Cree Narratives Take Centre Stage in Art Exhibition an App That Teaches Healthy Eating Alumni Look Back at the Pandemic Year
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USASK COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCE MAGAZINE SPRING 2021 Cree narratives take centre stage in art exhibition An app that teaches healthy eating Alumni look back at the pandemic year BY THE NUMBERS SPRING 2021 THE COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCE AT USASK Arts&Science is published for alumni and friends of the College of Arts and Science, University of Saskatchewan. Editors Shannon Boklaschuk Christopher Putnam Contributors Shannon Boklaschuk Federica Giannelli Christopher Putnam Leslie-Ann Schlosser James Shewaga 10,557 1,389 1,532 Designer Larry Kwok STUDENTS INTERNATIONAL SELF-DECLARED 9,531 UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS INDIGENOUS STUDENTS Produced by 1,026 GRADUATE Communications Office College of Arts and Science, University of Saskatchewan 512 Arts Building, 9 Campus Drive Saskatoon SK S7N 5A5 Stay connected arts.science.uofs @usaskartsci @usaskartsci Printed in Canada Mister Print, Saskatoon, Sask. 50 53,919 312.8 DEGREE PROGRAMS LIVING ALUMNI FACULTY MEMBERS FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT On the cover: Artist Ruth Cuthand (BFA'83, MFA'92) is a 2021 USask Alumni Achievement Award recipient. Photography by David Stobbe $4.2M 11 STOREYS 34 YEARS GIFTS FROM DONORS HEIGHT OF THE AGE OF OLDEST LAST YEAR TALLEST BUILDING KOI FISH THE ARTS BUILDING - IT BUBBLES RECENTLY WAS ONLY SEVEN STOREYS RETIRED TO UNTIL 1965 INNOVATION PLACE Photography by David Stobbe A little over one year ago, the COVID-19 pandemic of the College of Arts and Science, they are uniquely forced us to radically rethink nearly every aspect of equipped to face this challenge. Like you, they have our daily lives. At the University of Saskatchewan the foundational knowledge and skills they need to (USask), campus buildings closed and we moved the adapt to a lifetime of change—to attain the jobs and majority of our teaching and learning online. Around opportunities that have yet to be imagined. the world, the lives of our alumni were upended just as Now, as the rollout of vaccines continues around dramatically. the world, there is light at the end of this tunnel. We We were separated, but not isolated; our distance anticipate a significant increase in our in-person, on- only underscored the importance of working together. campus instruction this fall. As we enter the post- And working together is what all of us in the College of COVID world, our focus in the College of Arts and Arts and Science do best. Science turns once again to the future. I have been continually inspired by the compassion Over the next decade, we see potential for and resilience shown by our community throughout transformative change in our college: opportunities to this difficult time. Our alumni, donors, faculty, staff make greater investments in our students, to further and students rose to the occasion, supporting each empower our researchers, and to make USask, more other and finding creative ways to improve the places than ever, the university the world needs. All of this will in which we live and work. You will find some of their happen with help from you, our alumni and donors, stories in the pages of this magazine. and I am eager to share more with you soon. Our students who graduated last spring and fall I hope that you and your families are healthy, safe entered a world of unprecedented uncertainty. But and looking forward to a brighter tomorrow. it was heartening for me to know that as graduates A MESSAGE FROM THE DEAN THE FROM MESSAGE A Dr. Peta Bonham-Smith Dean and Professor, College of Arts and Science We acknowledge that we live and work on Treaty 6 Territory and the Homeland of the Métis. We pay our respect to the First Nations and Métis ancestors of this place and reaffirm our relationship with one another. SPRING 2021 ARTS&SCIENCE 1 NEWS IN BRIEF Dr. Mitch Weegman Dr. Allyson Stevenson (BA’00, MA’04, PhD’15) Dr. Angela Jaime Photography by Kelsey Victoria Kerr Ducks Unlimited Canada endowed New research chair New vice-dean chair the first of its to explore history of Indigenous ready to kind in the country the Métis redefine the role A rising star in conservation science has Dr. Allyson Stevenson (BA’00, MA’04, Dr. Angela Jaime began a five-year term been hired as the Ducks Unlimited Canada PhD’15) wants to record the untold story of as vice-dean Indigenous in the College of (DUC) Endowed Chair in Wetland and the Métis in Western Canada. Arts and Science on July 1, 2020. Waterfowl Conservation in the College of On July 1, 2020, Stevenson was appointed Jaime, a member of the Pit River Arts and Science’s Department of Biology. the Gabriel Dumont Research Chair in Métis and Valley Maidu Tribes of northern Avian ecologist Dr. Mitch Weegman Studies in the College of Arts and Science. California, was recruited to the University will teach and mentor University of The new chair was created through a of Saskatchewan from the University of Saskatchewan (USask) students while partnership between the University of Wyoming. Her research and scholarship delivering research that addresses some Saskatchewan (USask) and the Gabriel focus on anti-racism, anti-oppression, and of the most pressing environmental issues Dumont Institute of Native Studies and the experience of Indigenous women and of our time. The first of its kind in Canada, Applied Research (GDI). students in higher education. the new endowed chair is the result of a With support from GDI, Stevenson As vice-dean Indigenous, Jaime will partnership between DUC and USask. will work to build research and teaching be responsible for all matters relating to “We’re thrilled to have someone of Mitch’s capacity in Métis studies at USask. She is Indigenous engagement within the college. talent leading, challenging and inspiring currently partnering with communities Her goals for the coming years include the next generation of conservation to work collaboratively on documenting supporting the success of Indigenous scientists who will help ensure our natural the Métis history of Cumberland House students, staff and faculty, strengthening environment is safeguarded now and into and river lot settlements in northeastern partnerships with the community and the future,” said Dr. Karla Guyn (MSc’94, Saskatchewan. creating a new Centre for Indigenous PhD’01), chief executive officer for DUC “It’s a really unique history, a really Scholarship. and one of the College of Arts and Science’s important history that has yet to be written,” “I am looking forward to working with Alumni of Influence. said Stevenson. the Indigenous community, both on and off DUC and USask have launched a GDI and USask also provided funding for campus, to support and create ways we can $5-million fundraising initiative to support new graduate student scholarships in Métis all provide healthy, encouraging and safe the chair and its work. Learn more online at studies. The first of these scholarships will spaces for Indigenous students, staff and ducks.ca/endowedchair. be awarded in 2021. faculty,” Jaime said. 2 ARTS&SCIENCE SPRING 2021 HIST 237: History of Infectious Diseases and Vaccination kicked off in January 2021. Photography by CDC from Pexels Pictured is the empty food court in Lower Place Riel on the USask campus. New USask course Photography by David Bindle looks at infectious USask introduces community-driven diseases from COVID-19 digital archive interdisciplinary The University of Saskatchewan (USask) news releases, policy changes, essential perspectives has launched a COVID-19 Community services declarations and the Vaccine and Archive to document life in Saskatchewan Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) As people around the world wait to during the global health crisis. response. receive one of several COVID-19 vaccines developed to help end the coronavirus “We want to help capture the everyday The purpose of the archive is to provide pandemic, a timely new University of Sas- experiences alongside the formal valuable source material for researchers— katchewan (USask) course is exploring in- responses to COVID-19,” said Dr. Erika faculty, students, journalists, historians terdisciplinary perspectives on infectious Dyck (BA’98, MA’00), a College of Arts and and writers—studying how the COVID-19 Science history professor and Canada diseases and inoculation. pandemic has transformed the university Research Chair in the History of Medicine. The course, HIST 237: History of Infec- and the province at large. As a community-driven initiative, the tious Diseases and Vaccination, kicked off The project is a partnership between digital archive will include submissions in January 2021. The course is taught by from residents that chronicle individual faculty in the Department of History in the two medical historians from the College of or collective experiences. This includes College of Arts and Science and units in Arts and Science, Dr. Simonne Horwitz and photographs, social media posts, videos, the University Library, including University Dr. Erika Dyck (BA’98, MA’00), alongside Dr. creative projects, email, blog entries, Archives and Special Collections and the Scott Napper (BSc’94, PhD’99), a professor journals and personal reflections. Digital Research Centre. of biochemistry, microbiology and immu- Through web archiving, interviews The COVID-19 Community Archive nology in the College of Medicine who and other initiatives, the project team content can be viewed and submitted serves as a senior scientist at VIDO. will also gather documentation such as online at covid19archive.usask.ca. Horwitz said the new co-teaching collab- oration will demonstrate to students from various disciplines