UCalgary awards more than $800K to 2025 teaching and learning grants recipients

Innovation in teaching and learning requires more than just ideas. It needs support to advance new ways students are taught and to create development opportunities for educators.

The University of Calgary Teaching and Learning Grants program invites educators to submit project proposals that explore innovative ways to improve the overall educational experience. “The program gives academic staff the opportunity to critically examine and share out approaches to student learning that is research informed and supports their broader research goals,” says Dr. Wendy Benoit, PhD’07, vice-provost teaching and learning.  

“This allows for our researchers to lead projects that not only benefit students, but contribute to everything we are working to achieve in UCalgary’s Strategic Plan, Ahead of Tomorrow.” 

Wide range of research topics supported 

Funded by UCalgary's Provost’s Office, the program has so far funded 23 projects in 2025, with a combined total of $813,241.99. This includes $89,858 contributed by the Students' Union Quality Money Open Education Resources Fund.  

Applications for grants included topics in engineering, science and medicine which have resulted in novel investigations into topics such as the tensions and harmonies between engineering student identity and queer identity; building a space-themed rescue simulator to teach AI coding; and using 3D simulations for pathology training. 

Since 2014, the program has awarded more than $7 million to 295 teaching and learning research projects.  

“Each year, we’re amazed at the range of departments and disciplines represented in the list of funded projects.” says Dr. Jean-Yin Tan, DVM, academic lead for the Teaching and Learning Grants program. “The depth, vigour and vision that guides each teaching and learning exploration is truly remarkable.” 

To learn more about the program and view information about the launch of next year’s application, visit the Teaching and Learning Grants website. 
 

2025 Teaching and Learning grant recipients  

Collaborative open educational resources environment; fostering active learning using an individualized, data-driven framework for engineering statics 

Grant Holder: Principal – Peyman Yousefi (Schulich School of Engineering) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Jacob Lamb (Schulich School of Engineering), Bronwyn Chorlton (Schulich School of Engineering) 
Grant Stream: Development and Innovation, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility; online and blended learning; open educational resources; transdisciplinary teaching and learning; academic integrity and ethics; professional learning in higher education 
Grant: $14,900 

Innovating care: An end-user centred curriculum for biomedical engineering 

Grant Holder: Principal – Emma Farago (Schulich School of Engineering) 
Team Members: Support Staff – Suzanna Crawford (Faculty of Nursing), Yinping Yu (Faculty of Nursing), External – Ursula Mann 
Grant Stream: Development and Innovation 
Focus Area: Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility; entrepreneurial thinking and innovation; program innovation and renewal 
Grant: $15,000 

Team-based experiential assessment for teaching introductory AI (AEGIS rescue simulator) 

Grant Holder: Principal – Jonathan Hudson (Faculty of Science) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Janet Leahy (Faculty of Science) 
Grant Stream: Development and Innovation 
Focus Area: Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility; work-Integrated Learning, experiential Learning, undergraduate research and creative scholarship; open educational resources; transdisciplinary teaching and learning 
Grant: $31,800 

Examining and supporting leadership in global classroom Initiatives for faculty and students 

Grant Holder: Principal – Roswita Dressler (Werklund School of Education) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Barbara Brown (Werklund School of Education), Stephen MacGregor (Werklund School of Education) 
Grant Stream: Educational Leadership 
Focus Area: Work integrated learning, (W.I.L) experiential learning (E.L.) and undergraduate research and creative scholarship; online and blended learning 
Grant: $45,000 

Rethinking curriculum and pedagogy: Evaluating the master of social work-international community development program to address the dynamic complexities of global and local contexts 

Grant Holder: Principal – Aamir Jamal (Faculty of Social Work) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – David Nicholas (Faculty of Social Work), Julie Drolet (Faculty of Social Work), Liza Lorenzetti (Faculty of Social Work), Graduate Student – Karen Pontious (Faculty of Social Work) 
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility; sustainability and global engagement; program innovation and renewal; transdisciplinary teaching and learning 
Grant: $45,000 

3D Asset and simulation training development for pathology based training programs 

Grant Holder: Principal – William (Bill) Gorday (Faculty of Graduate Studies) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Amy Bromley (Cumming School of Medicine) and Konstantin Koro (Cumming School of Medicine)
Grant Stream: Development and Innovation, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility; online and blended learning; sustainability and global engagement; entrepreneurial thinking and innovation; program innovation and renewal; transdisciplinary teaching and learning; graduate student mentorship and learning experiences 
Grant: $45,000 

Gamifying virtual building tours for mechanical systems education using H5P technology 

Grant Holder: Principal – Peiying Jennifer Tsai (Schulich School of Engineering); Co-Principal – Simon Li (Schulich School of Engineering) 
Grant Stream: Development and Innovation 
Focus Area: Online and blended learning; sustainability and global engagement; transdisciplinary teaching and learning 
Grant: $15,000 

Enhancing GenAI skills and understanding among students 

Grant Holder: Principal – Angeliki Athanasopoulou (Faculty of Arts) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Benjamin Tan (Schulich School of Engineering); Graduate Student – Brooklyn Sheppard (Faculty of Arts); External – Julie Sedivy 
Grant Stream: Development and Innovation 
Focus Area: Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility; entrepreneurial thinking and innovation; transdisciplinary teaching and learning; graduate student mentorship and learning experiences; academic integrity and ethics 
Grant: $15,000 

Examining online implementation of high-impact educational practices (HIPs) 

Grant Holder: Principal – Barbara Brown (Werklund School of Education) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Verena Roberts (Werklund School of Education); Graduate Student – Amber Hartwell (Werklund School of Education) 
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Online and blended learning; transdisciplinary teaching and learning 
Grant: $45,000 

Undergraduate health equity research: Ensuring meaningful, well-supported, and high-impact learning experiences 

Grant Holder: Principal – Meaghan Edwards (Cumming School of Medicine) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Pamela Roach (Cumming School of Medicine), Dana Olstad (Cumming School of Medicine) 
Grant Stream: Development and Innovation 
Focus Area: WIL, EL, undergraduate research and creative scholarship; program innovation and renewal; transdisciplinary teaching and learning; community-engaged teaching and learning 
Grant: $39,410 

Teaching multi-disciplinary health professionals how to respond to intimate-partner violence disclosure: An interprofessional virtual gaming simulation (VGS) 

Grant Holder: Principal – Angelique Jenney (Faculty of Social Work) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Amanda O'Rae (Faculty of Nursing), Jolene Haws (Cumming School of Medicine); Support Staff – Nathan Pronyshyn (Faculty of Social Work); Postdoctoral Associate – Sara Dolan (Faculty of Social Work) 
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: WIL, EL, undergraduate research and creative scholarship; online and blended learning; open educational resources; transdisciplinary teaching and learning 
Grant: $44,892 

Using outcome harvesting to determine the outcomes of graduate certificates in nursing 

Grant Holder: Principal – Andrew Estefan (Faculty of Nursing); Co-Principal – Alix Westgard (Faculty of Nursing) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Lorelli Nowell (Faculty of Nursing); Support Staff – Judith Berzins (Faculty of Nursing) 
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Program innovation and renewal; transdisciplinary teaching and learning; community-engaged teaching and learning; graduate student mentorship and learning experiences 
Grant: $45,000 

Navigating wicked problems: Integrating systems thinking, design justice, and sustainability mindset in engineering education 

Grant Holder: Principal – Poornima Jayasinghe (Schulich School of Engineering) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Robyn Paul (Schulich School of Engineering) 
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Community well-being and mental health; sustainability and global engagement; transdisciplinary teaching and learning; community-engaged teaching and learning 
Grant: $39,950 

Integrating student perspectives in outcomes-based assessment: a longitudinal study of student self-efficacy 

Grant Holder: Principal – Robert Brennan (Schulich School of Engineering) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Meera Singh (Schulich School of Engineering) 
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility; open educational resources; program innovation and renewal; transdisciplinary teaching and learning 
Grant: $44,769 

Using peer reflecting teams to strengthen case consultation skills 

Grant Holder: Principal - Michelle Drefs (Werklund School of Education); Co-Principal –  Kelly Hicks (Werklund School of Education)
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility; WIL, EL, undergraduate research and creative scholarship; open educational resources; program innovation and renewal; transdisciplinary teaching and learning 
Grant: $44,966 

Inclusive assessment: considerations for GenAI and academic integrity 

Grant Holder: Principal – Sarah Elaine Eaton (Werklund School of Education) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Soroush Sabbaghan (Werklund School of Education); Support Staff – Brenda McDermott (Student Accessibility Services) 
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility; open educational resources; transdisciplinary teaching and learning 
Grant: $40,000 

Enhancing current assessment practices in the biomedical engineering undergraduate program: opportunities and barriers 

Grant Holder: Principal – Miriam Nightingale (Schulich School of Engineering) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Ethan MacDonald (Schulich School of Engineering), Denis Onen (Schulich School of Engineering); Graduate Student – Jacob Beaudoin (Faculty of Graduate Studies) 
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility; program innovation and renewal; transdisciplinary teaching and learning; academic integrity and ethics 
Grant: $45,000 

Investigating the tensions and harmonies between engineering student identity and queer identity 

Grant Holder: Principal – Sarah Vestrum (Schulich School of Engineering) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Marie Charbonneau (Schulich School of Engineering), Emma Farago (Schulich School of Engineering), Robyn Paul (Schulich School of Engineering) 
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility; community well-being and mental health; transdisciplinary teaching and learning 
Grant: $45,000  

Shovels Ready: Understanding cultural resource management preparedness in post-secondary archaeology education 

Grant Holder: Principal – Lindsay Amundsen-Meyer (Faculty of Arts) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Matthew Munro (Faculty of Arts); Graduate Student – Erica Van Vugt (Faculty of Arts); External – Ken Holyoke, Tatiana Craft 
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL)

Focus Area: WIL, EL, undergraduate research and creative scholarship; program innovation and renewal; transdisciplinary teaching and learning; community-engaged teaching and learning 
Grant: $14,435.99 

Helping medical trainees grow: A prospective mixed-methods interventional study of non-ability variables 

Grant Holder: Principal – Janeve Desy (Cumming School of Medicine) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Sylvain Coderre (Cumming School of Medicine), Lea Harper (Cumming School of Medicine), Melinda Davis (Cumming School of Medicine), Kevin McLaughlin (Cumming School of Medicine); Support Staff – Kenna Kelly-Turner (Faculty of Graduate Studies); MED Student – Mobina Motamedi (Cumming School of Medicine) 
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Program innovation and renewal; transdisciplinary teaching and learning 
Grant: $38,328 

Transforming Reconciliation and academic inclusivity through leadership (TRAIL) 

Grant Holder: Principal – Fareen Zaver (Cumming School of Medicine); Co-Principal – Kenna Kelly-Turner (Cumming School of Medicine) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Aleem Bharwani (Vice-President Research Office); Support Staff – Howard Campbell (Cumming School of Medicine) 
Grant Stream: Educational Leadership 
Focus Area: Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility; land based learning and Indigenous Ways of Knowing; sustainability and global engagement; transdisciplinary teaching and learning; professional learning in higher education 
Grant: $45,000 

Improvement during growth: Innovation of equine practical learning during a class expansion by streamlining existing processes 

Grant Holder: Principal – Ashley Whitehead (Faculty of Veterinary Medicine); Co-Principal – Cecily Burbidge (Faculty of Veterinary Medicine) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – John Remnant (Faculty of Veterinary Medicine), Rebecca Archer (Faculty of Veterinary Medicine); Support Staff – Kate Armstrong (Faculty of Veterinary Medicine), Katie Rombough (Faculty of Veterinary Medicine) 
Grant Stream: Development and Innovation, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Program innovation and renewal; transdisciplinary teaching and learning 
Grant: $9,928 

Evaluating mental health and well-being outcomes through peer-assisted study sessions (PASS) 

Grant Holder: Principal – Jennifer Thannhauser (Student Wellness Services) 
Team Members: Academic Staff – Julia Hews-Girard (Faculty of Nursing); Support Staff – Steve Mason (Student Success Centre) 
Grant Stream: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) 
Focus Area: Community well-being and mental health; transdisciplinary teaching and learning 
Grant: $44,863