Congratulations to Dr. Marianne McTavish on receiving a 2021 ABCDE Teacher Educator Award
The Association of British Columbia Deans of Education (ABCDE) recognizes exceptional individuals at their annual Teacher Education Roundtable, where the Teacher Educator Award is presented to an individual or individuals at the school- or university-level who have distinguished themselves in partnering with a teacher education program in British Columbia.
Dr. McTavish, Associate Dean, Teacher Education and Professor of Teaching, Department of Language and Literacy Education, has been a passionate, inspirational and influential educator for more than 30 years. Her research and scholarship in literacy learning in the 21st century have deeply informed her substantive contributions to the Faculty’s teacher education program. As a member of the CREATE team that designed the BEd program that launched in 2013, Dr. McTavish ensured that changing notions of literacy in the 21st century and related courses were included in the new program, and she continues to ensure that the program’s courses reflect current research and practice. She also remains an active researcher, having just completed a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) partnership grant focusing on children’s oral language and writing development through play.
To learn more about Dr. McTavish’s work, research and publications, visit her profile.
To learn more about 2021 ABCDE Teacher Educator Award recipient, Anne MacLean, Lecturer, Okanagan School of Education, UBC Faculty of Education, visit the School’s announcement page.
Congratulations to Dr. William (Bill) Sheel on his appointment as a Distinguished University Scholar
Dr. William (Bill) Sheel, Professor, School of Kinesiology, UBC Faculty of Education, has been appointed as a Distinguished University Scholar in UBC for his innovative research examining the intersections of age, sex and gender and the effects of exercise on human health.
Every two years, a select group of ten exceptional University faculty members who have distinguished themselves as scholars in research or teaching and learning receive this honoured appointment. The President confers the designation on the recommendation of a University adjudication panel.
“My research investigates the need to understand potential sex-based differences in breathlessness symptoms and their underlying mechanisms… Understanding what is ‘normal’ in healthy older women is especially important from a clinical perspective given that many diseases of the heart and lungs occur in older individuals.” – Dr. Sheel
To learn more about Dr. Sheel’s work, research and publications, visit his profile.
The Faculty of Education invites faculty, emeriti, staff, students, alum, colleagues and friends to celebrate ten years of the leadership of Dr. Blye Frank, Professor and Dean.
Host
Dr. Lynn Bosetti, Professor, Okanagan School of Education
Members
Dr. Jo-ann Archibald
Dr. Lynn Bosetti
Ms. Faustina Cheung
Ms. Harpreet Dhillon
Ms. Katy Ellsworth
Dr. Mona Gleason
Mr. Michael Murphy
Ms. Kristin Schuppener
Dr. Patricia Vertinsky
Mr. John Yamamoto
We offer our sincere thanks to the Advisory Committee under whose guidance this event was structured.
In the spirit of fun and in keeping with the Dean's verbal and sartorial proclivities, we invite you to select one of our custom Zoom backgrounds below and use it as your virtual background during the event. If you would care to wear your favourite zany pair of glasses, or to pop your collar, you are very welcome to do so.
Where: The event has since concluded; thank you for your interest.
Time: 4:30 P.M. – 6:00 P.M. PDT
The Fraser River Discovery Centre (FRDC) is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to bring together the many voices of the Fraser to discover, celebrate, and inspire passionate stewards of the river. Environmental education is one of the pillars at the FRDC. Join our educators as we share strategies for place-based learning that can be applied in your classroom, school grounds, or local parks. Create your own phenology chart and share ideas for adapting the activity for students. Connect with educators and learn more about the programs available at the Discovery Centre and online.
This event is open to all educators and is most applicable for teachers of grades 3 to 9.
Presenters:
Danika Didur-Tate is the Education Programs Manager at the Fraser River Discovery Centre. She is a dedicated environmental educator with two bachelor’s degrees and a master’s degree in the field, and nearly a decade of professional experience.
Karen Lee BA’01, BEd’03, MEd’20 is a secondary school teacher and a passionate educator in formal and informal settings who has helped to support the professional practice of teachers throughout B.C. She is currently Director of Operations at the FRDC.
Congratulations to Dr. Blye Frank, Dean and Professor, on his 2021 Distinguished Alumni Award from the Acadia Alumni Association
“I can think of no one who has contributed more to educational and social research, civic duty, an agent of change for equity and social justice, transformational leadership in the administration and business of university faculties, and systemic change at the community level. Quite simply, there are few leaders like Dr. Frank who have the strength of will to serve as an ongoing champion for those most at risk and the talent to influence others to join the quest for deep systemic change.”
Nancy Pynch Worthylake, Executive Director, Canadian School Boards Association
Dr. Frank has enjoyed an outstanding career as a teacher, mentor, researcher, educator, trailblazer and administrator. He completed degrees at Acadia University—BA (’77), BEd (’77), MEd (’81)—and a PhD from Dalhousie University (’90). He also holds a Diploma in Education, a Teaching Certificate in the Province of Nova Scotia, and is a Certified Canadian Counselor.
Throughout his academic career, Dr. Frank has been a Lecturer, Adjunct Professor, Assistant Professor, Professor, Head of the Division of Medical Education and also the Department of Bioethics in Dalhousie University’s Faculty of Medicine. Currently, Dr. Frank leads the UBC Faculty of Education in his second term as Dean.
“[I] always encouraged and facilitated an environment of mutual respect and critical reflection for diverse learners through the application of new pedagogical theories and practices based on research excellence.”
Dr. Blye Frank, Dean and Professor, UBC Faculty of Education
His pedagogical and leadership work in equity, diversity and inclusion in teacher and health care education is grounded in extensive and ongoing scholarship, and his tireless efforts have earned considerable accolades and attention. In addition to being named this year’s Distinguished Alumni Award recipient, Dr. Frank has received the Mount Saint Vincent University Award for Research, the Mount Saint Vincent University Alumnae Award for Teaching, the Association of Atlantic Universities Distinguished Teacher Award for Excellence in Teaching, and the prestigious May Cohen Gender Equity Award from the Association of Faculties of Medicine in Canada in recognition of outstanding effort for achievement in improving the gender equity environment in academic medicine in Canada.
“…his personal and professional commitment to helping others is a testament to all… He is someone to whom we can all aspire, and we are proud to celebrate him…”
– Donalda MacBeath, President of the Acadia Alumni Association
Congratulations to the recipients of UBC’s Faculty Research Awards, including faculty members Dr. Candace Galla and Dr. Ryuko Kubota.
UBC KILLAM RESEARCH FELLOW
Enabling faculty to pursue full-time research during a recognized study leave
Junior Category – award categories are based on the number of years since PhD completion
Dr. Candace Galla
Associate Professor, UBC Faculty of Education
Dr. Galla’s research explores what types of technology initiatives (low, mid, or high) Indigenous language communities are using to revitalize, maintain, and promote their language.
Born in Hilo, Hawaiʻi and raised in a sugar plantation town, Pahala, in Kaʻū, Hawaiʻi, Dr. Galla was exposed to an array of languages and cultures from a young age. She continued learning about her Hawaiian language and culture formally at Kamehameha Schools on Kapālama campus in Honolulu. Upon graduation, she attended the University of Arizona, where she received a BA in Linguistics, MA in Native American Linguistics and a PhD in Language, Reading and Culture. While she resided in Tucson, Arizona, she was the Program Coordinator of the American Indian Language Development Institute (AILDI). The program reignited her passion of her culture and inspired her dissertation research on Indigenous language revitalization and technology. Afterward, Dr. Galla moved back to Hawaiʻi, where she was a Visiting Assistant Professor in Ka Haka ʻUla O Keʻelikōlani College of Hawaiian Language at the University of Hawaiʻi in Hilo. There, she taught linguistics courses, including Introduction to Linguistics and Indigenous Languages of the United States.
To learn more about Dr. Galla’s work, visit her profile page.
UBC KILLAM RESEARCH PRIZE
Recognizing outstanding research and scholarly contributions
Arts and Humanities: Senior Category – award categories and adjudication based on number of years since PhD completion and main source of Tri-agency research funding
Dr. Ryuko Kubota
Professor, UBC Faculty of Education
Dr. Kubota’s research focuses on critical approaches to culture, race, and pedagogy in language education.
Dr. Kubota is a co-editor of Race, culture, and identities in second language education: Exploring critically engaged practice (2009) and Demystifying career paths after graduate school: A guide for second language professionals in higher education (2012). Her publications have also appeared in Applied Linguistics, Critical Inquiry in Language Studies, Journal of Second Language Writing, Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, Linguistics and Education, TESOL Quarterly, and other journals. She has also published many book chapters and publications in Japanese.
To learn more about Dr. Kubota’s work, visit her profile page.
The Office of the VP, Research and Innovation will be hosting an online celebration on May 11, 2021 to acknowledge the achievements of our researchers in 2020 and 2019. For more information, please visit UBC’s Faculty Research Awards page.
Congratulations to this year’s award winners and nominees
Award winners
Emerging Leader: Kai Kaufman, Research Coordinator, Kinesiology
Outstanding Service: Jesse Liang, Administrative Manager, ECPS
Nominees
Kristin Schuppener, Administrative and Operations Manager, OSE
Natalie Simkin, Program Administrative Support, NITEP
Vicki Domansky, Senior Program Assistant, PDCE
Congratulations to Dr. Leyton Schnellert, Associate Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Pedagogy, on his reappointment as Eleanor Rix Professor for Rural Teacher Education for a second three-year term beginning September 1, 2021
The mandate of the Eleanor Rix Professorship is to better understand and respond to current problems and needs that exist in rural education, and to recruit, prepare and support new and practicing teachers who work in small and rural communities in British Columbia.
Dr. Schnellert’s funded studies include Growing Innovation in Rural Sites of Learning (SSHRC), Co-composing an embedded, land-based Coast Salish immersion middle school (Vancouver Foundation), and Working towards relational accountability through local Indigenous ways of knowing and being (SSHRC). These projects were developed with rural and Indigenous communities, educators, and researchers to recognize and nurture place-conscious and culturally sustaining pedagogies.
Dr. Schnellert is co-chair of British Columbia’s Rural Education Advisory, academic advisor to the West Kootenay Rural Teacher Education Program, and coordinator of the Practitioner Inquiry and Place-Conscious Pedagogies M.Ed. Program. His recent publications include the edited book, Professional learning networks: Facilitating transformation in diverse contexts with equity-seeking communities; book chapter, Place-consciousness and education change networks to empower rural learners in Corbett and Gereluk’s Rural teacher education: Connecting land and people; and article, In situ hybrid spaces as generative sites for teacher preparation in McGill Journal of Education.
To learn more about Dr. Schnellert’s work, research and publications, visit his profile.
The UBC Faculty of Education ranked 10th in the world by QS World University Rankings for 2021.
This stellar ranking reflects the dedication and support of the Faculty’s leading researchers, faculty, students, staff, donors and more, as well as our commitment to inclusion and innovation.
To learn more about education and training QS World University Rankings, visit their rankings webpage.
To learn how QS World University Rankings compiles rankings, visit their methodology webpage.
