Helping her students develop critical thinking skills by encouraging them to be curious about the world around them, Dr. Suzanne Lenon has been named the University of Lethbridge 2021 Board of Governors Teaching Chair (BOGTC).

Lenon teaches a wide range of undergraduate courses in the Department of Women & Gender Studies and she continually explores ways to bridge theory and practice in the design of her courses. This thoughtfulness has led to creative courses that students have said gave them a new way of looking at the world and helped them understand how the theories they learned in the classroom play out in everyday life.

Lenon will be presented with the Board of Governors Teaching Chair at the Chancellor’s Reception on Thursday, June 10, 2021.

Suzanne Lenon

Suzanne Lenon obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Women’s Studies and Development Studies at the University of Calgary and a master’s degree in Development Studies at Carleton University. Her doctoral degree from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto was in the Department of Sociology & Equity Studies and part of the Graduate Collaborative Program at the U of T’s Women & Gender Studies Institute. Lenon joined the U of L’s Women’s Studies Program as an assistant professor, and she has been an associate professor in the Department of Women & Gender Studies since 2015.

In her teaching, her main goal is to empower students to think rigorously about the world around them, their own place in it and their own place in producing it. By bridging scholarship and engaged citizenship, Lenon opens students’ eyes to how complex theories play a role in their lives in ways that can disrupt established ways of thinking. While this process can be uncomfortable, Lenon works to create a positive learning environment that encourages students to participate and engage in critical work in ways that are respectful and constructive.

She sees teaching as an ongoing process and is committed to continually learning from her students and colleagues to find new and respectful ways of engaging students. Lenon designs her courses to develop students’ critical thinking skills, to spark their curiosity and to question the social structures and relations of power they see.