Five New NSERC Chairs Awarded
$2.6 million initiative to promote women in science and engineering

Ottawa, Ontario, April 18, 1997 – Dr. Jon Gerrard, Secretary of State (Science, Research and Development), today announced five new university chairs designed to encourage the participation of women in science and engineering. Over the next five years, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) will invest $1.25 million in the new chairs. The federal commitment of $250,000 per chair will be matched or exceeded by contributions from Alcan, Nortel, Petro-Canada and IBM.

"Science and engineering are key to job creation and economic growth in the new economy," said Dr. Gerrard. "These chairholders are highly regarded researchers who will provide outstanding role models for young women. Their expertise and their example will go a long way in promoting women in science and engineering."

The role of the chairholders will include developing strategies to encourage female students in elementary and secondary schools to consider careers in science or engineering, as well as sensitizing faculties on how to improve and promote the integration of women students and professionals. Each chairholder will devote up to half of her time to the activities of the Chair, and the remainder to her normal professorial and research activities at the university.

The selection followed a national competition organized by NSERC to solicit outstanding proposals and corporate co-sponsorship for the chairs, each of which is located in a different region of Canada.

The successful proposals are:

Atlantic Provinces

Corporate sponsor: Petro-Canada

Host: Memorial University of Newfoundland

Chair candidate: Dr. Mary Williams

Dr. Williams is a Senior Research Officer in the Institute for Marine Dynamics of the National Research Council, who will be jointly appointed to the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science and to the Faculty of Science at Memorial.

Quebec

Corporate sponsor: Alcan Aluminium Limitée

Host: Université Laval

Chair candidate: Dr. Claire Deschênes

Dr. Deschênes is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Laval.

Ontario

Corporate sponsor: Nortel

Hosts: University of Ottawa and Carleton University

Chair candidate: Dr. Monique Frize

Dr. Frize was the first chairholder of the Northern Telecom-NSERC Women in Engineering Chair, at the University of New Brunswick. She will be jointly appointed to the Faculties of Engineering at Carleton University and the University of Ottawa.

Prairie Provinces

Corporate sponsor: Petro-Canada

Host: University of Calgary

Chair candidate: Dr. Elizabeth Cannon

Dr. Cannon is a Professor in the Department of Geomatics Engineering at the University of Calgary.

British Columbia

Corporate sponsor: IBM Pacific Development Centre, Burnaby

Host: University of British Columbia

Chair candidate: Dr. Maria Klawe

Dr. Klawe is UBC's Vice-President for Student and Academic Services and a Professor in the Department of Computer Science.

NSERC is the national instrument for making strategic investments in Canada's capability in science and technology. The federal council invests $435 million annually to support advanced research, train new scientists and engineers, and encourage collaboration between the academic and industrial sectors.

More information on the objectives of the NSERC Chairs for Women in Science and Engineering can be found at http://www.nserc.ca/news/chairwo.htm.

Background

Dr. Elizabeth Cannon

Internationally recognized for her research in geomatics engineering (she was the first Canadian woman to receive a PhD in this field), Dr. Cannon has excelled as a professor and role model, and in her volunteer activities aimed at encouraging women to participate fully in science and engineering. She has been a leader of the University of Calgary's Women in Science and Engineering Program. She has also developed important links with industry and has actively been involved with technology transfer. Her organizational and management skills have been recognized by her election as President of the U.S. Institute of Navigation.

Dr. Claire Deschênes

Seven years ago, Dr. Deschênes became the first woman engineering professor at Laval University. Since that time, her research has focussed on improving the understanding of water flow in turbines and of the relation between flow dynamics and turbine performance. She has also developed a strong reputation at Laval for the high quality of her teaching and for her initiatives to promote equality of access and to integrate new students (both women and men) into the life of the university.

Dr. Monique Frize

Dr. Frize was the first holder of the Northern Telecom-NSERC Women in Engineering Chair. She rose to national prominence championing the chair objectives and raising the profile of women in research (during her chair tenure the number of women entering these fields increased by 50%). A report produced by the Canadian Committee on Women in Engineering, which she headed, became a guide for many organizations striving to achieve a better gender balance in the profession. More recently, she chaired NSERC's Task Force on Women in Science and Engineering. Dr. Frize was the first woman engineering graduate at the University of Ottawa. She is a biomedical engineer known for her expertise in medical instrumentation and decision-support systems.

Dr. Maria Klawe

In her six years as head of UBC's Department of Computer Science, Dr. Klawe built the department into one of Canada's most highly respected teaching and research units. Her research in the last several years has focused on an interdisciplinary project to develop computer games to help children, especially girls, learn mathematics. She has been influential in helping create programs to attract and support women in computing careers. In 1995, she was appointed UBC's Vice-President for Student and Academic Services.

Dr. Mary Williams

Dr. Williams is a Senior Research Officer in the Institute for Marine Dynamics of the National Research Council, and one of Canada's foremost researchers in ice engineering. In addition to her research accomplishments, she is well known for her ability to communicate to a lay audience and for her activities in encouraging young women to take up careers in science and engineering. The National Research Council has guaranteed Dr. Williams continued access to its state-of-the art ice tanks at IMD, and will commit $50,000 a year towards a collaborative program for a postdoctoral fellow and a student.

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