Award: 2022 convocation awards recognize outstanding educators
Two outstanding and beloved educators were recognized at the 2022 Doctor of Medicine Convocation and honoured with awards. Congratulations to Fabiana Crowley, PhD, on receiving the Douglas Bocking Award, and Charys Martin, PhD, on receiving the Class of 62 Award.
Douglas Bocking Award
The Douglas Bocking Award honours a faculty educator and leader who has contributed substantially to the undergraduate medical program during the past four years.
Crowley is renowned for her tireless work as an educator across the four-year program and her dedication to curricular design and development. As an advocate for a learner-centred approach to education, she incorporates students into course committees and curricular decisions — making learners collaborative partners in their educational model.
Soon after joining Western and the undergraduate medical education program as an educator, she took on a leadership role within the curriculum renewal process. She was the driving force behind the development of the new Foundations of Medicine course, which embodies the principles of learning that the curricular renewal aimed to meet.
As an educator first, she demonstrates an unwavering enthusiasm for her field, which, combined with her learner-centred approach to session and course design, and her desire to pursue innovative teaching methods to engage and challenge her students, makes her an outstanding educator. She has a unique talent for making complex material interesting and relevant to students, using humour and everyday experiences to highlight and explain human physiological responses.
Class of 62 Award
The Class of 62 Award recognizes a faculty member who has contributed the most to the medical school in the previous four years. Members of the graduating class presented the award to Martin.
In recognizing Martin, the students spoke to her passion for anatomy and her ability to make complex topics interesting and understandable.
They noted that during the COVID-19 campus closures, Martin continued to find innovative ways to teach anatomy, transitioning labs to virtual formats and organizing online group exercise classes to reinforce musculoskeletal anatomy concepts. They recognized her for being a stellar anatomy professor, and a shining example of a successful woman in STEM, who serves as an inspiration and role model.
In closing, the students thanked Martin for being an exceptional educator for the past four years, and for sharing her love of anatomy and learning with all of them.
