The Research Excellence Workshop Leader Initiative (REWLI) is offered in partnership by the College of Graduate Studies and the Centre for Scholarly Communication. The program aims to leverage and support the diverse skill sets of graduate students and postdoctoral researchers. Through this program, up to ten (10) applicants will receive funding to develop and deliver a workshop relevant to their field or the wider academic community. Successful applicants will have the opportunity to:
- Develop workshops and engage in formalized teaching and learning activities.
- Learn and develop new skills while gaining valuable teaching experience that can be added to an instructional portfolio or CV as a way to advance one’s academic career.
Program Details
The College of Graduate Studies and the Centre for Scholarly Communication at the University of British Columbia Okanagan (UBCO) aim to enhance the diversity and availability of learning opportunities available to graduate students and postdocs beyond what is offered by individual faculties.
Successful applicants will receive a total payment of $1050. The payment will be made in two installments of $525 each: the first upon acceptance of the proposal, and the second after the workshop(s) have been delivered.
Successful applications will demonstrate the applicant’s passion for sharing their skills and knowledge with their peers. They should propose a workshop that is unique and not already offered at UBCO. The proposal should explain why the workshop is needed, how it will be delivered, and what benefits it will provide to the target audience.
Applications are welcome from students and postdocs from all research backgrounds and domains. We encourage applicants to consider the needs of their colleagues and fellow students when proposing a workshop.
Applications for 2024/2025 workshops are now closed.
2024/2025 Workshops
| Date | Time | Facilitator | Title | Description |
| February 26 & 27, 2025 | 12 p.m. – 1 p.m. | Tadesse Gemeda Wakjira |
Harnessing Conditional Tabular Generative Adversarial Networks (CTGAN) for Engineering Research: Solving Data Limitations with AI |
If you are a researcher or student in a data-limited field, this workshop on Conditional Tabular Generative Adversarial Networks (CTGAN) is for you. CTGAN is a cutting-edge data augmentation tool that creates realistic synthetic data, which enables us to build larger and more reliable datasets and expand our research potential. In this two-part workshop, we’ll start by covering the basics of CTGAN and its practical applications, then move into a hands-on experience to generate synthetic data for real-world example. Ultimately, this workshop will equip you with practical skills to apply CTGAN in your own projects. It is open to undergraduates, graduate students, and postdocs.
This workshop will be held in 2 parts. |
| March 3 & 10, 2025 | 10:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. | Hassan Khodaiemehr |
Exploring Quantum Codes: Theory, Practice, and Applications with PENNYLANE |
Join us for an engaging 2-part workshop on quantum codes, where we will introduce the fundamental concepts and cutting-edge developments in the field. Participants will gain hands-on experience with PENNYLANE, a versatile Python library for quantum computing, quantum machine learning, and quantum chemistry. This workshop aims to equip attendees with both theoretical knowledge and practical skills in quantum coding and programming, fostering innovation and exploration in this rapidly evolving area. Perfect for researchers and enthusiasts looking to deepen their understanding of quantum technologies! |
| March 12, 2025 | 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. | Tara Nicholson |
Visual Storytelling: Understanding Photography |
Take part in this free, hands-on workshop that will introduce participants to the creative and technical basics of photographic storytelling. With a focus on creating visual stories and personal imagery, this workshop will explore foundational elements of photography including exposure, composition and working with light. The workshop will include an optional photo walk. Designed for beginners, no experience is needed for this workshop.
Participants are asked to bring their own digital camera (with manual settings) to the workshop. A limited number of rental cameras are available to pre-book – please indicate when you register if you need to book a camera. |
| March 20, 2025 | 9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. | Reza Nourmohammadi |
AI for Modern Medical Challenges |
This workshop bridges the gap between cutting-edge AI technology and practical medical applications, equipping participants with the skills to revolutionize healthcare delivery. Focused on leveraging AI for medical diagnosis, the session combines critical insights with hands-on activities to ensure attendees gain actionable expertise. Using accessible platforms like Google Colab, participants will learn to apply AI tools that enhance diagnostic accuracy, personalize treatments, and ultimately improve patient outcomes. This is a must-attend session for healthcare professionals and data scientists eager to address the growing demand for innovative healthcare solutions through AI. |
| Facilitator | Title | Description |
| Stefano Mezzini | Intro to Spatial Data in R | Working with spatial data can be confusing and challenging, especially when using code-based interfaces such as R and Python. This workshop will introduce essential concepts for working with spatial data in R, such as point and line data, polygons, raster data, and geographic projections. Attendees will learn how to import, crop, combine, process, extract, analyze, and plot spatial data in R while using transparent and reproducible workflows. |
| Lixin Tu |
Water Pipe Leak Detection: PIG versus Ball |
This workshop builds on the topic of water pipe leak detection. It will help students learn how water transmission and distribution systems work in our city, as well as how to detect leaks using machine learning. The workshop is mainly for undergraduate and graduate engineering students but is open to students from other fields as well. Attendees will gain a better understanding of how city water systems operate and learn how machine learning skills are being used in water pipe leak detection. No prior knowledge needed. |
| Annie Furman | Narrative and Voice for Public Presentation | As a graduate student, you will likely have opportunities throughout your career to present your work in public, whether that’s giving a pitch at a meeting, reading an excerpt of your writing, or giving a conference talk. This workshop will give participants a foundation for developing clear and catchy narrative structures and provide instruction on vocal exercises to strengthen your voice for public speaking. Graduate students from all fields and programs are welcome to attend. |
| Eric de Roulet | Teaching Writing in the Age of AI | For all the excitement surrounding generative AI (genAI), this technology remains poorly understood, and resources to guide students in constructive and ethical uses of genAI are only beginning to emerge. This workshop will walk participants through the ethical and academic integrity issues with genAI (especially large language models/LLMs such as ChatGPT), then equip participants to teach academic writing effectively in the current environment. Participants will also have the opportunity to practice designing assessments that are not made redundant by genAI, and many resources shared in this workshop will be useful for participants’ own writing as well. |
| Majidullah Shaikh | Promoting Meaningful Engagement in Research Partnerships Workshop | Many university personnel engage in research partnerships with community partners (e.g., non-profit organizations, schools, healthcare providers, etc.) to conduct research activities. The purpose of this workshop is to help attendees learn how to engage meaningfully in these partnerships, in ways that promote equitable collaboration, trust and communication, and shared decision-making, while navigating challenges like misaligned goals, power imbalances, and inadequate resource allocation. |
| Toria Violo | From Overwhelmed to Empowered: Practical Tools for Graduate Student Stress Management | Graduate students face a multitude of stressors, including academic pressure, financial concerns, and the need to balance coursework and research with other responsibilities. These stressors can take a toll on their mental health and well-being, leading to burnout and reduced productivity. To promote healthier and more productive academic and lifestyle habits, this stress-management workshop for students will provide practical tools and strategies to help students succeed in graduate school while reducing stress, anxiety, and burnout. |
| Fraser Ronan | Reading and Presenting for Live Audiences – 2 Part Series | As a graduate student or post-doctoral fellow you may be sharing, publishing and promoting your work professionally through presenting research at conferences, reading at book launches or release tours, or even guest lecturing within the academy. This two-part workshop will address reading as a tool for live performance and as a support for professional communication by breaking down and identifying individual vocal characteristics and building the foundations for improving spoken clarity. Session one will focus on live storytelling for creative writing while session two will focus on professional presentation for academic writing and can be attended as a short series or independent, specialized workshops. Both sessions will provide an opportunity to practice and analyze communication techniques, performance for text, and connecting to audience. |
| Ramona Sharma | Mixed Methods Research Using NVivo | Conducting mixed methods research? This hands-on workshop will cover strategies for planning, conducting, and outputting mixed methods data analyses using NVivo 14 software. Sign up to learn more about the general landscape of what mixed methods data analysis entails, ideas on how to report mixed methods findings in scholarly outputs such as theses and dissertations, and specific NVivo tools for organizing and analyzing qualitative data that is simultaneously paired with quantitative data, as well as exporting NVivo data for statistical analyses in other software such as SPSS. Suitable for graduate students and post-doctoral fellows. |
| Emily Comeau | Navigating Code-Switching and Language Biases in Academic Settings | Have you experienced or witnessed linguistic gatekeeping during your studies? This workshop will focus on code-switching in academic settings, and the colonial, patriarchal, and exclusionary language barriers that graduate students often face. We will discuss how to navigate the university’s expectations around language while still asserting our own voices, and how we, as TAs and instructors, can support other students in navigating these questions themselves. This session will be offered twice, once in-person and once virtually. |
| Fatima Canales | Exploring Tactical Urbanism: Strategies for Transforming Cities – 2 Part Series | If you are a graduate student or post-doctoral fellow who is involved in research that engages with the community, or if you have a strong interest in improving your community, you may find this tactical urbanism workshop appealing. The workshop aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of tactical urbanism by discussing its concept and presenting examples from both international and Canadian contexts. Additionally, you will have the opportunity to analyze a real-life scenario and put the ideas into action. If you are passionate about creating positive social change, we encourage you to join us for this workshop. |
| Magpie Winslow | Reading Math for the Social Sciences | Social science research often treats statistics and it’s models as a series of black boxes. This can lead us to using incorrect tests and misinterpreting their results. Instead of treating math a set of abstract methods, this workshop will focus on reading math as a language with a specific focus on assumptions, probability, and linear models (t-tests, ANOVA, linear regression, etc.). This is a minimal-math introduction to interpreting math for social science researchers who want to feel more comfortable with the tools they use in every study. Suitable for graduate students and post-doctoral fellows. |
| Matteo Ponzano | The Process to Establish Recommendations and Clinical Practice Guidelines: Systematic Reviews, Meta-Analyses, Quality of the Evidence | This workshop will provide clarity as to how single studies are combined into systematic reviews and thus the certainty of the evidence on specific outcomes is determined, with an introduction on how clinical practice guidelines are established. |
| Annie Furman | Strategies for Interdisciplinary Collaborations | As you approach the end of your graduate program, you may be interested in bringing your expertise to careers that will ask you to work closely with colleagues from a diverse array of academic backgrounds. This workshop will focus on developing and building on tangible, easily re-teachable skills for successful interdisciplinary collaboration, including tips on how to communicate your research, opportunities to explore how inclusivity between disciplines can strengthen research and/or creative work, and strategies for structuring interdisciplinary projects. Graduate students and post-doctoral fellows from all fields and programs are welcome to attend. |
| Magpie Winslow | Reading Math for the Social Sciences | Social science research often treats statistics and it’s models as a series of black boxes. This can lead us to using incorrect tests and misinterpreting their results. Instead of treating math a set of abstract methods, this workshop will focus on reading math as a language with a specific focus on assumptions, probability, and linear models (t-tests, ANOVA, linear regression, etc.). This is a minimal-math introduction to interpreting math for social science researchers who want to feel more comfortable with the tools they use in every study. Suitable for graduate students and post-doctoral fellows. |
| Fatima Canales | Exploring Tactical Urbanism: Strategies for Transforming Cities | If you are a graduate student involved in research that engages with the community, or if you have a strong interest in improving your community, you may find this tactical urbanism workshop appealing. The workshop aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of tactical urbanism by discussing its concept and presenting examples from international and Canadian contexts. Furthermore, we will have a collaborative environment for brainstorming ideas and strategies to integrate your research with tactical urbanism, encouraging impactful discussions on this topic. |
| Matteo Ponzano | The Process to Establish Recommendations and Clinical Practice Guidelines: Systematic Reviews, Meta-Analyses, Quality of the Evidence | What are clinical practice guidelines? How are recommendations established? This workshop will clarify what the different terms mean, and will illustrate the process that, starting from the identification of a need, the establishment of a working group, and a systematic synthesis of studies with an assessment of their quality, leads to the establishment of recommendations and, ultimately, to clinical practice guidelines. This workshop will combine theoretical and practical components; you will learn to perform full-text screening and data extraction, meta-analysis, and assessment of the quality of the studies on Covidence, Comprehensive Meta-Analysis, and GRADEpro. At the end of this workshop, you will have an understanding of the different steps that lead to the development of clinical practice guidelines, and will be able to perform data extraction, meta-analysis, and to assess the quality of the evidence.Endorsed by the Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention and Management and by the Centre for Health Behaviour Change. |
| Madeline Donald | ReAnimating Research Through Puppet Creation and Performance | Land-focused, place-based, and/or ecologically motivated research lends itself to storying. Action-inspiring awe can come from observation of the mini-dramas all around us, and puppetry, like other story telling modes, has the power to cultivate that awe. Using puppetry as a medium we’ll work through three layers of ecologically motivated research creation–theory of practice, practice of practice, product of practice–and how these layers weave and can be woven together. Workshop participants will conceptualize and create a character from their research (molecule, tree, phenomena, etc.) and use these creations to help story their own research projects. |
| Sarah Lawrason | Introduction to Program Evaluation: Developing Skills for Systematic and Useful Evaluations | If you’re interested in community-based and health-related programs, join us for an engaging and informative workshop on program evaluation. This workshop will focus on selecting evaluation frameworks and indicators, building evaluation competencies, creating logic models and theories of change, and developing relationships with partners to facilitate useful evaluations. There will be an opportunity to apply your evaluation knowledge and skills by working in groups to assess ‘case studies’. |
RESOURCES
There are many opportunities to help improve and enhance pedagogical practices, from strategies for identifying objectives and outcomes to addressing historical and current injustices as part of the teaching and learning process that can be accessed through the Centre for Teaching, Learning, and Technology at UBC and the Centre for Teaching and Learning at UBCO. It is expected that presentations will follow accessibility best practices, like those outlined on Association for Higher Education Access and Disability’s page for Accessible PowerPoint Presentations.
For one-on-one support for creating accessible presentations or developing a workshop proposal, book an appointment with the CSC Associate, Jessica Lowry.
PROGRAM CONTACT
For any questions regarding this program, please contact:
- Centre for Scholarly Communication Coordinator
- csc.ok@ubc.ca
- (250) 807-9305