Nancy Chick appointed Taylor Institute's first academic director

I am very pleased to announce the appointment of Nancy Chick as University Chair in Teaching and Learning, and academic director, Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning, effective April 1, 2015. Nancy’s appointment will do a great deal to enhance teaching and learning and provide a great student experience at the University of Calgary.

Nancy joins the University of Calgary with more than 16 years of experience working as a recognized scholar, consultant, collaborator, and leader in the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL). She is currently assistant director, Vanderbilt Center for Teaching and a faculty member at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. During her time at Vanderbilt University, she created a SoTL Scholars Program. Previous to this role, she founded the University of Wisconsin Colleges Virtual Teaching and Learning Center and directed a statewide scholarship of teaching and learning program for junior and senior faculty across 26 campuses. Nancy brings an inviting, rigorous and meaningful approach to the scholarship of teaching and learning.  

Nancy holds a bachelor of arts degree in English from the University of New Mexico, as well as a master of arts and a doctorate degree in English from the University of Georgia. She has been as one of the longest-serving members of the International Society of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (ISSOTL) board of directors, serving until 2012 when she was selected as the founding editor of the highly respected journal of ISSOTL, Teaching and Learning Inquiry. She is internationally recognized for her contributions to teaching and learning through keynote addresses, workshops, and coaching inquiry and writing processes. Nancy is also an excellent teacher of literary study, American literature, as well as women’s and gender studies.

In this groundbreaking role, Nancy will provide the academic vision and leadership for the work of the Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning. She will cultivate an institute community that is actively engaged in integrating teaching and research to better understand and improve student learning within the university, and bring the Taylor Institute to national and international prominence. As university chair, Nancy will facilitate research in the scholarship of teaching and learning across the institution and beyond. She will also collaborate with colleagues at the University of Calgary to realize the vision for the College of Discovery, Creativity and Innovation and the office of experiential learning to ensure opportunities for a broad cross-section of students to engage in research, inquiry and creative initiatives and in experiential learning, more broadly.

I would like to thank the members who joined me on the Advisory Committee to the Provost on this appointment for their great work in bringing Nancy to the university: Leslie Reid, associate dean (teaching and learning), Faculty of Science; Ebba Kurz, associate dean (undergraduate health and science education), Cumming School of Medicine; Ellen Perrault, director, e-learning and distance education, Faculty of Social Work; Jennifer Lock, associate dean (teaching and learning), Werklund School of Education; Robert Kelly, associate professor, Faculty of Arts; Natasha Kenny, director, Educational Development Unit, Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning; Cari Gulbrandsen and Liam Cummings, graduate student representatives; and Jarett Henry and Raphael Jacob, undergraduate student representatives.

Please join me in welcoming Nancy to the University of Calgary.

Lynn Taylor