WINNIPEG, MB – Two outstanding UWinnipeg faculty members are the latest winners of prestigious academics honors. James Christie, Dean of the Faculty of Theology, has won the Clarence Atchison Award for excellence in community service while James Currie, professor in the Department of Mathematics and Science, has won the Erica and Arnold Rogers Award for excellence in research and scholarship.
Both Christie and Currie represent the highest in academic excellence on local, national and international levels in their respective fields. The following is a brief outline of their vast accomplishments.
Reverend Dr. James Christie – The Clarence Atchison Award for Excellence in Community Service
Christie boasts an impressive list of activities and service to the community. His contributions have been both local and international in scope. Few individuals have achieved in their careers what Christie achieves on a regular basis.
Locally, Christie’s efforts in religious dialogue have resulted in a permanent Muslim prayer room at The University of Winnipeg while his passion for human rights has brought General Romeo Dallaire to Winnipeg and has helped with the integration of the African community.
Internationally, Christie chairs the World Federalist Movement, which is the leading NGO in the coalition for the International Criminal Court. He is also the President of the Canadian Council of Churches and he has created cooperative programs with universities in China and Uganda.
Dr. James Currie – The Erica and Arnold Rogers Award for Excellence in Research and Scholarship
Currie is a leading mathematics researcher. His present research interests include ordered sets, graph dimension and quantum computing. His principal area of research is in a field of pure mathematics called combinatorics on words, and within this specialty, Currie is one of the world’s leading experts on repetitions in words and pattern avoidance.
Currie studies problems that are often difficult to solve. He has enriched his field by solving those problems and by introducing new mathematical tools – such as the probabilistic method and the fixed blocking method – to advance further research.
Currie has published 36 papers in high-quality, peer-reviewed journals. Along with other scholarly publications, Currie has spoken at numerous conferences. His research profile on the international stage has inspired other academics to work with him or under his tutelage.
ABOUT THE AWARDS
The Clarence Atchison Award for Excellence in Community Service
The Clarence Atchison Award for excellence in community service was established by Investors Group in honour of their former President & Vice-Chairperson Clarence E. Atchison. Together with an impressive record of business accomplishments, Dr. Atchison devoted many hours to community and social service in Winnipeg, serving on many boards and advisory councils. He was a long-term member of The University of Winnipeg Board of Regents, acting as Chairperson from 1968 to 1970. The award is given to a University faculty or staff member to recognize the contribution given of their time and expertise to service to the community.
The Erica and Arnold Rogers Award for Excellence in Research and Scholarship
The Erica and Arnold Rogers Award for Excellence in Research and Scholarship was established by Erica and Arnold Rogers, friends of The University of Winnipeg. Dr. Rogers is a retired medical doctor who, together with his wife Erica, values the contribution by faculty members to research and scholarship. All members of the University faculty, many of whom have received national and international recognition for excellence in the research community, are eligible.
