The only full-time faculty member in her department, Ann Braithwaite has grown her program from a minor in Women’s Studies to a thriving and innovative major in Diversity and Social Justice Studies. Her influence has shaped the course of women’s and gender studies at universities across North America, both through her co-written introductory textbook that radically redefines how we think about teaching introductory courses, and as a highly sought- after reviewer for programs that want to redefine their curriculum. Both at her university and beyond, she publishes, presents, and gives workshops on rethinking the Arts, on decolonizing the curriculum, and on embedding good principles for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in our classrooms.

Her courses have inviting and challenging titles such as “Identities and Place,” “Love and Labour,” “Monsters, Freaks, Zombies, and Cyborgs,” “Race and Whiteness.” Students complete “Selfie projects” that ask them to reflect on the connection between identity and place; later in their academic careers, they design and give workshops for government employees on accessibility – workshops which have inspired real change in the community – or research and design their own course outlines. This work with her students insists that they are true partners in knowledge creation. As her colleagues suggest, “Ann Braithwaite is an extraordinary colleague, someone who works with infectious and generative joy to build questioning and inclusive communities.”

Andrea Davis knows that “unlearning” can be as important as learning when we are faced with entrenched social injustice. Her teaching and leadership are working towards a new kind of university, one where people not only feel welcome, but are able to recognize themselves and their cultures in the classroom and curriculum.

Dr. Davis is leading extraordinary changes at York University, creating new programs in Black Studies that are the first of their kind in Canada. She does this as a distinguished teacher and scholar of the humanities, helping move the institutional focus from anti-racism, to one that centres the intellectual achievements and legacies of racialized peoples in their own right.

Her students revere her, for making space in her classroom – building “communities of Learners”, she calls it – that allow her students to take risks. Through innovative teaching strategies that encourage and reward their involvement in cultural and community activities, she provides opportunities for them to present and share their work.

Indeed, many students thank her for enabling them to experience university in the first place. She plays a central role in supporting learning pathways from high school to university, and then from undergraduate programs to graduate school. As one of her students says, it was Dr. Davis’ “encouragement and unwavering support” that gave her the confidence to go on to post graduate work.

John Dawson is a teacher who “refuses to let the students get away with just going through the motions of biochemistry!” He welcomes fun, inquiry and reflection into his classroom. For decades Professor Dawson has been engaging students in the art and craft of creative problem solving in Biochemistry and Biology Education with contagious enthusiasm and caring for his students’ learning.

From the earliest phase of John’s career, he has been actively involved in improving the curriculum and the learning environment at the University of Guelph. An innovative, early adopter of technology in the classroom he has developed tools such as an open-source textbook to eliminate the high cost of textbooks, and sparked the renowned peer evaluation, assessment, and review (PEAR) tool. Recently, as the founding director of the College of Biological Sciences’ Office of Educational Scholarship and Practice, John has empowered his colleagues to go beyond the norms of their discipline. He shares his innovative classroom practices to benefit learners and colleagues alike, both on campus and through his extensive publications on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning.

A previous student and now current faculty member notes, “I am so fortunate to have had John continue to influence my own story.” Professor Dawson strives to understand the needs of instructors and students alike and respond in a meaningful way. He is known as a powerful mentor who strikes just the right balance between providing direction and letting his students figure it out their own way. John lives by the motto “see a need, fill a need”.

Chantal Gibson is an award-winning teacher and nationally acclaimed artist and writer whose anti-racism and decolonizing work is making an impact in her classrooms and in schools and cultural institutions across Canada.

A self-described teacher-artist, Gibson’s pedagogy of kindness, inclusion, and human-centred teaching practices are motivated by recollections of her own classroom encounters with anti-Black racism as an undergraduate student. As classroom citizens, Gibson’s students, media artists, designers, and computer programmers, are asked to grapple with cultural or societal issues related to their interests. Her deep impact on her students led one to say, “Thank you for being so empathetic and using your powerful platform as a teacher to exemplify what education should be like…it’s teachers like you whose positivity and belief in their students that inspire others to do well and aim to learn for the sake of knowledge.”

As an artist-scholar, Gibson has reached national prominence. Her poetry book, How She Read (Caitlin, 2019) challenges the colonial classroom and the representation of Black women across the Canadian cultural landscape. Now on secondary and post-secondary school readings lists, it won the 2020 Pat Lowther Award for Best Book of Poetry by a Canadian woman, and the 2020 Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize (BC).

Her Historical In(ter)ventions series of black threaded altered book sculptures challenge systemic racism in Canada, highlighting the omission of Black voices. Shown in libraries, museums and galleries, and most recently the Senate of Canada, her work asks Canadians to consider the why behind Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion initiatives.

Dietmar Kennepohl’s innovative approach to education, his willingness to continually assess and reassess his own performance, and his passion for undergraduate teaching and lifelong learning help him to bring out the best in all his students.

The four principles of his educational philosophy—openness, persistence, seeking evidence, and celebrating differences—resonate with his students. As one of them observed, “He is aware that all students learn differently, and he definitely makes sure everyone benefits from knowledge transfer that needs to occur.”

As an educator at an online university, an innovative approach is essential—and in this area Dietmar shines. The rigour of the home-based laboratory kits he designed is widely recognized. One colleague said, “His work…dispelled the myth that home labs are just kitchen chemistry.” For lab equipment too heavy to ship to students, remote labs provide students anywhere in the world with the opportunity to do quantitative experiments.

Dietmar’s award-winning Wiki textbook saves his students money and empowers them to use their own knowledge and written contributions to help improve the learning experience of others.

His drive to provide open access educational resources for students within and outside his university to increase accessibility is notable.  His leadership and outreach extend beyond his discipline and Athabasca University to work with national non-profit organizations promoting teaching undergraduate chemistry at the college and university level and to collaborations and impact in countries around the world.

Dietmar is an internationally recognized leader in STEM teaching, a builder of relationships, and a strong advocate for effective, accessible online learning.

Dr. Sarah-Myriam Martin-Brûlé has been recognized for her extraordinary contribution to the education of Bishop’s students. As an expert on United Nations peacekeeping, she connects with communities and UN teams in places as diverse as the Central African Republic, Mali, Democratic Republic of Congo, and South Sudan. An innovative and dynamic leader in the classroom, across her institution, regionally, and on the international stage, Sarah-Myriam mentors with empathy to empower learners to engage with complex theoretical concepts and policies and to better understand their applications in real-world contexts.

Through simulations and gaming, she creates safe spaces to engage her students with the multi-layered issues involved in peacekeeping and peace building. The roleplaying in these experiential learning activities encourages students to adopt positions they might not otherwise take, to inhabit another’s world and develop understanding from multiple perspectives. Sarah-Myriam’s innovative approaches to teaching, leadership, and research connect people in knowledge sharing networks, resulting in better engaged, knowledgeable citizens who are committed to life-long learning and to building safer communities whether locally, regionally, or on a global scale. One former student shared that Dr. Martin-Brûlé “created such a community within her classes that years later her students have created a network where they continue to share experiences and support one another in their careers.”

Mark Schneider’s philosophy of educational leadership is a natural extension of his desire to support student success. This desire is reflected in Mark’s continuous collaboration with colleagues locally, nationally, and internationally.

Mark’s teaching philosophy is grounded in the belief that, with support, everyone who wants to learn can learn. In the words of one of his students, “the math Mark taught me was only part of my lesson when I took his class. Mark taught me confidence, to embrace and enjoy a challenge, and to pursue a dream.”

Mark continuously aims to provide inclusive and accessible learning environments and is passionate about supporting students building confidence in their own abilities. Or, in the words of one of his students, “Mark was so generous and sincere in his effort and desired to help every student in that room to succeed, and he was so skilled at supporting students at whatever level they were at.”

Mark contributes to the innovation of education in his department, in the institute and beyond. For students of NAIT’s Department of Mathematics, Mark has authored nine complete course books and made them available as an Open Educational Resource for students in those courses. He was also involved in the development of a complete 3D virtual house, which is currently used as a critical teaching and learning tool in various trades programs at NAIT.

Mark’s innovative work is in creating authentic assessments and openly sharing those resources with teachers from across the globe, impacting teaching and learning world-wide.

“Preeminent medical educator,” “mentor,” “role model” – These are just some of the ways Dr. Jonathan Sherbino’s contributions to education are described by students and colleagues. An Assistant Dean of the McMaster Education Research, Innovation and Theory (MERIT) program, Jonathan is a medical educator, emergency physician, education researcher, and academic leader.

As a teacher and educational leader, Jonathan combines theory and learning science to improve curricula and pedagogy in medical education. Jonathan led the redesign of all Canadian emergency medicine training programs for the Royal College of Physicians of Canada, improving national standards through the adoption of a competency-based medical education model. Sharing a philosophy that teaching is a form of coaching, Jonathan has also supported numerous cohorts of medical students build competence and confidence as physicians through supportive, problem-based, clinical teaching. As one student reflected, “Dr. Sherbino…helped me achieve not only a mastery of emergency medicine…but also a level of confidence…to pursue my interests outside of the…emergency room.”

Jonathan is an established international education researcher and innovator known for his creative use of technology. He is the co-creator of the Key Literature in Medical Education (KeyLIME) Podcast helping to translate the health professions education literature for thousands of educators around the world. Leading a research centre of scientists and scholars, Jonathan is committed to improving health professions education. “The work he is leading,” as one colleague summarized, “is influencing how undergraduate and graduate medical education is provided around the world.”

Dr. Anna Stokke is a mathematician and an ambassador for math education. Her passion for improving the way students at all levels learn math has inspired curriculum improvements provincially and nationally and led to higher university standards. Anna is determined to dispel the myth that some people are good at math while others are not.

Anna balances community service with a high level of administrative leadership, NSERC-funded research, innovative teaching, and numerous media interviews. Her contagious enthusiasm and reputation for teaching excellence regularly attract full attendance in lectures. She motivates students with fun math problems that reference pop-culture and helps them see their ability to embrace difficult concepts. “I lose track of time during her lectures,” said one of her students. “She makes extremely complicated material simple.” “She never falls short of perfection.”

In 2011, Anna co-founded the Western Initiative for Strengthening Education in Math (WISE Math) advocacy group to improve math education in Canada. This led to significant changes to the Manitoba K-8 math curriculum, inspired parents in three other provinces to advocate for change, and resulted in pre-service K-8 teachers in Manitoba being required to take more than one university math course.

Anna is co-founder of the non-profit Archimedes Math Schools after-school program where university students provide math support to school-aged students. She also worked with colleagues to create an open-source pre-calculus review workshop to help students improve math skills.

Anna’s belief that mathematics can and should be accessible to everyone has fueled an innovative change in math education at all levels.

Andrew Wilson is not only an inspiring teacher; he is also a community leader. He is not just an innovative educator whose transformative teaching has touched the lives of countless students; he is also an educational reformer whose collaborative leadership style has changed the conversation around education at Mount Allison university and in the surrounding community of Sackville, NB. Andrew’s guiding principle is “Together we’re smarter!” and this applies as much to his approach to teaching Religious Studies as it does to his vision of integrated learning communities.

As a teacher Andrew brings together normally separate categories such as popular culture and religious doctrine in order to break down artificial boundaries, shift perspectives, and create new and productive connections. Abstract ideas are made concrete through such tactile experiences as bookbinding, quilt-making, and walking journals.

As a community leader, Andrew helped found the “Sackville 20/20” non-profit dedicated to realizing a vision of holistic community-oriented education, extending from Kindergarten through to the local Seniors College. As part of this work, he founded R-PEACE (Research Partnerships for Education and Community Engagement), helped build a Learning Lab as a flexible learning space for this work, and developed a new Community Engaged Learning program at Mount Allison that curates experiential learning opportunities to bring the university and town into new and forward-thinking relationship. The title of its most popular course, Compassionate Communities perfectly sums up the goal of Andrew’s work as both an extraordinary teacher and a catalyst for change.