Three University of Lethbridge faculty members, Dr. Abdie Kazemipur (Social Sciences), Dr. Kas Mazurek (Education) and Dr. Josephine Mills (Fine Arts), have been appointed by the U of L’s Board of Directors to three-year terms as University Scholars – a program that acknowledges exceptional research, scholarship and performance.
“The University Scholar program helps talented faculty members more actively pursue their respective research areas by granting them financial resources as well as time to further explore their interests,” says Associate Vice-President (Research) Lesley Brown. “These three new University Scholars, who are tremendous representatives of the U of L’s world class faculty, will also have increased opportunities to disseminate their work publicly.”
University Scholars receive a research grant totaling $5,000 over three years, in addition to $1,500 over three years that may be used towards conference travel, conference registration, speaking and/or performance engagement expenses, or other activities used to disseminate their research activity. One course relief in teaching duty will be granted in each year of an appointment.
Each University Scholar will give a public lecture or performance as part of the University Scholars Series at the University of Lethbridge during the three-year term of their designation.
One University Scholar in each of Education, Fine Arts and the Social Sciences is appointed in one particular year, and one in each of Health Sciences, the Humanities, the Natural Sciences and Management, the alternate year.
The terms of the University Scholars appointments begin July 1, 2014.
Dr. Abdie Kazemipur
Dr. Kazemipur's work is targeted towards developing a better understanding of the role and place of religion in sociopolitical developments that involve Muslim populations. His work will explore the integration of Muslim immigrants in western liberal-democracies, including Canada. As well, Kazemipur will investigate secularization as well as the interplay of Islam and democracy in the Middle-Eastern countries of Iran, Turkey and Egypt. Through this work, Kazemipur hopes to add a Canadian perspective and a Canadian voice to these ongoing debates.
Dr. Josephine Mills
Dr. Mills will work to advance the outcomes of the Complex Social Change research project. Recently funded through the Interdisciplinary Research Development Fund, this project aims to study and enact collaborative strategies to overcome the inertia that discourages action. The project brings together curators, artists, students and scholars from different disciplinary backgrounds with a common interest – a deep commitment to activism, Liberal Education and to exploring the boundaries between the academy and the public realm. As a U of L Scholar, Mills will be curating a related series of exhibitions and public programs related to activism and social engagement.
NOTE: Dr. Mills is not receiving course relief. Rather, a contract staff person will be hired to work with her on gallery projects.
Dr. Kas Mazurek
Dr. Mazurek’s work explores how Alternative Language Programs meet the needs and aspirations of Alberta's culturally and linguistically diverse populations. His research will document perceptions of administrators and teachers regarding the cultural dimensions of their programs to investigate how these extend beyond language instruction and maintenance. The information that is obtained from Mazurek’s work will inform our understanding across numerous domains. These include how the cultural components of a program are defined, how a program and its teachers are part of a cultural and linguistic community, what makes a program unique, the needs of students and parents an Alternative Language Program meets that other public school programs cannot, and teacher competencies that facilitate successful delivery of a culturally-based program.