Peter Angelo wins Igor Ivkovic Teaching Excellence Award
The Department of Chemical Engineering is proud to announce that Professor Peter Angelo is the recipient of the Igor Ivkovic Teaching Excellence Award. The Waterloo Engineering Society, a student group, bestows the award to lecturers, professors, and lab instructors who advocate on behalf of students and go above and beyond in support of student success.
In just under two years at the University of Waterloo, Angelo has already made a lasting impression.
"It is very rewarding to be recognized by students," Angelo said. "They are the ones who interact with me the most and see my work directly. So, to know that it has not just been helpful to their academic success, but that I’ve been seen as approachable and engaging too — that really means a lot."
Bringing industry experience to teaching
Angelo’s teaching philosophy is rooted in relevance and practicality. He focuses on real-world applications when teaching foundational concepts in first- and second-year classes, to set the stage for advanced design courses in senior terms. In his teaching style, he connects theory to tangible examples, knowing that students go on to professional practice and will need to apply what they have learned in industry.
Since joining the Department of Chemical Engineering in 2023, Angelo has taught a range of courses from chemical engineering fundamentals in CHE 101 to the fourth-year process design course CHE 480.
Angelo worked in industry and taught for almost a decade at Seneca College, training chemical engineering technologists. This experience informs his practice-driven classroom approach. Angelo encourages his students to have agency, think critically and make informed judgments. He strives to instill in his students a commitment to ethical, responsible, and sustainable engineering practices.
Engineering with Ethics
“Even in first year, I reinforce open-ended thinking. A lot of early courses can be rigid, and I want them to develop engineering judgment from the start,” said Angelo. “I want them thinking not only of maximizing efficiency or profit, but about environmental and societal impacts. I want to plant the seed — that what they build as engineers will affect people, systems, and communities.”
Angelo did his undergraduate and doctoral studies in chemical engineering at the University of Toronto with a focus on nanomaterials used in specialized printing and coating. Although the research was interesting, he discovered his passion for teaching as a TA and as a sessional instructor.
“I found I enjoy connecting with students and being a positive influence, especially for those still figuring out their path.”
He credits his own education and an interest in a variety of subjects for shaping his balanced approach to teaching — including standout teachers that influenced him. Some of his favourite teachers were in non-technical subjects like philosophy, music, and languages, where he learned to consider the broader human impact of engineering and technology, which he feels is an important quality for engineers to cultivate.
His teaching style resonates strongly with his students. And now, thanks to their voices, he has earned the Igor Ivkovic Teaching Excellence Award.