On October 14, 2014, an invited audience of UBC faculty, staff, graduate students and their friends and family joined with members of the Killam family and Killam Trustees to celebrate this year’s UBC Killam Laureates.
The awards presentation and reception held at UBC’s Aquatic Ecosystems Research Lab (AERL) is an annual event held to recognize the achievements of the newest additions to UBC’s Killam community.
David H. Farrar, Provost and Vice-President Academic, Susan Porter, Dean and Vice-Provost of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, members of the UBC Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Fellowships Committee and Trustees of the Killam Trusts hosted the event, presenting award certificates to winners of the Killam Postdoctoral Research Fellowships, Killam Doctoral Scholarships, and Killam Faculty Research Fellowships.
Pictured: Welcome remarks
Highlighting the festivities were video presentations created especially for the celebration featuring several of the newest laureates. These video introductions to the scholars and their work offer brief glimpses into the worlds of these passionate and accomplished individuals.
Here are links to the video profiles of this year’s laureates, in the order they were presented at the event:
Dr. Robert Kozak, Professor, Faculty of Forestry, Department of Wood Science – UBC Killam Teaching Prize
Dr. Laurel Schafer, Professor, Faculty of Science, Department of Chemistry– UBC Killam Mentoring Award
Dr. James Johnson, Associate Professor, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Cellular & Physiological Sciences – UBC Killam Research Fellowship Award
Dr. Stephanie Vogt, Postdoctoral Fellow, Michael Smith Laboratory – UBC Killam Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Marc Tadaki, PhD Student, Faculty of Arts, Department of Geography – UBC Killam Doctoral Scholarship
Bita Iman, PhD Candidate, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Rehabilitation Sciences – UBC Killam Doctoral Scholarship
Full UBC Killam Profile playlist.
This year’s Killam-Donald N. Byers Memorial Prize was presented to Miriam Matejova, a PhD student in the Dept. of Political Science. This additional $3,000 prize goes to the top ranked student in the annual Tri-Agency/Affiliated competition. Ms. Matejova was also awarded a 2014 Vanier scholarship.
Pictured: Killam Trustee George H. Cooper and 2014 Killam-Donald N. Byers Memorial Prize winner Miriam Matejova, PhD Student, Political Science
Among the other honours presented at the event were the 2014 UBC Killam Postdoctoral Research Prizes, awarded to Dr. Mathias Görges and Dr. Jeremy Hirota in recognition of their research achievements while at UBC. The Postdoctoral Fellows Office (PDFO) at the Faculty of Graduate Studies awards these two $5,000 prizes annually in the hope that the award will help advance the recipients’ professional careers to heights beyond those already demonstrated in their current work.
A closer look at the work of Dr. Jeremy Hirota, UBC Faculty of Medicine, a post-doctoral researcher at the Centre for Heart Lung Innovation at St. Paul’s Hospital.
A closer look at the work of Dr. Matthias Görges, member of UBC’s Electrical and Computer Engineering in Medicine/Pediatric Anesthesia Research Team.
The Killam Endowments, comprising the Killam General Endowment, the Killam Memorial Salary Fund, and the Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Fund for Advanced Studies, support programmes at the University of British Columbia for the most distinguished researchers at the doctoral, postdoctoral, and faculty levels. The various competitions held over the past year reflect the academic excellence of research and scholarship at UBC.
The Killam Endowments were established by Dorothy J. Killam in memory of her husband Izaak Walton Killam.
Pictured: 3 generations of the Killam family (centre L to R) James, Mia, Eliza and Maude Killam
Here is the complete list of the UBC Killam Laureates honoured at this year’s event
University Killam Professors (Awarded by the Board of Governors)
The designation is conferred by the Board of Governors on the recommendation of the President to recognize exceptional members of faculty who have distinguished themselves as scholars in research and/or teaching and learning.
Current Professors
Ian K. Affleck, Physics and Astronomy
Sherrill E. Grace, English
Michael Hayden, Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutic
Professors Emeriti
Patricia Baird, Medical Genetics
David Dolphin, Chemistry
Robert G. Evans, Centre for Health Services and Policy Research
Kalevi J. Holsti, Political Science
William H. New, English
Killam Awards for Excellence in Mentoring
(Awarded by the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies in November 2013)
The Killam Awards for Excellence in Mentoring are based on sustained mentorship of numerous graduate students over many years. Mentoring may be related to, but is perceived as differing from, classroom teaching and may be distinct and separable from the usual measure of research productivity. One award recognizes faculty members in the mid-career category – that is, for those who have held university appointments for less than 12 years – and the other recognizes faculty members in the senior category – that is, for those with 12 or more years of university service.
Mid-career category
Laurel Schafer, Chemistry
Senior category
Rabab Ward, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Killam Faculty Research Fellowships
(Awarded by the Office of the Vice-President Research and International in March 2014)
Fellowships are open to all UBC faculty members, with tenure, who wish to devote full time to research and study in their field during a recognized study leave (sabbatical).
Junior Fellows
Alexander Dick, English
Simon Donner, Geography
James Johnson, Cellular and Physiological Sciences
Laura Moss, English
Christian Schoof, Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences
Brian Wilson, Human Kinetics
Senior Fellows
Jamie Peck, Geography
Thomas Schneider, Classical, Near Eastern and Religious Studies
Michael Tenzer, Music
Killam Faculty Research Prizes
(Awarded by the Office of the Vice-President Research and International in March 2014)
Up to ten prizes are awarded each year for excellence in research. Five prizes go to professors in the humanities and social sciences, and five to professors in the natural, applied and health sciences.
Arts, Junior Faculty
Richard Carpiano, Sociology
Francesco Trebbi, Economics
Arts, Senior Faculty
Barbara Arneil, Political Science
Jamie Peck, Geography
Paul Russell, Philosophy
Science, Junior Faculty
Purang Abolmaeseumi, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Science, Senior Faculty
C. Blake Gilks, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Stephen Lam, Respiratory Medicine
Marco Marra, Medical Genetics
John Webb, Cardiology
Killam Teaching Prizes
(Awarded by the Office of the Provost and Vice-President Academic in May 2014)
Killam Teaching Prizes recognize faculty members with at least three years of teaching at UBC. Established University-wide, the prize is adjudicated within each of the twelve Faculties under procedures defined in the Faculty and approved by the Provost. Candidates may be nominated by colleagues, students, or alumni. The award recognizes distinguished teaching at any level or combination of levels: introductory, advanced, or graduate (including supervision).
Recipients (in alphabetical order by surname)
Chris Addison, Chemistry
Sunaina Assanand, Psychology
Janine Benedet, Law
Joy Butler, Curriculum and Pedagogy
Jane Buxton, School of Population and Public Health
Paul Carter, Computer Science
Lukas Chrostowski, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Elizabeth Conibear, Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics
Hsi-Yung (Steve) Feng, Mechanical Engineering
Amin Ghaziani, Sociology
Hartej Gill, Educational Studies
Tim Huh, Operations and Logistics
Elizabeth Jones, Social Work
Robert Kozak, Wood Science
Brian Leander, Botany/Zoology
Kevin Leyton-Brown, Computer Science
Vadim Marmer, Economics
Barry Mason, Cellular and Physiological Sciences
Marina Milner-Bolotin Curriculum and Pedagogy
Miguel Mota, English
Robert Taylor, Music
Dan Weary, Land and Food Systems
Graham Wong, Cardiology
Killam Postdoctoral Research Fellowships
(Awarded by the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies in March 2014)
The Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Postdoctoral Research Fellowships are awarded to distinguished scholars from Canada and around the world, who have recently completed their doctorate degrees at a university other than UBC. The Killam Postdoctoral Research Fellowships provide support for two years with a stipend, travel allowance and medical benefits.
New Fellows (in alphabetical order by surname)
Elizabeth Gow, Forestry
Duncan Hewitt, Mathematics
Nathaniel Sharp, Zoology
Stefanie Vogt, Microbiology
David Wachsmuth, Geography
Renewed Fellows (in alphabetical order by surname)
John Paul Catungal, Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Social Justice; Geography
Becca Franks, Animal Welfare Program, Faculty of Land and Food Systems
Katie Marshall, Zoology
Paul Szpak, Anthropology
Nicholas White, Chemistry
Killam Postdoctoral Fellow Research Prizes
(Awarded by the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies in March 2014)
The Killam Postdoctoral Fellow Research Prizes are awarded annually to full-time postdoctoral fellows in recognition of outstanding research and scholarly contributions while at UBC.
Recipients (in alphabetical order by surname)
Matthias Görges, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Jeremy Hirota, Respiratory Medicine
Killam Doctoral Fellowships
(Awarded by the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies in September 2014)
The Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Doctoral Fellowships are the University of British Columbia’s most prestigious merit-based graduate fellowships and are awarded annually to the most outstanding doctoral degree candidates. The fellowships provide support for a maximum of two years with a stipend and travel allowance.
New Fellows (in alphabetical order by surname)
Kaylee Byers, Interdisciplinary Studies
Ana Chara Serna, Forestry
Rowan Cockett, Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences
Maude Côté-Landry, Classical Studies
Addison Desnoyer, Chemistry
Bita Imam, Rehabilitation Sciences
Anna Keefe, Language and Literacy Education
Miriam Matejova, Political Science
Ellen Stephenson, Psychology
Jeremy Stone, Urban Planning
Marc Tadaki, Geography
Francis Therrien, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Mary Turri, Educational Psychology
David Twa, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Xian Wang, History
Anson Wong, Physics and Astronomy
Kai Kin Gary Yan, Mechanical Engineering
Bo Zhuang, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Renewed Fellows (in alphabetical order by surname)
Justin Alger, Political Science
Daiana Becker dos-Santos, Interdisciplinary Oncology
Dan Bock, Botany
Dan Cohen, Geography
Selena Couture, Theatre
Jacqueline Davis, Interdisciplinary Studies
Jason Fice, Kinesiology
Alexey Golubev, History
Tegan Haslam, Botany
William Keats-Osborn, Sociology
Brett Kolesnik, Mathematics
Sabine Laguë, Zoology
Anja Nowak, Germanic Studies
Jonathan Smirl, Interdisciplinary Studies – Health and Exercise, UBC Okanagan
Michael VanInsberghe, Genome Science and Technology
Aaron Weidman, Psychology
Killam Graduate Teaching Assistant Awards
(Awarded by the Office of the Provost and Vice-President Academic in May 2014)
Killam Graduate Teaching Assistant Awards recognize the valuable role that teaching assistants play in our undergraduate programs. Established University-wide, the prize is adjudicated within each of the twelve Faculties under procedures defined in the Faculty and approved by the Provost. The award recognizes skills, abilities and contributions that result in a high level of respect from undergraduate students and academic or course supervisors.
Recipients (in alphabetical order by surname)
Parisa Behnamfar, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Kristen Carter, Art History, Visual Art & Theory
Vincent Chan, Mathematics
Benjamin Cheung, Psychology
Jeffrey Goeders, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Heather Holroyd, Sociology
Won Kim, Language and Literacy Education
Andy Leung, Statistics
Kristina McBurney, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Alym Moosa, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Léanne Racicot, Chemistry
Md. Hafizur Rahman, Chemical and Biological Engineering
Sara Schroeter, Language and Literacy Education
Bryanna Thiel, Soil Science
Ashley Welsh, Curriculum and Pedagogy
Media Contact:
Email: carolynne.ciceri@ubc.ca
Communications Manager, Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies
Web: www.grad.ubc.ca Tel: 604.822.3747