As a nursing student at the University of Alberta, Josh Bergman said access to financial support made a big difference to him at a critical time and a lasting impression post-graduation.

“I came from modest circumstances, I was the first one in my family to get a post-secondary education,” Bergman (‘05 BScN) said. “At one point, I had to pay for a spring course but I had no money, and my faculty was able to help access some money to get me through that time. And I remember thinking if I had the opportunity I’d like to give back to the U of A in some way in that regard.”

Even though Alberta’s Teacher Quality Standards place an emphasis on including Indigenous histories and knowledges, many teachers continue to be unsure of how to present such material, or of the role of settler colonialism in nation-building, according to a PhD candidate in Educational Policy Studies.

Congratulations to the following faculty members and students who have achieved distinction and have recently been acknowledged for their impactful work, both within and beyond the academic community.

The Faculty of Education has a proud tradition not only of producing great educators, but great educational research. Here are some recent stories you may have missed about UAlberta education researchers and the important work they do to improve teaching and learning in Alberta, in Canada and around the world.

Dr. Denise Larsen, a professor in the Department of Educational Psychology and Associate Dean Research, has been named a Canadian Psychological Association Fellow.

This honour recognizes Larsen’s distinguished contribution to the advancement of the profession of psychology along with her service to the association.

[Dr. Heather Brown is a professor in the Department of Educational Psychology. To mark World Autism Awareness Day (April 2), she has shared an essay about her personal experience with autism spectrum disorder and how it has informed her research.]

The Faculty of Education joins the global community in mourning the passing of alumnus Darcy Belanger (‘94 BEd), who was among the 157 lives lost on Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 on March 10, 2019.

For decades, more than a century of Alberta’s education history has lived on in the Faculty of Education’s H.T. Coutts Library. Unfortunately, it’s lived on in a windowless room in the basement behind a locked door, accessible only by request. But thanks to a generous bequest from a former University of Alberta education professor, this archive will be available to anyone anywhere at any time.

The U.S. Fulbright Scholar competition is now open and accepting applications for the University of Alberta’s Fulbright Research Chair in Education to be taken up in the 2020-2021 academic year. To that end, the Faculty of Education is seeking help in identifying American scholars who would be prospective candidates for pursuing education research at the University of Alberta.

Unfounded parental fears have always outweighed a student’s right to access comprehensive sexual health information in school, according to education professor and researcher André Grace. He says it’s time for provincial and territorial governments to put the health and safety of young people first by making sexual health education mandatory for every student.