Acadia University - Excellence in Teaching Award

By Fred Sgambati (’83, ’85)

Dr. Caroline Cochran has a passion for pedagogy and numbers. She loves to teach, and it all adds up to student success.

An instructor in Acadia’s Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Dr. Cochran keys on a multi-level approach that creates an engaging, adaptive and active classroom environment; customizes learning for the specific needs of a given class; and supports the different needs of her students.

The goal is to motivate students to learn, and she hopes that by drawing connections to real world programs they will be able to solve fundamental issues such as climate change, cures for disease, and social inequality through mathematical literacy, and be inspired to apply their knowledge as involved and engaged citizens of the world.

Dr. Cochran’s energy, enthusiasm and commitment to mathematics and learning are infinite. She teaches introductory Precalculus and Calculus courses and studios. She creates all the studio activities, updating them each year. She has written two workbooks for the courses and pioneered the use of a new adaptive-learning homework system. She organizes review and exam preparation sessions and navigates students through their first experience with university math, increasing their chances of success.  

Dr. Cochran also supervises and trains the Teaching Assistants who work in the Calculus studios and mark assignments. She manages the Math and Stats Help centre (MASH), a peer-tutoring, free-of-charge service that provides tutorials and help sessions to all introductory courses, assisting around 1,000 students each term. This past year, she extended the program to add Saturday Small Group tutoring for more accessible and individualized support.

Furthermore, she is actively involved in teaching mathematics to the community beyond Acadia, each summer co-organizing the Junior Math and Computer Science Camp at Acadia and leading enrichment activities at local schools. She is a co-organizer of the Calculus Instruction in Atlantic Canada Conference Series and a board member of the Atlantic Association for Research in the Mathematical Sciences.

Alumni Association President Matthew Rios (’14) applauded her selection, saying that “creating a safe and rigorous learning environment for Acadia’s students is fundamental to their success, not only during their time at Acadia, but as members of our alumni community after graduation. Dr. Cochran’s ability to foster that environment from the moment students arrive at Acadia to the completion of their academic program and beyond mirrors and amplifies our Association’s commitment to and investment in Acadia’s students. Her passion for teaching at all levels and promotion of experiential learning is unparalleled, and that is why we are delighted to acknowledge her as the 2024 recipient of the Acadia Alumni Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching.”

Dr. Cochran received the Faculty of Science Teaching Award from Acadia in 2018 and will be honoured as the 2024 recipient of the Acadia Alumni Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching at this year’s Alumni Awards Dinner on April 18 in Halifax. To learn more and purchase tickets, please click HERE.  

By Fred Sgambati (’83, ’85)

Some people might think that success in university is only about grades and graduation. But Acadia’s convocation is a celebration of the many individual roads to success students are travelling as they cross the stage. Many professors understand that success is deeply personal and work hard to tailor each student’s academic experience to ensure superb personal and professional achievement.

Dr. Ryan MacNeil is no exception. His innovative teaching style and passion for his students is extraordinary.

MacNeil holds the Rath Professorship in Entrepreneurship at Acadia and has a full-time, tenured faculty position in the F. C. Manning School of Business as an associate professor. He teaches a variety of courses in entrepreneurship and small business management while studying post-industrial entrepreneurship, innovation, and economic development.

His goal is to help students develop their agency and self-authorship. He asks them to think critically about entrepreneurship and innovation in their communities, economies, and their own lives. In all his courses, students pursue entrepreneurship experiences and choose their own adventures. MacNeil’s role is to coach, facilitate, and challenge their thinking along the way, an approach that has made him a campus favourite and one he finds intrinsically rewarding.

Small wonder his course offerings are heavily subscribed, and his impact in and out of the classroom has had a transformative effect. It’s also why he is the 2023 recipient of the Acadia Alumni Association Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching, which recognizes a continued record of excellence in teaching students and future alumni of Acadia University with a focus on professional and teaching accomplishments.

MacNeil says, “I came to Acadia because I knew this place would give me a chance to engage with students in learning experiences that simply don’t happen anywhere else. I’m humbled and grateful for this award because I see it as recognition that I’m contributing to the Acadia magic.”

That contribution has been acknowledged far and wide. As a result of his teaching performance at Acadia, the Acadia Students’ Union has honoured him with its Faculty of Professional Studies Teaching Award twice (2016 and 2018) and a national peer jury awarded MacNeil and fellow professor Michael Sheppard the Canadian Council of Small Business and Entrepreneurship’s Innovative Course

Award in 2012 (for the design of their course, Venture Creation). For his scholarship of teaching and learning, he has also received the Best Paper Award in the Management Education Division of the Administrative Sciences Association of Canada (2014), which is the teaching and learning division of the national business schools’ association. He went on to co-chair that division in 2022.

Meanwhile, his research on entrepreneurship education and development has been presented at multiple regional, national, and international conferences and appears in three internationally edited books.

But perhaps the litmus test of his many accomplishments lies in the tremendous and lasting impression he has made on colleagues and students alike. He has been described variously in the following ways:

• “He encourages risk-taking, creativity, and leaping outside your comfort zone. And he does this … because he believes in his students’ abilities.”
• “His refreshing, balanced approach provides students with the tools they need to be more entrepreneurial and to pursue their business ambitions with eyes wide open and a critical assessment of what success means to them.”
• “I don’t know where I would be without him…. Ryan represents the epitome of what Acadia stands for and my life will be forever impacted by him.”
• He is “the mentor I never knew I needed.”

Acadia Alumni Association President Matt Rios (’14) echoes the laudatory sentiments. “Dr. Ryan MacNeil’s innovative and warm, personal approach to learning has influenced students and alumni alike to be their very best selves, challenge norms, and explore creative opportunities in the entrepreneurial space.

“He is an engaging and faithful mentor, teacher and friend, investing his time and considerable energy to the betterment of those with whom he works. Everything he does is a deliberate and effective combination of life-learning, pedagogy and personal insight that has shaped the lives of countless Acadia students and members of our alumni community. It is an honour to acknowledge his tremendous contributions to Acadia, and I’m delighted to applaud him as this year’s recipient of the Acadia Alumni Association Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching.”

Pictured above: Dr. Ryan MacNeil receiving the Excellence in Teaching Award from Alumni Association President Matthew Rios ('14).

By Fred Sgambati (’83)

If a single line could possibly encapsulate Dr. Colin King’s (’17) teaching philosophy, it might very well be: “instead of being a sage on the stage, aim to be a guide on the side.”

Rather than considering himself an expert in the field, vocalizing what he knows to students and expecting them to learn and remember through his experiences, Dr. King – a tenured Associate Professor in Acadia’s School of Kinesiology and Program Director, Athletic Therapy Option – strives to be a guide on the side, using purposeful reflection, different pedagogical strategies, forms of assessment, and effective feedback to facilitate student learning in its multiple forms with diverse groups of learners.

His teaching approach is grounded in active learner-centered methods that enable and engage students in meaningful educational experiences. Students and staff seek his advice and guidance, many times outside of class hours, on evenings and weekends, where he explores concepts and techniques that don’t fit into a Monday to Friday daytime schedule. He is passionate and thoughtful, earning the admiration and respect of students and colleagues alike, many of whom consider him a ‘go-to’ person in the department.

Dr. King is frequently invited to present locally, nationally and internationally, gives generously of his time and talent to supervise graduate and undergraduate honours students, and has earned numerous awards in recognition of his scholarly achievement. He is a two-time winner of the Dr. Gary Ness Professor Appreciation Award (in 2013 and 2017) and received this year’s Distinguished Teaching Award in the Faculty of Professional Studies.

He is also the 2022 recipient of the Acadia Alumni Association Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching, which recognizes a continued record of excellence in teaching students and future alumni of Acadia University with a focus on professional and teaching accomplishments.

“Over Dr. King’s 12-year career at Acadia, he has worked with and mentored a remarkable number of students who have gone on to achieve incredible things as members of our alumni community,” says Alumni Association President Donalda MacBeath (’75). “His practical, personable approach, foresight and dedication have endeared him to students, and the knowledge and experience he brings to the classroom and Acadia’s School of Kinesiology is peerless.

“He has been a driving force to enable the School of Kinesiology to apply to become a nationally certified, accredited Athletic Therapy program in conjunction with the Canadian Athletic Therapists Association (CATA). Dr. King facilitates competence and confidence in the application of real-life skills, and is one of our shining stars. It’s a great pleasure to acknowledge him as the Association’s 2022 recipient of the Acadia Alumni Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching.”

Hired in 2007 as Head Athletic Therapist for the varsity football team and part-time instructor in kinesiology, Dr. King holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Studies from Acadia (2017), underscoring his central interest in pedagogy. He became a full-time instructor in 2010 and successfully entered the tenure-track journey in 2016.

Dr. King also has an extensive array of professional affiliations. He is the current Chair of the Education and Research Committee for the World Federation of Athletic Training and Therapy and former Chair and Committee Member of the Program Accreditation Committee of the Canadian Athletic Therapists Association. Other professional certifications and affiliations include membership in the Canadian Concussion Network, the Canadian Athletic Therapists Association, Atlantic Provinces Athletic Therapists Association, and St. John Ambulance to name a few.

By Fred Sgambati (’83)

The Acadia Alumni Association is pleased to announce that Dr. Juan Carlos López is the recipient of this year’s Acadia Alumni Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching.

Dr. López has taught biology at Acadia University in the Faculty of Pure and Applied Science since 2014 and has made a dramatic and lasting impact that resonates deeply throughout the department and with his students. Compassionate, down-to-earth and approachable, he has an innate ability to understand and connect with his students, many of whom have noted his teaching acumen and the infectious passion he brings to his vocation.

Alumni Association President Donalda MacBeath (’75) thanked the selection committee for their diligence and applauded Dr. López on being named the 2021 Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching recipient. “The Acadia student experience is fundamental to the University’s success as an institution, and faculty members like Dr. López are one of the primary reasons why Acadia is consistently ranked among the premier post-secondary institutions in Canada. His caring and collaborative approach to learning embraces the tenets of diversity, equity and inclusion to ensure that each student feels valued and respected, establishing a standard of behaviour that students model and later represent as members of the Acadia alumni family.”

Dr. López’s teaching philosophy is remarkably straightforward: “As a science educator my main objective is to use interactive learning to create an environment in which learners integrate knowledge by asking and answering relevant questions. I guide learners to assimilate their own knowledge with the new information – not only to understand new concepts, but to critically construct new conclusions.”

Students appreciate that his primary goal is their success, “and he continues to seek it out with respect, patience and compromise,” notes Helen Allen (’21) and Keeler Colton, co-presidents of the Bio Society. Danni Harper (’20), a biology grad student who worked with him as a teaching assistant (TA), says Dr. López “has led by example and instilled in me an absolute joy of teaching.”

Dr. López has made a strong impact in research as well, supervising 10 students in independent research topics and co-supervising two honours and one master’s student. Five of his six publications at Acadia have students as co-authors, including two papers on teaching. His teaching excellence was recognized last fall when he received the Faculty of Pure and Applied Science (FPAS) Teaching Award 2020.

His teaching innovation springs from creating new labs, pedagogical approaches and training workshops that focus on issues relevant to students today. A good example was the implementation under Dr. López’s supervision of a new module on Mi’kmaq Traditional Knowledge constructed by Leah Creaser, honours student and President of the Indigenous Student Society of Acadia. This lab was paired with a lecture by Keptin Jeff Purdy (Acadia First Nation) and was well received by biology majors.

Creaser says, “I expressed my concerns about being a Mi’kmaq student in the lab and feeling disconnected because there was no recognition of native plants and their uses culturally in Mi’kma’ki. Juan Carlos allowed me to take on a research topic to manipulate the lab to incorporate the importance of Mi’kmaq Traditional Knowledge, and then implemented this as curriculum in his lab, overall making the relationship that has for so long been severed between Mi’kmaq and academia a respectful one for me.”

Kristen Noel, master’s student and graduate Teaching Assistant for introductory bio labs supervised by Dr. López, adds, “Dr. López ensures that all of his students are aware that Acadia University is in Mi'kma'ki, the ancestral territory of the Mi’kmaq nation, and what this means. This past year, he did a wonderful job incorporating Traditional Ecological Knowledge into the labs. As budding scientists, it is imperative that we understand the value of Traditional Ecological Knowledge and use it in scientific research, outreach, conservation planning, and wildlife management.”

Additionally, while adjusting to online teaching this year, Dr. López prioritized working with smaller groups of students in the online labs so that students would have a more personal connection with Acadia faculty. He also created an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) workshop for the biology teaching assistants, with participation from the Equity Officer, the Indigenous Student Advisor and the Wong International Centre that was later included in a campus-wide TA training program. This workshop was eye-opening and helped TAs discover the importance of an inclusive learning environment. EDI is a major focus of Dr. López, and his commitment to inclusive learning has opened the door for some thought-provoking discussions in the biology department.

Harper concludes, “Juan Carlos is the kind of teacher that helps you to shape your future; the kind you will never forget. He is the kind of teacher that every teacher should be.”

Dr. Ian Spooner

The Acadia Alumni Association is proud to announce that Dr. Ian Spooner is the recipient of this year’s Acadia Alumni Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching.

In making the announcement, Acadia Alumni Association President Donalda MacBeath (’75) said, “the yardstick by which we measure teaching excellence at Acadia is the current and long-term impact that professors have on our students, not only in classrooms and labs, but after graduation when students apply the tools they have developed during their time here. In this regard, it would be difficult to overstate Dr. Spooner’s influence.

“In addition to letters of recommendation from his colleagues, the Alumni Association received more than 20 testimonials from past students spanning grad years from 1997 to 2019 in support of Dr. Spooner’s nomination. It reflects, in no small way, his outstanding record of teaching excellence and the continued effect his dynamic personality and creative teaching style has had on his students. We are lucky to have him at Acadia, and I extend on behalf of the Alumni Association our heartiest congratulations on this latest personal and professional accolade.”

Dr. Spooner has been a professor and leader in Acadia’s Earth and Environmental Science Department for the past 26 years, supervising 30 Master’s and 48 Honours students since 1994. He has taught 11 different courses ranging from first-year Natural Disasters to graduate-level Quaternary Environments, and in a wide range of areas, from Hydrogeology to Environmental Impact Assessment. His primary research interest is investigating environmental change, and he conducts research in northwestern British Columbia, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland.

His accomplishments include:

• Received Acadia University Student Association Faculty Teaching Award;
• Founded the Nova Scotia University-Pictou Landing First Nation (PLFN) initiative, which matches PLFN youth with researchers working at Boat Harbour;
• Initiated in 2012 the Morton Centre Environmental Education Program for youth (ages 8-12, primarily in Lunenburg County);
• Established the Office for Pre-contact Archaeological research and associate courses;
• Received numerous grants in aid of teaching;
• Participates in Science in Schools (SITS).

He is an expert in environmental and risk assessment, groundwater and surface water contamination, and coastal erosion. He serves as a consultant on the History Channel hit, The Curse of Oak Island. Dr. Spooner has served also with numerous professional organizations and was recently awarded the Distinguished Service Award by the Atlantic Geoscience Society and the Acadia Faculty of Pure and Applied Science Teaching Award.

In February, he was appointed Director of Research at the K.C. Irving Environmental Science Centre and Harriet Irving Botanical Gardens. In that role, Dr. Spooner, will focus on strategy, planning and communication to ensure that the Irving Centre and Botanical Gardens continue to be a leader in environmental study.

For more on Acadia Alumni Association Awards, please visit: https://www2.acadiau.ca/alumni-friends/alumni/awards.html.

Written by Fred Sgambati (’83)

The 2019 Alumni Association Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching recipient is Dr. Jennifer MacDonald. Dr. MacDonald has been an Associate Professor in the Department of History and Classics at Acadia since 2008 and has taught a significant range of courses in her Department stretching the globe from pre-history to present day.

Dr. MacDonald does significant work with the honours program as coordinator, supervisor and second-reader. Dr. MacDonald’s nominator says “Dr. MacDonald is an outstanding teacher who challenges students, inspires students and manager to get them to learn things. She has consistently managed to attain that rare measure of teaching successes with the dissemination of knowledge and considerable academic rigour. Her classroom success is matched by a continual self-reflection and curriculum review at both the personal and programme levels.”

She consistently receives favourable evaluations from her students and is spoken highly of by her peers in the department, the faculty and across the campus. One student said: “All together, she is not just a fantastic professor, but also a human being. She expects a lot of her students, but makes time and resources available so that it is not an impossible task.” While another comments “I strive to provide my students with the same level of compassionate guidance and dynamic instruction as Dr. MacDonald has granted to me.”

Dr. Michelle Boyd ticks a lot of boxes when it comes to teaching students in Acadia’s School of Music. She is enthusiastic and professional, inspiring students with a tremendous passion for everything she does, and communicating information in an organized, clear and concise manner that sets students up for success here at Acadia and beyond.

Accessible and innovative, Dr. Boyd establishes a strong foundation from day one, through her introductory musicology courses to library, research and writing abilities that prove to be invaluable as students explore their academic and career potential.

She pays particular attention to the development of theoretical skills that translate into numerous opportunities for her students, including composition as well as live performance. Her reach clearly exceeds her grasp; students regularly keep in touch after graduation and she cares deeply about their subsequent endeavours and all they have done since their time at Acadia.

Dr. Boyd is also a highly valued colleague who consistently goes above and beyond. She is an active member of the Acadia musical community outside the classroom, performing with the Acadia Wind Ensemble, and offers choral and solo performance opportunities to students in her role as church music director and caroling for seniors in Wolfville during the holiday season.

She is highly regarded by students and peers, and her considerable efforts are richly appreciated. It is the Alumni Association’s pleasure to recognize her many achievements and present her with the Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award.

Professor Ann Dodge ('91) is the 2017 recipient of the Acadia Alumni Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching. A former member of the Canadian National Canoe Team, she competed in many national and international events, including four World Championships as well as the 1976 Montreal Olympics. Ann's other sport focus is volleyball, which she played provincially and at the varsity level at Dalhousie University. She is a former head coach of the Acadia University women's varsity team.

For the past 22 years, Ann has served as a lecturer in the kinesiology program at Acadia University. Her teaching and research focus on coaching, health and well-being, with an underlying interest in issues of gender equity and ethics. Ann has a Bachelor of Physical Education from Acadia and a Master's from the University of New Brunswick.

A member of the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame, she provides leadership in the Advanced Coaching Diploma for the National Coaching Institute, Atlantic. She continues to coach and participate in her sport of canoe/kayak during the summer.

2016 recipient - Dr. Randy Newman, Psychology
2009 recipient - Dr. Stephen Ash, Business
2008 recipient - Dr. Brenda Robertson, Recreation Management and Kinesiology
2007 recipient - Dr. Gregory MacKinnon, Education
2006 recipient - Dr. Stephen Maitzen, Philosophy
2004 recipient - Dr. Peter Williams, Physics
2000 recipient - Dr. Fred Chipman (1961), Mathematics and Statistics
1998 recipient - Dr. Jeanette Auger, Sociology
1997 recipient - Dr. Mervin Chen, Sociology
1996 recipient - Dr. Thomasz Muldner, Computer Science
1995 recipient - Dr. Merritt Gibson (’51), Biology
1994 recipient - Dr. Stanley Fisher, Music
1993 recipient - Dr. Gary Ness, Recreation and Physical Activity
1992 recipient - Dr. Gwen Davies, English
1991 recipient - Dr. Maurice Tugwell, Economics
1990 recipient - Professor Edward Eagles, English
1989 recipient - Dr. Sandra Barr, Geology
1988 recipient - Dr. James Stokesbury (’60), History
1987 recipient - Dr. J. Sherman Bleakney (’49), Biology
1986 recipient - Dr. Charles Taylor (’51). Acadia Divinity College