Distinguished Professors 2018

During Fall Convocation 2018, three U of M faculty members will be recognized as Distinguished Professors. This recognition was established by the Board of Governors of the University to recognize excellence and outstanding achievements of members of the academic staff. The title is conferred on the basis of outstanding distinction in research and scholarship or in creative professional activity, and a significant record in teaching.

Dr. Pam Perkins, BA(Hons.)(Utah), MA, PhD(Dalhousie)
Wednesday, October 17, 2018, 3:30 p.m.

An internationally respected leader in her field, Dr. Pamela Perkins is widely recognized for her scholarship on eighteenth-century culture and literary history, including topics such as the Scottish Enlightenment, the history of the novel, women’s writing, literary travel writing, and literary conceptions of the North.

Since joining the University of Manitoba in 1994, she has developed a reputation as a generous and dedicated mentor, not only to her students, but to many of her colleagues as well.

Dr. Perkins has published nine scholarly editions of novels and letters, and most recently, edited selections from the journals of Sir Thomas Cochrane, Governor of Newfoundland from 1825-1834. Her work has been published in leading venues of her field, including national and international presses such as Cambridge, Ashgate, and Palgrave.

Whether editing anthologies or charting genres and trends with her students, she brings to light issues that speak to a broader, cultural current. She has made available texts that can be difficult to access, engaging both academic and non-academic readers. By modelling a deep intellectual curiosity, Dr. Perkins inspires her students to consider the diverse voices that shape past literary cultures and societies, and is admired by colleagues nationally and internationally for her contributions, insight and grace.

Dr. Adele Perry, BA(Simon Fraser), MA, PhD(York)
Wednesday, October 17, 2018, 3:30 p.m.

An esteemed historian and educator, Dr. Adele Perry reaches deep into the past to advance contemporary dialogue on western Canada, Indigenous Peoples, colonialism, and gender.

From 2003-2014, Dr. Perry held the Canada Research Chair in Western Canadian Social History, focusing her work on the history of colonialism in North America and beyond. In her role, she invited visiting speakers to share their knowledge, created opportunities for post-doctoral fellows and hosted workshops for young scholars to discuss their own work.

In 2011, she co-authored the People’s Citizenship Guide, speaking to public programming for newcomers and social justice movements. For this work Dr. Perry earned a University of Manitoba Outreach Award. 

Most recently, she has focused her efforts on educating Manitobans about how the history of water in this province is tied to the history of colonialism. Her book Aqueduct: Colonialism, Resources, and the Histories We Remember, exposed the cultural, social, political and legal mechanisms that enabled the City of Winnipeg to obtain its water supply by dispossessing the Shoal Lake 40 First Nation.

Dr. Perry is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, president of the Canadian Historical Association and vice-president of the International Federation for Research in Women’s History.

Dr. Grant Pierce, OM, B.P.H.E.(Hons.)(Lakehead), M.Sc.(Dalhousie), PhD (Manitoba)
Friday, October 26, 2018, 2:00 p.m.

Dr. Grant Pierce’s transformative research has improved the well-being of people with cardiovascular diseases and diabetes across the globe.

As executive director of research at St. Boniface Hospital, he played a key role in establishing the Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences. He also established the Canadian Centre for Agri-Food Research in Health and Medicine, a unique collaboration bringing together Manitoba universities, the St. Boniface Hospital and the federal government (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada).

His research on cardiovascular disease with a focus on diabetes, hypertension and heart failure, is internationally renowned. He was among the first to show how diabetes directly affects the heart muscle. Recently, he prompted a breakthrough in the fight against antibiotic-resistant bacteria through the creation of a new platform of antibiotics that demonstrate great potential to avoid multi-drug resistance.

Described as an outstanding mentor, teacher and role model, Dr. Pierce inspires his students to bring ingenuity to their work.

Dr. Pierce is a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and the 2016 Research Canada Leadership Award. In 2013, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and this year was inducted into the Order of Manitoba.

Distinguished Professors are nominated and honoured annually. Find out more about how to nominate a deserving individual.

UM Today Staff