ATHABASCA — It is a highly prestigious award started in 1986 by 3M Canada and the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (STLHE), and for the first time, an Athabasca University (AU) professor has won it, joining only 350 previous and current Fellows.
Encompassing his entire body of work based on the criteria of educational leadership, teaching excellence, and educational innovation, chemist Dr. Dietmar Kennepohl was selected as one of 10 people for 2021’s 3M National Teaching Fellowship following a six-month application process that not only listed his achievements but crafted the rich tapestry of the impact Kennepohl has had on education as a whole.
“This is the premier teaching and learning award in Canada; it's really quite highly recognized and the first time that Athabasca University has gotten one of these, so it's recognition (and) hopefully that splashes onto the university as well,” Kennepohl said in an interview April 16.
Kennepohl joined AU in 1993 in the Faculty of Science and Technology and immediately set about advancing education with his revolutionary home-study kit allowing laboratory work to be done at home, and it resulted in a dramatic increase in AU enrolment when the kits were introduced in 1997.
“When Dietmar started these lab kits, this was kind of breaking traditional norms; everybody used to think that you've got to teach labs sitting in the lab,” said his nominator Dr. Lisa Carter, the former Dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology at AU. “He was able to translate it and translate it so that it was credible because now the courses that these labs are integrated in, they're accepted by many, many, many universities throughout Canada and the US and elsewhere.”
Kennepohl also developed an award-winning wiki textbook used worldwide and is free for students to access. As well, he is recognized internationally for his work in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics).
“It's quite a complex award,” Carter said. “It's not just writing the letter; it's actually weaving a story of why he's an inspirational and wonderful teacher — especially in sciences. It's really hard to deliver science at a distance, and Dietmar comes with so many ideas; he's creative. He really, really believes in giving back to the world.”
The 50-page submission to STLHE includes not only data supporting how his advancements have impacted education as a whole, but testimonials from students and colleagues to showcase his impact on the human side of education.
“Everyone thinks ‘Oh this is an award and you get a trophy and they shake your hand and off you go and that's it.’ That's not the case here,” said Kennepohl. “This is a fellowship and so I've become invited into this fellowship of really highly qualified teachers and then we do things.”
Those ‘things’ will be working with his cohort of 2021 winners on even more advances in education; there is no resting on laurels for the winners.
“We get $25,000 from 3M toward a project that we come up with. So, we have to think of something around teaching and learning that will benefit students in Canada, or even around the world,” he said.
Carter said Kennepohl’s dedication to learning, students and colleagues was apparent from the time he joined the faculty and started hosting science-based magic shows at Nancy Appleby Theatre in Athabasca, organizing workshops, national and international conferences, and running AU’s Learning Café that fosters open dialogue on teaching and learning, all while chairing or being president of various national bodies.
“Because of COVID … this year has been absolutely crazy with international requests. It is as if the world had suddenly discovered online learning,” Kennepohl wrote in his submission. “I have been working even more intensely with colleagues and institutions in one-on-one sessions and through invited webinars in Canada and abroad (e.g., Berlin, Ecuador, Washington DC). Still, overall, I feel I am making a significant difference both directly and through others.”
He knew for two weeks before the April 12 announcement, however because it was embargoed, he was unable to tell anyone but family and his nominator.
“That was a long two weeks because I was just busting,” he said. “I have some colleagues in chemistry, and outside chemistry as well, that have been Fellows in the past. They were among the first calls; they recognized my name and e-mailed or phoned me up to congratulate me.”
Kennepohl will continue his innovative approach to education which includes openness, persistence, seeking evidence and celebrating differences while advancing education nationally and globally with his 3M cohort and in other ways.
“It's such a prestigious award and Dietmar, I think, embodies everything that this award represents,” Carter said. “I can't speak more highly of him. He's been my mentor throughout the years; I've learned so much from him. He's a really wonderful representative of what our mission is at Athabasca University.”
