Maclean’s 2023 Rankings

Maclean’s 2023 Rankings

By helen mclaughlin

October 31, 2022

The UBC Faculty of Education has tied for first place for education programs in Canada in the annual Maclean’s University Rankings—ranking #1 for both research and program reputation.

Maclean’s eighth annual program rankings assess programs and research from a reputation perspective. Maclean’s contacted faculty and senior administrators at universities across Canada. Maclean’s asked academics if their area of expertise was in business, computer science, education, engineering or nursing. If so, they were asked to list up to 10 universities that they felt offered the best programs and conducted the best research in their discipline. In the end, more than 800 professors, deans and chairs at 70 universities responded.

To learn more about Maclean’s rankings for education programs in Canada, visit their rankings page.

To learn more about Maclean’s methodology for program rankings, visit their methodology page.

Exploring Mental Health: Wellness at Work and Beyond | November 22, 2022

By avril hwang

About the Session

This session is an opportunity to explore wellness at work. We will discuss the continuum of mental health, define wellness for ourselves, and identify strategies for mental wellness at work and beyond. Whether you want to learn more about mental health, your own wellness, or how to support your colleagues when they’re struggling, you’re invited to join us for this engaging lunch and learn.

Speaker

Maux Elworthy is a facilitator, teacher, coach, and death doula who enjoys bringing people together to talk about what’s really happening. Her professional experience includes over 15 years working in mental health, managing a crisis line, training and supervising dozens of frontline workers, certifying hundreds of first responders in suicide intervention, and providing corporate change management on large-scale tech projects. She weaves knowledge of change theory, somatic experiencing, and experiential learning into her work supporting workplace mental health at organizations across North America.

Date

Tuesday, November 22, 2022

Time

11:30 am–2:00 pm PT (lunch will be served at 11:30 am, and the formal session will start at 12 pm)

Location

Ponderosa Ballroom, 6445 University Boulevard, Vancouver campus

For UBC Okanagan staff members, the Zoom link will be sent via email in advance of the event.

RSVP

Community Update | October 2022

By avril hwang

October 2022 | published once each term

Message from Dr. Jan Hare, Dean pro tem

Watch the video recording here.

Aanii—Greetings! I hope that the unfolding of the new academic year has now settled into a productive rhythm for you and your communities.

Here in the UBC Faculty of Education, our collective efforts have been turned towards finding solutions to the challenges that we face as individuals and as a society—addressing racism and other forms of oppression, encouraging physical activity and health, and finding new ways for learners to connect with each other and with the programs they need.

There are so many ways in which the UBC Faculty of Education contributes to creating and sustaining thriving societies. I am filled with gratitude for the work we are able to do, while recognizing that our approach must be grounded in compassion, diversity, inclusion, and decolonization, as well as supported by creativity and excellence. I invite you to learn more about the scholars, students and community members who are helping to advance education’s role in the well-being of people and communities by following the links below.

I am delighted to share with you that three members of the School of Kinesiology were recently honoured. Dr. Erica Bennett received a 2022 President’s Award from the North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity. Kinesiology undergraduate Lynda Li will receive the Thomas Clarkson Gray Gold Medal at the 2022 Undergraduate Awards Global Summit, the world’s leading pan-discipline, undergraduate research awards program. Learn more about Lynda’s work. Dr. Rosalin Miles, a Research Associate in the School of Kinesiology and a member of the Lytton First Nation, received Alumni UBC’s Volunteer Leadership Award for her work in promoting physical activity within Indigenous communities.

Earlier this year, I was privileged to receive a Spencer Foundation grant to support the creation of a symposium on Indigenous-led Teacher Education in Global and Local Contexts. This initiative was uplifted with support from Canada’s Rideau Hall Foundation. Our Faculty of Education hosted the symposium earlier this month, with scholars and educators from 14 Indigenous teacher education programs from Canada, Norway, Australia and the US. One of the outcomes of the symposium will be a research agenda that will establish research questions and key issues in Indigenous-led teacher education, based on priorities identified by scholars, teacher educators, students and community members taking part in the symposium. Learn more about the symposium and planned outcomes.

Following are a few more Faculty of Education initiatives that I am especially proud of.

Reconciliation and Decolonization Alumni Award
As part of the Faculty of Education’s recognition of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, we announced a new Reconciliation Alumni Award, which will honour alumni who have demonstrated leadership, integrity, respect, and commitment to furthering decolonization efforts or reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples or communities. If you know a UBC alum who has done extraordinary work in this area, please consider nominating them. More

Orange Shirt Installation
Next time you visit the UBC campus, I invite you to drop by the Neville Scarfe Building to view our new Orange Shirt installation, consisting of hundreds of tiny, lovingly crafted orange shirts and sweaters. Each little garment represents a child who did not return home from residential school or a Survivor who was forever changed by their experiences. The installation, led by Drs. Leddy, Renwick, and Miller, will help keep Indigenous concerns and histories at the forefront of teacher-candidates’ thinking as they learn what it means to become a a culturally responsive educator in British Columbia. More

Rural and Remote Teacher Education Program
This August, the Faculty of Education launched a new Rural and Remote Teacher Education Program with a cohort of 25 students from rural and remote communities across BC. The first of its kind in the province, the two-year program offers students the unique opportunity to complete a Bachelor of Education degree through a blended model, attending in-person sessions at the UBC Learning Centre in Nelson for one month each summer and online sessions in their home communities from September to June. The program fosters a decolonial and equity-oriented stance both in its structure and pedagogy. More

Celebrating 10 Years of B.A.R.K.
The Okanagan School of Education’s B.A.R.K. (or Building Academic Retention thru K9’s) program celebrated 10 years on the Okanagan campus this year. The program explores the role of therapy dogs in fostering wellbeing on campus and in the community. To celebrate this milestone achievement, B.A.R.K hosted a variety of events and activities throughout September, including a joint yoga session with UBCO Recreation. More

Master of Educational Technology (MET) Program 20th Anniversary
September 2022 marked the 20th anniversary of the launch of UBC’s Master of Educational Technology Program. MET is distinguished as the first fully online program at UBC, originally developed by the Faculty of Education in partnership with UBC’s Distance Education and Technology (DET) unit and Tec de Monterrey (Mexico). Since 2009 it has been entirely administered through UBC’s Faculty of Education, and has gained a reputation for excellence among graduate programs in Educational Technology worldwide. Learn more about MET and the events and activities happening over the next year to celebrate its 20 years.

Espaces francophones on the Okanagan campus
In September, the Okanagan School of Education and the Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies launched Espaces francophones, an initiative that will offer French-language cultural and social activities to UBCO students with the goal of highlighting and facilitating spaces for Francophone socialization and exchange. This project was made possible by funding from Patrimoine canadien/Canadian Heritage. More

Bringing Indigenous knowledges into mental health supports
Dr. Johanna Sam, a member of the Tŝilhqot’in Nation, and her research team are listening to the experiences of diverse youth to help them develop coping strategies for cyberbullying. Researchers know that cyberbullying impacts youth mental health and can lead to anxiety, depression and substance use. But they do not know if Indigenous youth are being targeted differently than other youth—through hate speech or online discrimination, for example. They also do not know how best to help them cope. Learn more about how Dr. Sam’s research is helping communities, schools and parents better target mental health supports and develop programs and policies to promote healthy device use.

Understanding and promoting physical activity in BC
The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need for renewed and strengthened systems to promote physical activity in BC. The School of Kinesiology’s Dr. Guy Faulkner and his research team were recently awarded Michael Smith Health Research funding for their project Group Sense Making and Model Building for Mapping Systems for the Promotion of Population Physical Activity in British Columbia. The team has already completed a scoping review to assess the systems supporting physical activity, and will soon convene multi-sectoral stakeholder meetings to make recommendations on policy, practice and research needs to strengthen existing systems. More

Professional learning opportunity: Culturally Responsive Mathematics Assessment
Educators are invited to explore the nature of culturally responsive mathematics education through connections to land, story, community and mathematics. Throughout this three-part, online series, we look to nature and Indigenous perspectives to conceptualize learning that includes cycles of feedback (with self, others, environment, and materials) and discuss approaches and principles for culturally responsive mathematics assessment.

Session 1: November 2, 2022 | 3:30–4:45 pm PT | More

Dean’s Community Engagement Series: Strength-Focused Approaches to Promoting Wellness Among IBPoC Youth in Schools
Join Dr. Jan Hare for the second annual Dean’s Community Engagement Series, highlighting key questions and significant priorities engaging educators today. This virtual session will feature Dr. Farzana Saleem of Stanford University and Marcel Cadogan of David Brankin Elementary School discussing strategies to support the wellbeing and success of racially diverse children and adolescents in the K-12 education system.

November 15, 2022 | 4:30–6:00 pm PT | Via Zoom | More

Anti-Racism Speaker Series
Human Rights Commissioner Kasari Govender: Systemic Racism in Policing from a Human Rights Lens
In 2021, BC’s Human Rights Commission released a comprehensive analysis of policing and arrest data, along with recommendations about reforms to address the racism and discrimination against Indigenous and Black people revealed in the report. On November 24, join the Faculty of Education’s Anti-Racism Speaker Series as we hear Human Rights Commissioner Kasari Govender examining the issue of racism in policing through a human rights lens.

November 24, 2022 | 5:00–6:00 pm PT | More

 

Indigenous-Led Teacher Education in Local and Global Contexts: Setting Research Priorities and New Directions

By avril hwang

October 17, 2022

Indigenous teachers play a significant role in creating environments that are culturally responsive, empowering, inclusive of Indigenous knowledges, and promote decolonization and educational sovereignty in classrooms and communities.

To build on these strengths, the Faculty of Education hosted a three-day symposium that brought together Indigenous teacher education programs (ITEPs) around the world, including Nunavut Arctic College, University of Alberta, McGill University, University of Victoria, York University, University of Winnipeg, University of Oregon (USA), University of Arizona (USA), University of New Mexico (USA), Sami University of Applied Sciences (Norway), James Cook University (Australia), Curtin University (Australia), and La Trobe University (Australia).

From October 13 to 15, 2022, symposium participants worked to identify key insights and knowledge gaps concerned with developing, implementing and measuring success and community-defined impact of ITEPs. They shared their strategies, challenges and success through discussion circles, presentations, and structured dialogues.

One of the outcomes of the symposium will be a report that will detail a research agenda for Indigenous teacher education and draw on critical dialogues, knowledge co-creation and symposium activities. It will also help guide research directions and establish research questions and key issues in Indigenous teacher education, based on priorities identified by scholars, teacher educators, students and community members taking part in the symposium, as well as those conducting research in this critical area of development.

Dr. Jan Hare, Dean pro tem, received a Spencer Foundation grant to support the creation of the symposium. More.

Dr. Guy Faulkner receives Michael Smith Health Research Funding

By avril hwang

October 17, 2022

Congratulations to the School of Kinesiology’s Dr. Guy Faulkner and his research team, who were recently awarded Michael Smith Health Research funding for their project Group Sense Making and Model Building for Mapping Systems for the Promotion of Population Physical Activity in British Columbia.

The COVID-19 pandemic and climate crises have emphasized the need for renewed and strengthened systems to promote population physical activity in BC. This need, coupled with calls for using complex systems methods, forms the basis for the proposed activities of Dr. Guy Faulkner and his team.

Complexity can be seen as the context where numerous interacting elements (i.e., people, entities, actions) in a system make it hard to see, describe, and assess what is happening in the whole. Complex systems methods are a way to gain clarity on complex problems and complex interventions by focusing on the patterns of what the system does or how it behaves.

Dr. Faulkner notes that he thinks of a complex system “as like a spider’s web in how everything is interconnected. A disruption at one point in the web has an impact that reaches all points of the web. A complex systems methods approach might try and map that web and look at what happens when there are disruptions or when connections are strengthened throughout.”

Led by Dr. Lori Baugh Littlejohns, a CIHR-IPPH & MSHR Health System Impact Fellow in the School of Kinesiology, the project will work with partners and stakeholders to identify leverage points for strengthening systems (or “connections in the web”) for population-level physical activity in BC. One example is thinking about how kids get to and from school—walking to school can be an important source of physical activity—but is this an issue for the education, transport, or public health sectors? Dr. Faulkner notes that arguably, it’s all of these sectors, but it is important for us to know whether their efforts are coordinated in supporting safe and active school travel.

Faculty Recognition Celebration | January 19, 2023

By avril hwang

Event Description

Faculty, staff and instructors are invited to attend the Faculty of Education’s Faculty Recognition Celebration, celebrating faculty members’ achievements in research, teaching and service and staff members’ achievements in service.

Dr. Jan Hare, Dean pro tem, will host the event, which will feature a wine-and-cheese reception as well as the award recognition ceremony. Dr. Patsy Duff, Associate Dean, Research, will recognize research award recipients; Dr. Karen Ragoonaden, Associate Dean, Teacher Education, will recognize teaching and leadership awards; and Dr. Reg D’Silva, Associate Dean, Equity and Strategic Programs, and Dr. Laura Hurd, Associate Dean, Faculty Affairs, will jointly recognize service awards for faculty members and staff.

Date

January 19, 2023

Time

3:30 to 5:30 pm PT

Location

Ponderosa Commons Ballroom, Ponderosa Commons North, 6445 University Blvd, Vancouver B.C.

Host

Dr. Jan Hare, Dean pro tem

RSVP

Registration is closed.

Strength-Focused Approaches to Promoting Wellness Among IBPoC Youth in Schools | November 15, 2022

By abby blinch

Join Dr. Jan Hare, UBC’s Dean of Education, pro tem, for the second annual Dean’s Community Engagement Series, highlighting key questions and significant priorities engaging educators today.

This virtual session will feature Dr. Farzana Saleem of Stanford University and Marcel Cadogan of the Surrey School District. Together they will discuss strategies to support the wellbeing and success of racially diverse children and adolescents in the K-12 education system. They will share research and experience on managing racial stressors as well as promoting resilience among IBPoC children and adolescents to eradicate racial mental health disparities.

Dr. Surita Jhangiani from the Faculty of Education will facilitate the Q&A.

Event Details

Date: November 15, 2022
Time: 4:30-6:00pm PDT
Format: Online via Zoom

Learn more about the 2022-2023 Dean’s Community Engagement Series

Watch the Recording

About Dr. Farzana Saleem


Dr. Saleem is trained as a clinical-community psychologist and am a Professor in the Graduate School of Education at Stanford University. Her research examines the influence of racial stressors and culturally relevant practices on the psychological health, academic success, and well-being of Black adolescents and other youth of color.

Dr. Saleem uses a strengths-based and community-centered lens in her work to study the process and benefits of ethnic-racial socialization (i.e., transmission of information about race, culture, and strategies to prepare for and respond to racism) within families and schools. Dr. Saleem also explores factors in the family, school, and community contexts that can disrupt racial stress and trauma and the consequences.

Her clinical expertise focuses on culturally responsive trauma practices and identity concerns among adolescents. Dr. Saleem translates research to inform, develop, and adapt of tools and interventions that promote racial healing, eradicate mental health and academic racial disparities, and foster psychological health and identity among youth of color.

Dr. Saleem is a visiting scholar to the American Psychological Association RESilience Initiative and serves in several positions focused on inclusion, equity and social justice.

Also, Dr. Saleem is a self-proclaimed dessert connoisseur!

 

About Marcel Cadogan


Marcel is first generation Canadian-born with Caribbean heritage (Trinidad and Barbados). He is strongly connected to his Caribbean background and is immersed within the community.

Academically, Marcel holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Child and Youth Care with a child welfare specialization, a Bachelor’s Degree in Education and a Master’s Degree in Education, School Counselling. Professionally, Marcel has worked in BC school districts (primarily, Surrey) for over 15 years in different capacities, including Youth Care Worker, Teacher and Counsellor. Currently, Marcel works as a School Counsellor in addition to running his own private practice in the community.

Marcel has passion and understanding for the importance of racial and ethnic identity as well as the obstacles that are apparent for those of a minority racial/ethnic background. Having grown up in B.C., Marcel is aware of the challenges and the support needed for the identity development of young black students and students of color in contexts where they are the minority. It is his goal to provide strategies, awareness and understanding on how to support these students within the school system.

Marcel loves being connected to his Caribbean influence and culture through family, community, music, cricket and dominoes. Marcel enjoys movies, cooking, listening to music, playing basketball and golf during his down time. Traveling to new countries, learning about other cultures and meeting new people has been a blessing for Marcel over the years.

Marcel looks to be a voice and advocate for those in his communities and the youth he supports.

 

About Dr. Surita Jhangiani


Dr. Jhangiani joined the Faculty of Education in 2017 as a lecturer in the Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology and Special Education (ECPS).

In 2019 she was promoted to tenure–track Instructor in Human Development, Learning and Culture.

Dr. Jhangiani has taught at Capilano University and the Justice Institute of British Columbia. Dr. Jhangiani’s teaching specializations are lifespan development, diversity, and critical pedagogy.

Dr. Erica Bennett receives the 2022 President’s Award from the North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity

By helen mclaughlin

October 5, 2022

We are delighted to share that UBC Faculty of Education’s School of Kinesiology Assistant Professor Dr. Erica Bennett has received a 2022 President’s Award from the North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity.

The North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity (NASPSPA) is one of the leading international organizations in kinesiology comprising scholars from across the globe in the areas of behavioral sciences and related professions.

Photo of Dr. Erica Bennett

The NASPSPA President’s Award recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to the development and growth of the society.

In 2022, the award was presented to the members of the NASPSPA Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Task Force.

We have learned a lot from the committee members’ perspectives and courage to speak to social justice issues that can be challenging to raise. Dr. Bennett is clearly a leader in the field in this area.
— President Jackie Goodway, Past President Meghan McDonough, & Executive Director Penny McCullagh

The task force designed ways to measure and learn about the diversity of the society’s membership, developed recommendations to improve policies and practices, and spearheaded collaborative efforts with other academic societies in the field to make NASPSPA’s conferences, journals, and other scholarly activities more equitable and inclusive.

I am honoured to receive this award alongside my peers who serve on the NASPSPA EDI Task Force. It is because of the work of those before us, of the support from the NASPSPA leadership, and of the time and energy of community members who have and continue to share with us their experiences and suggestions for change and advocacy that we are able to work together to build a more inclusive NASPSPA community.
— Dr. Erica Bennett

Dr. Bennett’s work—grounded in critical and community approaches to physical activity psychology—attends to the psychological, behavioural, and sociocultural factors shaping physical activity and health-related adaptational processes across the life course. Her work centers on the physical activity experiences of individuals living with chronic illness and disabilities, physical (in)activity and the aging body, and elite athlete stress, emotion, and coping.

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Erica Bennett on this remarkable achievement!

Submit to the Alumni Newsletter

By virginia tung

The Alumni Newsletter would love to feature your submissions! Use the form below to submit news articles, recent publications, upcoming events, awards, and more!

Contact us with any questions at education.alumni@ubc.ca

United Way Chilli Lunch Fundraiser | November 8, 2022

By milena constanda

United Way chilli lunch promo depicting a bowl of chilli and corn bread

Join us for a United Way chilli lunch fundraiser! Cost includes a bowl of chilli and corn bread. There will also be baked goods and drinks for an extra cost. Vegan and gluten-free options will be available.

We hope you will drop by and grab lunch for a good cause – event will run while supplies last!

Details

Date: Tuesday, November 8, 2022
Time: 12PM – 1:30PM
Cost: $10 entrance fee
Room: Staff Lounge, 4th floor

About United Way

The United Way is a non-profit organization working to strengthen vital connections that support people in need in our local communities. The United Way BC works with communities in BC’s Interior, Lower Mainland and Central & Northern Vancouver Island.
Learn more: unitedway.ubc.ca

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