Building on excellence

It is hard to believe that more than a year has passed since I was first appointed interim dean of Applied Health Sciences (AHS). Much has happened over the last year, including my more permanent appointment as dean for a five-year term. I am honoured to have the opportunity to continue to lead the Faculty over what promises to be a time of great momentum, progress and success.

In November, we broke ground for our new expansion building. Since then, construction has continued at a steady pace and we are on track to open in the fall of 2016. On north campus, faculty and staff from Kinesiology and Propel have moved into our renovated space at Tech Town. The rapid growth of the School of Public Health and Health Systems prompted a reorganization within our existing space in the Lyle Hallman Institute for Health Promotion and B.C. Matthews Hall. The strategic moves are allowing consolidation as well as creating new capacity for growth.

Applied Health Sciences continues to rank among the highest levels of research funding per faculty member at the University. In an era of intense competition for research funding, our researchers are proudly funded by a broad range of sources including: large National Centres of Excellence programs such as the AGE-WELL program; tri-council agencies through individual and group operating grants; research contracts with numerous community, not-for-profit, government and industry partners; multiple research chair and investigator salary awards; and, federal and provincial infrastructure, equipment, and highly qualified personnel training and mentorship programs. This breadth and depth of AHS research funding is testimony to the excellence of our faculty, staff, and student researchers and to the impact and importance of their work.

Training the next generation of health leaders remains a top priority for the Faculty. It is a pillar of our strategic plan, and shapes both our day-to-day activities and our vision for the future. The excellence of our academic programs and of our research environment, coupled with a vibrant campus life, continues to attract top undergraduate and graduate students. Balancing our dual commitments to high quality teaching and research is very important, and I am pleased to report that this year, in spite of a highly competitive environment for student recruitment, we maintained our high admission standards while also meeting Faculty student recruitment targets, and added a number of new faculty and staff members, including five full-time lecturer positions.

I hope that you find the content of this edition of News to You gives you a good sense of the types of transformative research and outstanding academic programming being advanced by the Faculty. You may have noticed that this issue looks a bit different than past years. We are in the process of re-envisioning the publication — from the length and frequency to the type of content. As a key stakeholder in the future of the Faculty, I invite you to complete our readership survey. Our goal is to deliver information and updates that are important and meaningful to you, so please share your thoughts.

The next year promises to be a time of exciting progress and growth in Applied Health Sciences. We will continue to refine and formalize action plans for the Faculty’s strategic priority areas, allowing us to clearly define our path and benchmark our success. As we approach our 50th anniversary, we are poised to not only take on the challenges of our time, but continue to build our legacy as a pioneer in protecting health and well-being across the lifespan.