The University of Lethbridge continued its prodigious growth as a leading comprehensive academic and research institution over the past year, once again gaining national recognition as one of Canada’s top-three undergraduate research universities.

This afternoon, the University will recognize faculty members and postdoctoral fellows from across campus at the U of L’s annual Celebrating Research event, honouring those who received academic research awards of distinction, secured research funding or published their research findings in the past year.

“The extraordinary results we are celebrating today were made possible thanks to the hard work and dedication of our faculty,” says Dr. Lesley Brown, the University’s associate vice-president (research). “At the U of L, we support creative inquiry that is interactive, experimental and engaged. It is only through the commitment of our faculty that we are able to create communities of research excellence that span across disciplines and advance knowledge that matters to our students, our community, our province and our nation.”

In the past year, the U of L added to its research capacity by launching several new collaborative and diverse research centres. The Canadian Centre for Research in Advanced Fluorine Technologies and the Centre for Oral History and Tradition are two such centres that were launched in the past year, bringing to 13 the number of centres and institutes on campus, all of which involve a significant number of cross-faculty or cross-departmental collaborations.

“These centres and institutes engage students at both the undergraduate and graduate level, and help train the next generation of researchers, innovators and leaders in society,” says Brown.

As the University looks forward, expanding research opportunities will continue to be a major strategic focus.

“While we look on these accomplishments with pride, we are also looking to the future and have some exciting plans on the horizon,” says University of Lethbridge President and Vice-Chancellor, Dr. Mike Mahon. “One such project is the Destination Project, an initiative that includes a new facility for teaching, research and community outreach that will fundamentally transform the U of L and further add to the U of L’s research capacity and impact.”

To view a full list of those being recognized at this evening’s reception, follow this link.