Teaching and Learning Services is pleased to announce the five outstanding Teaching Assistants (TAs) who have been named recipients of the 2020-21 Outstanding TA Awards.
The awards celebrate the support TAs give to the undergraduate programs in their disciplines, their roles in establishing a positive learning environment, and their work in implementing innovative teaching practices.
Find out more about the winners, honourable mentions and nominees below.
Congratulations to all, and thank you to the students, peers and instructors who took the time to recognize the fine work of Carleton’s TAs!
Winners
Adam Heffernan
ELEC 2507
Adam is a B. Eng graduate with a specialization in electrical engineering, hailing from Peterborough, Ontario. He owns two Shih-tzu puppies, Shirley and Pringle, is an avid golf, football and baseball fan, and enjoys making electronic house music when he can.
Kevin Dick
SYSC 4906
Kevin is a PhD candidate in the Department of Systems and Computer Engineering who is passionate about teaching and mentoring students on topics of machine learning and data science. He aims to inspire students to pursue research and realize their own ideas and ambitions.
Brandon Robinson
CIVE 3203
Brandon is in the third year of his PhD in Civil Engineering. He has been a teaching assistant for five different courses at Carleton, supervising experiments in the lab, conducting problem analysis sessions in the classroom (or in this case, on Zoom), and managing a large team of TAs as the head TA.
Collins Ogundipe
MAAE 2202
Collins is from the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. He does research in space robotics and AI. He was TA for MAAE 3202 and 2202 in the 2020-21 academic year.
Christina Arruda
HLTH 5350
Christina has just completed her second and final year in the MSc in Health: Science, Technology and Policy program and has the goal to peruse substance use and mental health policy.
Honourable Mentions
Callie Metler
ENGL 1500
Callie Metler is a first year PhD candidate in the Department of English Language and Literature. Her teaching interests include LGBTQ+ literature and comics.
Rachel McNally
PSCI 1200
Rachel McNally is a PhD student in the Department of Political Science, focusing on refugee policy. She enjoys being a TA for courses related to world politics and migration.
Cassandra Starosta
PSYC 3603
Cassandra is currently pursuing her master’s degree in forensic psychology under the supervision of Evelyn Maeder in the Legal Decision-Making Lab at Carleton University. Cassandra is proud and thankful to receive this honourable mention. She extends her deep appreciation to all those who nominated her and Suzanne Cooper for allowing her to grow and learn as a teaching assistant.
Hamza Sohail
COMP 1005
Hamza just finished his second year of computer science at Carleton and is going to be interning as a student developer at BlackBerry this summer. He enjoys working on challenging problems, meeting new people and is passionate about making computer science fun and accessible to everyone.
Maddison Brooks
JAPA 3010/3020