Trevenen wins Educators’ Award

Professor Kathryn Trevenen of the Institute of Women’s Studies is one of 16 winners of this year’s Capital Educators’ Award.

The awards, an initiative of OCRI, recognize Ottawa educators, who are making a difference in the lives of their students. Christian Dionne of the Faculty of Theology at Saint Paul University, which is affiliated to the University of Ottawa, was also one of the winners.

Trevenen joined the University in 2002 as a first-time professor, after completing a PhD at Johns Hopkins University. In classes that range in size from 20 to 175 students, she teaches courses that examine the impact of gender, race, class and power in contemporary society.

Both as a professor and as a member of the University’s Senate Sub-committee on the Practice of Teaching, Trevenen tries to bring highly participatory methods of teaching to university classrooms, such as offering her students the opportunity to volunteer in the community as part of their course work.

“Kathryn has impressed me as a creative and generous colleague, a scholar of depth and integrity,” said Andrea Martinez, director of the Institute of Women’s Studies.  She is “fully committed to educational projects that help enhance students’ understanding and appreciation of gender dimensions and their connections to globalization.”

Martinez also noted that Trevenen was responsible for starting a series of “feminist cafés”, ranging from pub nights, to film nights and panel discussions, which provide a platform for faculty and community members to exchange ideas about gender issues.

“Dr. Trevenen tries her best to eliminate the power dynamics that usually exist with the classroom and yet maintain a formal decorum,” wrote student Manaka Raguparan, who also praised Trevenen’s “innovative teaching strategies.”