Celebrating inspiring students, faculty, postdoctoral scholars, staff and collaborative teams working to advance a more accessible, equitable, diverse, and inclusive university.  The Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (OEDI) is pleased to announce the institutional call for nominations to recognize the transformative efforts by University of Calgary students (undergraduate and graduate), faculty, postdoctoral fellows, staff, and teams. The annual awards aim to recognize and appreciate the passion, dedication and campus engagement by individuals and teams to promote and commit to equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility in teaching and learning, research and scholarship, community engagement, and living and working environments.

The EDI Awards recognize outstanding achievement in practice, events, applied research, policy, programs, or other activities that foster equitable, sustainable and measurable change, especially for those who traditionally have been under-represented (women, visible/racialized minorities, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, and LGBTQ2S+) on campus. The Awards recognize ongoing work or an outstanding accomplishment at a point in time.       

Examples may include, but are not limited to:

  • A faculty strategic plan and action program that embeds a commitment to the importance of equity, diversity, and inclusion;
  • An ongoing action, initiative, or program that helps students from an under-represented group feel welcome and included;
  • A tool or practice that provides accommodations for an equity-seeking group e.g. increased accessibility for people with disabilities, or is designed to address racism;
  • An initiative or action aiming at adapting or changing procedures, policies, or practices to make them fair or more inclusive;
  • Fostering inclusive excellence in achieving diversity, equity, and inclusion goals;
  • Exemplifying leadership in fostering an inclusive campus. 

The call for nominations for the 2024 Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Awards is closed.  Winners will be announced soon.

The OEDI invited members of our campus community to submit their nominations for the 2024 awards in the following categories:   

  • Leadership 
  • Faculty, including professors and lectures
  • Undergraduate students 
  • Graduate students
  • Non-management staff
  • Management staff
  • Sessional instructors
  • Postdoctoral fellows
  • Teams

      

The EDI Awards recognize outstanding achievement in practice, events, applied research, policy, programs, or other activities that foster equitable, sustainable and measurable change, especially for those who traditionally have been under-represented (women, visible/racialized minorities, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, and LGBTQ2S+) on campus. The Awards recognize ongoing work or an outstanding accomplishment at a point in time.     

Dr. Penny Werthner, interim provost and vice-president (academic), will announce the award recipients during the awards ceremony. The ceremony will be hosted by Dr. Malinda Smith, PhD, Vice-Provost (Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion) and Associate Vice-President Research (EDI).  A blessing will be offered from Elder Kerrie Moore.

Dr. Penny Werthner  Interim Provost and Vice-President (Academic) University of Calgary

Interim Provost and Vice-President (Academic) 

Dr. Penny Werthner, PhD, became the Dean of the Faculty of Kinesiology in 2012 and left the position to become the Interim Provost and Vice-President (Academic) in 2022. She is one of Canada’s most distinguished consultants in the field of sport psychology. She has served as a sport psychology consultant for Canada's national and Olympic teams since 1985. She is one of the founding members of the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity (CAAWS) and has been named one of the Top 20 Most Influential Women in Sport and Physical Activity by CAAWS. 

For more than 30 years, she has worked in sport psychology consulting, sport-related management consulting, program management and academic leadership. She came to the University of Calgary after spending 12 years at the University of Ottawa as Director and Associate Dean of the School of Human Kinetics.

Dr. Werthner has written dozens of peer-reviewed papers and book chapters. She currently serves on the editorial board for the International Sport Coaching Journal as well as a reviewer for the journals of Qualitative Research in Sport and Exercise and Journal of Applied Sport Psychology. She is also a member of the editorial board for the Canadian Journal for Women in Coaching. 

She is a founder and past Chair of the Canadian Sport Psychology Association, a member of the International Council for Coach Education, an advisor to the Coaching Association of Canada Women in Coaching Program, and a learning facilitator for the National Coaching Certificate Program.

Dr. Malinda Smith, Vice Provost and Associate Vice President Research (Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion) and professor of political science

Vice Provost and Associate Vice President Research (Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion) and professor of political science.

Dr. Smith holds a PhD in political science from the University of Alberta, an MA, Master of Development Administration, and a BA magna cum laude in political science and criminal justice, from Western Michigan University. She is a co-author of The Equity Myth: Racialization and Indigeneity at Canadian Universities (2017), co-editor of the forthcoming book, Nuances of Blackness in the Canadian Academy (UofT Press, 2022), editor of three books on Africa, including Securing Africa: Post-9/11 Discourses on Terrorism (2010),  as well as co-editor of Critical Concepts: An Introduction to Politics, 6/E under revision with OUP (2022); and States of Race: Critical Race Feminism for the 21st Century (2010).

Dr. Smith serves on several national bodies, including SSHRC Council and Executive, and Statistics Canada’s Immigration and Ethnocultural Committee.

Dr. Smith is a 2018 Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation Fellow and the recipient of  numerous awards and fellowships, including Compelling Calgarians (2021), the Susan S. Northcutt Award from the International Studies Association (2020), 100 Accomplished Black Women Honouree (2020), the Rosalind Smith Professional Award (2020), the ISA-Canada Distinguished Scholar Award (2018-19), the HSBC Community Contributor of the Year Award (2016); and the Equity Award from the Canadian Association of University Teachers (2015)

Elder Kerrie Moore

Elder Kerrie Moore (MSW, RSW) Metis/Cree is originally from Saskatchewan, Treaty 6 territory. Kerrie has resided in Calgary, Treaty 7 territory for 47 years. Kerrie is a member of Area 3 Metis Nation of Alberta, Saskatchewan Metis Association as well as Fish Lake Metis Association, Saskatchewan. 

Kerrie is in private practice and specializes in inter-generational trauma and grief. She is also a sessional instructor, wellness Elder and advisor with the Faculty of Social Work, University of Calgary. Kerrie provides consulting and training on Indigenizing Strategies to ministries, education, health, justice and agencies who work with Indigenous peoples and communities. 

Kerrie is an accepted knowledge keeper and Elder and sits on several Elder boards including the Elder Advisory Circle for the University of Calgary and the Calgary Board of Education. She is also an Elder for the Area 3 Metis Nation of Alberta. 

Kerrie is a recipient of the Alumna of the Year Award 2008, from the University of Calgary, Women's Resource Center, and most recently received the 2022 Student’s Union Teaching Excellence Award.

Dr. Tonya Callaghan

Tonya Callaghan is an associate professor at the University of Calgary’s Werklund School of Education. They taught secondary English for over ten years in Canadian and international schools, in rural and urban settings, and in Catholic and non-Catholic systems. Their second monograph, Homophobia in the Hallways: Heterosexism and Transphobia in Canadian Catholic Schools, was published in 2018 with the University of Toronto Press. 

Dr. Callaghan was recognized for their outstanding commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) at the University of Calgary with the 2020 EDI Award. Dr. Callaghan was also honoured with two UCalgary Curriculum Development Awards for designing and coordinating an undergraduate course titled Diversity in Learning and a Master of Education program titled Advancing Healthy & Socially Just Schools & Communities, both of which actively promote EDI principles. 

Their research in the field of EDI explores Catholic resistance to anti-homophobia/transphobia education in both curriculum and educational policy.

The Urgency of Intersectionality for Addressing Systemic Inequities in Higher Learning

Keynote Speaker - Dr. Tonya D. Callaghan, Associate Professor, Werklund School of Education, UCalgary

Presented by The Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

In her 2016 TED Talk, The Urgency of Intersectionality, Kimberlé Crenshaw, the African American law professor who coined the term “intersectionality,” observed: "We all know that when there's no name for a problem, you can't see a problem, and when you can't see a problem you pretty much can't solve it.” The problem Crenshaw is talking about here is multiple forms of discrimination based on layers of difference. 

In advance of Dr. Crenshaw’s visit to UCalgary on March 18 and 19 this year, it is important to define what it means to take an intersectional approach when supporting the learning needs of students enrolled in contentious courses that actively address equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) issues. 

The Werklund School of Education’s undergraduate course, Diversity in Learning, has been held up as an EDI exemplar. I will draw from my experience leading this course to discuss ways we can move towards inclusive and equitable teaching practices. I will conclude by overtly addressing the toll such work can take on those of us who actively teach EDI topics and what allies can do to support us.

Following EDI Awards Ceremony

Annemarie Summers

Undergraduate Student Award

Ms. Annemarie Summers  (she/her)

Annemarie Summers is a 4th Year Mechanical Engineering student attending the Schulich School of Engineering.  

Among the 2024 Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Award, Annemarie has been recognized as a 2019 Diversity Champion Scholar, Alberta LEAD Award Recipient (Leader in Equity Award of Distinction), Alberta STEM Scholar, 2022 Canadian Engineering Memorial Fund Ambassador and 2023 Engineers Canada Gold Medal Recipient for her leadership in Engineering.  

Throughout her degree, Annemarie has been involved in countless leadership initiatives, including being 1 of 4 select students to lead the 2023 Woman in Engineering Day Design Challenge, gaining traction of over 21.6 thousand views on social media discussing Mental health for the Mechanical Engineering Student Society, and starting her own STEM-based tutoring company amidst the pandemic gaining over 50 students in her first year.  

She has also extended her leadership across borders, volunteering at the Chole Orphanage in Bali, Indonesia, to discuss engineering and STEM with the students. She has been a founding member of the Schulich Change Leader Network, a group of over 300 students committed to advancing Equity, Diversity and Inclusion at the University of Calgary and within the future of engineering.  


Diana Changirwa

Graduate Student Award

Ms. Diana Changirwa (she/her)

Diana is a fourth-year MD-MSc student in the Leaders in Medicine program and Immunology Graduate Program within the Department of Critical Care Medicine and the Calvin, Phoebe and Joan Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases. 

She is the co-founder and member of the Snyder Institute EDI Committee, co-lead for the Policy and Engagement subcommittee and the trainee-lead for the Snyder Institute on the Cumming School of Medicine EDI Leads network.  


Dr. Brenda McDermott

Management Staff Award

Dr. Brenda McDermott (she/her) 

Brenda McDermott completed her PhD in Communication Studies in 2015. As a lifelong learner, she returned to school to complete a Master of Education in 2021.  She is passionate about improving the student experience, having worked in student service roles at Carleton University, York University, and the University of Calgary. These roles involved working in student learning support, specifically writing development. 

She works with Student Accessibility Services and collaborates with faculty members to ensure that course designs, particularly assessments, are accessible to all learners. 


Dr. Salami Bukola

Leadership Award

Dr. Bukola Salami (she/her) 

Professor Bukola Salami currently holds the rank of Full Professor in the Cumming School of Medicine,  University of Calgary. Professor Salami’s research program focuses on policies and practices shaping migrant health and Black people’s health. She has been involved in over 90 funded studies, totalling over $230 million. 

She founded and leads the African Child and Youth Migration Network, a network of 42 scholars from four continents. She led the establishment of the Institute for Intersectional Studies at the University of Alberta. In 2020, she founded the Black Youth Mentorship and Leadership Program. Her work on Black youth mental health informed the creation of the first mental health clinic for Black Canadians in Western Canada. 

She has presented her work to policymakers (including twice to the Prime Minister of Canada and once to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Health). Her work has contributed to policy change, including that related to Black people’s well-being. 

She is an Editor of the Canadian Journal of Nursing Research and Associate Editor of the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ). She is an advisory board member of the CIHR Institute for Human Development, Child and Youth Health and Scientific Advisory Committee on Global Health to the Government of Canada. 


Dr. Carolyn Emery

Faculty Award

Dr. Carolyn Emery (she/her) 

Carolyn Emery, PT PhD, is a physiotherapist and injury epidemiologist. A Professor in the Faculty of Kinesiology and Pediatrics and Community Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary; she holds a Canada Research Chair (Tier 1) in Concussion and is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences and Royal Society of Canada. 

Carolyn Chairs the Sport Injury Prevention Research Centre (Canadian International Olympic Committee Research Centre for Prevention of Injury and Protection of Athlete Health). She is a member of the Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, O’Brien Institute for Public Health, Hotchkiss Brain Institute, and McCaig Institute for Bone and Joint Health. 

The focus of Carolyn’s research program is injury and concussion prevention in youth sports, with a focus also on rehabilitation and youth-adapted physical activity and parasport, aimed to reduce the public health burden of injuries and their long-term consequences. Carolyn aims to keep kids participating in the sports they love. 


Dr. Sharon Hou

Postdoctoral Fellows Award

Dr. Sharon Hou (she/her)

Dr. Sharon Hou (she/her) is a registered psychologist and postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Oncology at the University of Calgary. Dr. Hou’s educational background is in Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology with a MA and PhD from the University of Guelph, and a BA in Psychology and French from the University of California, Los Angeles. Dr. Hou completed her predoctoral residency at Alberta Children’s Hospital. 

Dr. Hou’s research and clinical interests are in advancing diversity and health equity in children’s health and well-being and those of their families. Insights gained from Dr. Hou’s research are intended to identify equitable and inclusive ways to support the healthcare and psychosocial needs of underrepresented and underserved populations of children and families. 

Dr. Hou’s postdoctoral work is focused on developing a national, culturally responsive mHealth intervention for young adults impacted by cancer to enhance their aftercare experience, incorporating a critical sociocultural perspective. She also has a longstanding commitment to teaching, academic service, and community engagement using anti-racist, culturally responsive, and decolonized best practices. Much of Dr. Hou’s work is shaped by her immigration experience and exposure to cultural diversity over her life. 


Rochelle Lamoureux

Non-Management Staff Award

Ms. Rochelle Lamoureux (she/her) 

Rochelle is a proud staff member of the Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary, where she tries to incorporate EDI and community building into the heart of everything she does. She is also a part-time Graduate student with the Werklund School of Education, focusing on social justice and anti-oppressive education. 

At the centre of everything she does is her desire to make the world a little bit better for her two beautiful children, her incredible spouse, and her cherished family and community. Their love is her source of inspiration and energy, especially when it’s hard and messy (which, thanks to her ADHD and enthusiasm for saying yes to projects, it most often is).  


Vivienne Jones

Sessional Instructor Award

Vivienne Jones (they/them)

Vivienne has lived in eight countries and has worked in as many fields. They have been a lab assistant, an editor and author, an award-winning cartoonist, and a freelance musician. They have worked in law, copyright, business and science. However, it wasn’t until Vivienne worked as a teaching assistant in Japan that they discovered their calling. 

For the last two decades, Vivienne has been a language instructor, using their experience with cultural displacement and neurodivergence to help create safe and inclusive spaces for learning.  Vivienne immigrated to Canada in 2003, completed an M.Ed. in TESL at the University of Alberta, and then moved to Calgary. They joined Continuing Education in 2009, where they have worked as a classroom instructor, curriculum developer, and practicum sponsor teacher in the English Language Program. 

Vivienne has also worked as a teacher trainer in the TSL program for over five years. They see their students as equal participants in the pedagogical journey, and they consciously strive to improve and expand their own knowledge and practice. 


Breanna Fang, Jessica Morency, Fatima Saleem

Team Award

Ms. Breanna Fang (she/her), Ms. Jessica Morency (she/her) and Ms. Fatima Saleem (she/her) 

The Support to Entry Program (STEP) is a medical student-led initiative that aims to foster diversity and inclusion in medicine by reducing some barriers to applying to medical school.   STEP offers free MCAT preparation courses, application support panels, practice multiple mini interviews (MMI), and mentorship programs. It has helped over 145 students from a myriad of equity-deserving groups, including people of colour, students living with disabilities, refugees, LGBTQ+ students, Indigenous students, and those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.     

STEP has made a significant impact by helping hundreds of students from equity-deserving groups overcome barriers to medical education. July 2023 marked a huge milestone for STEP when multiple former participants joined the Cumming School of Medicine as medical students in the class of 2026.   

STEP wouldn’t be here without the support of Mairi Babey from the Precision Equity and Social Justice Office and Tharsini Sivananthajothy who have dedicated countless hours to establishing STEP as an organization as well as the executive team and all our volunteers who have made the events possible. 

2023 EDI Award winners

  • Student Award: Mr. Tanmoy Newaz, Cellular, Molecular, and Microbial biology student in the Faculty of Science
  • Faculty Award: Dr. Patrina Duhaney, Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Social Work
  • Team Award: Psychology Trans Affirming Care Team
    • Dr. Brae Anne McArthur
    • Ms. Michaela Paton
    • Ms. Caroline Luszawski

2023 EDI Awards Ceremony

2023 EDI Award winners

2022 EDI Award winners

  • Student Award: Sarah Ride, Department of Geoscience
  • Faculty Award: Dr. Gregor Wolbring, Professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine 
  • Team Award: Faculty of Social Work Anti-Racism Research Team
    • Sheliza Ladhani, PhD Candidate, Sessional Instructor, Faculty of Social Work
    • Dr. David Este, Professor Emeritus, Faculty of Social Work,
    • Dr. Kathleen Sitter, Associate Professor, CRC, Faculty of Social Work
    • Kimberly Van Patten, Project Manager, Faculty of Social Work
    • Dr. Peter Gabor, Professor, Faculty of Social Work; and,
    • Dr. Darren Lund, Professor, Werklund School of Education. We posthumously recognize Dr. Darren Lund for his remarkable contributions as a true champion of human rights and his outstanding effort to advocate for equity for underrepresented and marginalized groups.
  • Staff Award: Alison Barrett, Manager, Community and Social Impact, Schulich School of Engineering

2022 EDI Awards Ceremony

2022 EDI Award winners

2021 EDI Award winners

2021 EDI Award winners

  • Student Award: Keshia Holloman-Dawson, Faculty of Law
  • Faculty Award: Dr. William Bridel, associate professor, Faculty of Kinesiology 
  • Team Award: Calgary Black Medical Student Association members of the Cumming School of Medicine 
    • Ebdalla Aya
    • Nwawroh Chidera
    • Keri McNeil-Inyani
    • Mohamud Mursal 
  • Staff Award: Renée Huntley, Indigenous health program co-ordinator, Cumming School of Medicine 

2021 EDI Awards Ceremony


2020 EDI Award winners

  • Student Award: Jasmine McDermott, a mechanical engineering student
  • Faculty Award: Dr. Tonya D. Callaghan, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Werklund School of Education
  • Staff Award: Pamela Beebe, Indigenous education and protocol specialist
  • Staff Award: Elise Ahenkorah, programs and partnerships specialist, WELab, Hunter Hub
  • Team Award: Libin Cardiovascular Institute of Alberta’s Women’s Cardiovascular Health Initiative: CV&Me
2020 EDI Award winners

2019 EDI Award Winners

2019 EDI Award winners

  • Staff Award: The Alberta Sexual Assault Course and Conference Planning Team
  • Faculty Award: Schulich School of Engineering Leadership Team
  • Student Award: Laura Fader, Schulich School of Engineering