stricken. Responds Osler, offering his colleague another tube so he can join in: “We place these down many patients, and I thought I ought to know what it feels like.”

The colleague politely declined, Chochinov says, smiling. The point is that “Osler had these amazing insights about medicine — he understood that there were many things you could touch and feel that had to do with anatomy and physiology.

“But he also knew that there is this whole human aspect of care that really is about feeling, and unless you appreciate that, you aren’t going to be able to connect with or understand what your patients are going through.” In short, he says, “Osler understood the importance of humanity and of the humanities for the world view of the healer.”

Chochinov is the recipient of many awards and accolades. In addition to making “dignity therapy” an internationally recognized approach within his speciality of palliative care — incorporating disciplines from across the medical spectrum — he also has a number of other disciplinary aces up his sleeve. In fact, he solidly qualifies as artsy, with strongly developed interests and skills in music, history and literature.

His latest book, Dignity Therapy: Final Words for Final Days, just won the 2012 Prose Award for Clinical Medicine (the American Publisher’s Awards for Professional and Scholarly Excellence).

It explains the approach developed by Chochinov and his research team over a period of about 20 years. While there have been other aspects to come out of the palliative care research (such as the issue of “personhood,” a key component of “dignity-conserving care”), he says, dignity therapy is one that’s gained international attention.

Chochinov says he has spent much of the past decade on issues related to dignity.

“What we discovered is that even for people with advanced illness, there are a multitude of things that can influence a patient’s sense of dignity — everything from how well pain is controlled to whether or not they feel that people, including health care workers, still recognize them for who they are, for their worth, and confer honour and respect. In essence, attentiveness to dignity at end of life yields the very best that palliative care can deliver.”

While Chochinov is modest about the diverse talents that have led him to where he is now, he notes that it seems as though his past experiences and skills have prepared him well for what he is doing today.

“I’ve been fortunate, in that they have all come together in a particular and unique way to inform what I do,” he says.

Chochinov: “Everyone in health care needs need to understand that we are implicated in the success or failure of our interactions with patients.”

“The interest in literature informs my writing. I believe that how one says things matters. Certainly, as a clinician and someone in palliative care, I know that words, and how we choose to express ourselves with patients, can shape the entire tone of care.”

“With both history and literature, we gain so much wisdom about the human condition, which, in essence, is what I’m trying to understand in an empirical way, in palliative care research. Whether I’m assigning a short story by Chekhov or something by Tolstoy, these are wonderful teaching tools because they come from people with profound insights about being human, being vulnerable and being mortal,” he says.

According to Chochinov, all of medicine could benefit from the humanities. In fact, he’s working on a new book, which he hopes will be for everyone in health care “from the receptionist who works at a medical clinic to the person who makes the first incision.

“It seems to me that everyone in health care needs to learn something about communication skills; in particular, we need to understand that we are implicated in the success or failure of our interactions with patients,” he says.

Chochinov would like future psychiatrists to see palliative care as a tremendous career opportunity — psychiatrists have been slow in entering the field. “It can be tremendously gratifying,” he adds.

Palliative care, he says, has been growing both nationally and internationally. “The piece that our group has tried to add to that whole dynamic of growth is attention to psychosocial issues, understanding that, in addition to the medical expertise involving symptom management, that holistic palliative care requires attention to the physical, as well as psychological, spiritual and existential, issues that patients and families confront near end of life.

“The wonderful thing about the work one does in palliative care is that usually one knows very quickly whether or not you’ve made a difference. And how many jobs can you say that about?”

See more on Harvey Max Chochinov here.

Q+A

WHO INSPIRES YOU TODAY AND WHY?
I admire people who have the courage of their convictions; people who are able to put the needs of others ahead of their own; those who live their lives with passion and strive to make a difference in this world in whatever way they can. I have been fortunate to have found such people in friends, family and colleagues; my children inspire me.

BEST PLACE YOU’VE VISITED; SOMEWHERE YOU LOOK FORWARD TO VISITING:
In my work, I’ve been privileged to speak and travel around the world. My memories and most vivid impressions are of people; and I’ve met wonderful people in China, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore; Australia, New Zealand; Western Europe, Israel, Brazil, Argentina, and the list goes on. I’ve been invited to give some talks in Prague and Budapest this coming May. Not having done as much travel in Eastern Europe, that is a trip I am very much looking forward to.

A RECENT BOOK YOU’VE ENJOYED:
I loved Doris Kearns Goodwin’s A Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln [the movie is based on this book]. Not only is the story telling gripping, but the lessons about leadership, vision and power are insightful and contemporary.

ON MUSIC:
Music was a big part of my childhood. I studied classical violin and along the way, also learned to play guitar. When I was nine or ten years old, I remember being taken to hear Itzhak Perlman play the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto; it was a mesmerizing and transformative experience. It introduced me to what has remained my favorite violin concerto, and affirmed that, lacking Perlman’s talent, I was not destined to be a professional musician.

ACTIVITIES OUTSIDE OF WORK:
Anything having to do with the arts; film, theatre, music. I love reading, particularly books that provide new insights about the human condition. And of course, spending time with family and friends.

Faculty Profile is a regularly appearing column that features faculty of the university in the context of their research. This article first appeared in the March 21, 2103 edition of The Bulletin.

President and Vice-Chancellor David Barnard

The University of Manitoba is home to outstanding students, some of whom are recognized in special ways but many of whom we meet in our day to day experience at the University.

Many of you may have already heard that Thomas Toles has been named the University of Manitoba’s 97th Rhodes Scholar, the most of any university in Western Canada. That announcement was made in late November. All of our faculties and departments are contributing to a culture of excellence. Our most recent Rhodes Scholars represent the breadth of our academic disciplines including arts, science and engineering.

We were also proud of the success which has been achieved by graduate students Amy Scott and Harlyn Silverstein who in 2012 were recipients of Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships.

Christiane Fischer, Laura Poppel, Mathew Stewart, Melina Djulancic and Rebecca Kunzman will be joining five of our faculty at the G20 Youth Forum April 17-21 that will bring together over 1,500 student leaders and academics in St. Petersburg, Russia.

This conference provides exciting opportunities for these student leaders. They will participate in discussions and build relationships that will shape the rest of their lives and ultimately change our world.

In addition, two first-year students set themselves apart before they started attending classes here this fall. Kimia Sheikholeslami and Alexa McAdam were selected among the 977 Canadian nominees to receive the first-ever Schulich Leader Scholarships.

The Schulich Leader Scholarships program recognizes students from across Canada who demonstrate excellence in academics and/or community leadership and who plan to study science, technology, engineering or mathematics, during their undergraduate years of study at university.

Finally, I want to recognize two other groups of outstanding students at the University of Manitoba. While I would like to acknowledge each by name, there are far too many to do so.

In September, I attended a reception celebrating more than 400 President’s Scholars. I was moved by the level of intelligence and social commitment of these young people.

In order to be a President’s Scholar, a student must enter the University of Manitoba with a minimum average of 95 per cent. In order to retain this distinction, an individual must achieve a 4.0 Grade Point Average.

I also want to recognize our 1,043 University 1 Honour Roll students. These are University 1 students who have an average of 3.5 or better. This is one of the largest honour roll classes in our university’s history.

Past behaviour is often the best predictor of future behaviour so I look forward to even more success in the future.

Throughout our university’s history, many outstanding people have had their lives transformed by their experience at the University of Manitoba. Their success requires the commitment of family, faculty, staff, alumni as well as our community and government partners.

The students we are celebrating today are not only continuing that tradition of excellence, they are taking us to new and exciting places.   It is a privilege for us to work together in the same community of scholars with these students.