On May 26, 2026, the Faculty of Arts gathered for the annual Dean’s Awards Recognition Reception, celebrating faculty members recognized for excellence in teaching, research, mentorship, and creative practice.
Dean Clare Haru Crowston opened by welcoming Leona Sparrow of the Musqueam Indian Band, recognizing the Canada Foundation for Innovation funding awarded to the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm Musqueam Archaeology Centre, co-led by Leona Sparrow and Dr. Andrew Martindale (Anthropology).
Dean Crowston also paid tribute to Dr. Kirby Manià, an Assistant Professor of Teaching in the School of Journalism, Writing, and Media and the Coordinated Arts Program, who passed away this year. Dr. Manià was honoured posthumously with a Dean of Arts Educational Leadership and Innovation Award and was remembered as a deeply respected educator, mentor, and community-builder.
Congratulations to all of this year’s honourees, whose work strengthens the Faculty of Arts and makes a lasting difference for students, colleagues, and communities.
Dean Clare Haru Crowston
Associate Dean, Students, Dr. Laurie McNeill
Dr. Sharalyn Orbaugh, Professor and Head of the Department of Asian Studies, received the Dean of Arts Award. She is joined by Dr. Tineke Hellwig (left), Professor Emerita in the Department of Asian Studies, who was named co-recipient of the award.
Dr. Jonathan Ichikawa, Professor and Head of the Department of Philosophy, received the Dean of Arts Mentorship Award.
Dr. Toni Schmader, Professor and Head of the Department of Psychology, received the Dean of Arts Mentorship Award.
Dr. Amirpouyan Shiva, Assistant Professor of Teaching in the Department of Anthropology, received the Dean of Arts Educational Leadership and Innovation Award.
A posthumous Dean of Arts Award was presented in honour of the late Dr. Kirby Manià, Assistant Professor of Teaching in the School of Journalism, Writing, and Media and the Coordinated Arts Program. Her partners attended the ceremony to accept the award on her behalf.
Dr. Alifa Bandali, Assistant Professor of Teaching in the Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice, received the Killam Teaching Prize for 2025–26.
Dr. Patrick Pennefather, Associate Professor in the Department of Theatre and Film, received the Killam Teaching Prize for 2025–26.
Dr. David King, Lecturer in the Department of Psychology, received the Killam Teaching Prize for 2025–26.
Some of the recipients of the 2025-26 Killam Teaching Prize. Dr. Priti Narayan (Geography) and Dr. John Roosa (History) are not pictured.
Leona Sparrow, UBC Musqueam liaison, with Dean Clare Haru Crowston.
Dr. Germaine Koh, Assistant Professor in the Department of Art History, Visual Art and Theory, received the Teaching & Learning Enhancement Fund (TLEF) Award.
Dr. Eric Meyers, Associate Professor in the School of Information, received the Teaching & Learning Enhancement Fund (TLEF) Award.
Dean of Arts Award
This year, two Dean of Arts Awards were presented, recognizing faculty whose contributions to teaching, research, leadership, and community engagement have proven transformative to the Faculty of Arts.
- Dr. Geoffrey Hall (Professor, Psychology) was recognized for his internationally acclaimed contributions to developmental psychology, his decade of leadership as Head of the Department of Psychology, and a career defined by patience, diligence, and exceptional care for students and colleagues. Dr. Hall named Psychology Professor Emeritus Dr. Richard Tees as his co-recipient.
- Dr. Sharalyn Orbaugh (Professor and Department Head, Asian Studies) was honoured for nearly three decades of teaching across Japanese literature, visual culture, and gender studies, and for her leadership as Head of Asian Studies since 2020. Dr. Orbaugh named Asian Studies Professor Emerita Dr. Tineke Hellwig as her co-recipient.
Dean of Arts Mentorship Award
Three faculty members were recognized for their extraordinary dedication to the growth of junior colleagues, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows:
- Dr. Jonathan Ichikawa (Professor and Head, Philosophy) — for guiding 17 graduate students to early-career success and championing scholars from underrepresented groups
- Dr. Kristin Laurin (Professor, Psychology; Director, MAGIC Lab) — for cultivating a rigorous, supportive research environment and helping international students navigate graduate studies
- Dr. Toni Schmader (Professor and Head, Psychology; Director, Engendering Success in STEM Consortium) — for a mentorship legacy built on depth, consistency, and inclusive impact across two decades at UBC
Dean of Arts Educational Leadership and Innovation Award
- Dr. Amirpouyan Shiva (Assistant Professor of Teaching, Anthropology) — to revitalize the Digital Culture Lab and develop coordinated approaches to AI, computational systems, and digital infrastructures
- Dr. Jonathan Graves (Associate Professor of Teaching, Vancouver School of Economics) — to develop curriculum supporting VSE’s transition to Year 2 admissions, making economics more accessible and interdisciplinary
- Dr. Kirby Manià (posthumous) (Assistant Professor of Teaching, School of Journalism, Writing, and Media & Coordinated Arts Program) — honoured for her care, creativity, and deep commitment to student learning, mentorship, and community engagement. Dr. Manià’s partners were present to receive the award on her behalf.
Distinguished University Scholar Awards
- Dr. Kiran Soma (Professor, Psychology) — for innovative research on neural circuits, hormones, and immune function, including pioneering use of mass spectrometry to measure steroids in the brain
- Dr. Evan Thompson (Professor, Philosophy) — for widely cited research connecting cognitive science, philosophy of mind, and both Western and Eastern intellectual traditions
Killam Teaching Prize
Six faculty members were recognized for teaching excellence this year:
- Dr. Alifa Bandali (Assistant Professor of Teaching, Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice) — for care-focused pedagogy and leadership in curriculum development centring historically marginalized communities
- Dr. Amanda Cheong (Assistant Professor, Sociology) — for community-based learning with Filipino Canadian, Chinatown, and Downtown Eastside partners, and for transforming T.A. training in her department
- Dr. Priti Narayan (Assistant Professor, Geography) — for creating intellectually vibrant classrooms where students move from hesitancy to scholarly confidence
- Dr. John Roosa (Professor, History) — for his critical pedagogy of care and his “dramaturgy of history,” teaching dressed as historical figures to embody history with vulnerability
- Dr. David King (Lecturer, Psychology) — for connecting course content to lived experience and founding PrideMind, a community of care for 2SLGBTQIA+ students, staff, and faculty in Psychology
- Dr. Patrick Pennefather (Associate Professor, Theatre & Film) — for pedagogy centered on “learning through failure,” empowering students across disciplines to experiment and take intellectual risks
Killam Accelerator Research Fellowship
- Dr. Fatema Amijee (Associate Professor, Philosophy) — for her work in metaphysics, early modern philosophy, and feminist philosophy with a focus on depatriarchalizing strategies in Quranic interpretation
Killam Faculty Research Fellowships
- Dr. Anna Casas Aguilar (Associate Professor, French, Hispanic and Italian Studies) — gender and cultural studies in contemporary Spain and Catalonia
- Dr. Samantha Dawson (Associate Professor, Psychology) — mechanisms contributing to sexual function and targeted interventions for sexual dysfunction
- Dr. Connor Kerns (Associate Professor, Psychology) — anxiety in autism and effective anxiety measurement and treatment
Killam Faculty Research Prizes
- Dr. Seth Abrutyn (Professor, Sociology)
- Dr. Paul Hewitt (Professor, Psychology)
- Dr. Christine Kim (Professor and Associate Head (Research), English Language & Literatures)
- Dr. Gaoheng Zhang (Associate Professor, French, Hispanic and Italian Studies)
- Dr. Samantha Dawson (Associate Professor, Psychology)
Sam Black Award for Education and Development in the Visual & Performing Arts
- Leora Morris (Assistant Professor, Theatre & Film) — for artistic work of exceptional vision that has shaped theatre, performance, actor training, and research-creation
Peter Wall Legacy Research Awards
- Individual Faculty Award: Dr. McKenzie Kuhn (Assistant Professor, Geography) — Protecting Northern British Columbia Lakes: Building a Collaborative Monitoring Program to Quantify Climate Warming Impacts
- Team Faculty Award (Lead PI): Dr. Tarun Khanna (Assistant Professor, School of Public Policy & Global Affairs) — Securing a community-led, sustainable, and resilient energy future for BC
Teaching & Learning Enhancement Fund (TLEF) Awards
- Dr. Anna Dawczyk (Lecturer, Sociology) — Creating Flexibility for Diverse Learners through a Hybrid and Online Offering of FMST 210
- Dr. Michael Barber (Associate Professor of Teaching, Vancouver School of Economics) — Enhancing ECON 101 with Blended Modules, Lightboard Videos, and Small-Group Applications
- Dr. Amirpouyan Shiva (Assistant Professor of Teaching, Anthropology) — Ethnographic Vignette Printer: Generating engagement, collaboration, and reflection in writing anthropology and beyond
- Dr. Germaine Koh (Assistant Professor, Art History, Visual Art and Theory) — Hands-on experiential learning in public art and sustainable textiles: Fabric of Campus Fibre Garden
- Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim (Assistant Professor, School of Social Work) — Global Mental Health: Interdisciplinary Policy and Practice
- Dr. Eric Meyers (Associate Professor, School of Information) — Reimagining the MA in Children’s Literature Program
National & Provincial Awards
- Dr. Kiran Soma (Professor, Psychology) — elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada for transformative contributions to psychology, neuroscience, and endocrinology
- Dr. Shannon Walsh (Associate Professor, Theatre & Film) — named a Member of the College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists (Royal Society of Canada) for her filmmaking and writing on social justice, grief, and global crises
- Dr. Kevin Fisher (Associate Professor, Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies) — recipient of the G. Ernest Wright Award (American Schools for Overseas Research) for his book Monumentality, Place-Making and Social Interaction on Late Bronze Age Cyprus
