UNews - David Hay

Teaching the past, supporting the future

trevor.kenney — Mon, 08 Feb 2016 19:11:55 +0000

History has always fascinated Dr. David Hay. The first time the past captured Hay’s interest and imagination he was a Grade 4 student. Not long after, Hay recalls feeling a spark of inspiration — ignited by the realization that history was something he could study forever.

“I was a pretty disinterested student until history grabbed my attention,” Hay recalls. “Once I knew it was possible to study something I was genuinely interested in, my path was set.”

Dr. David Hay teaches history and he's invested in the future of U of L students.

Hay turned his interest in history into a career, and became a professor on the subject at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge in 2000.

While Hay spends his days teaching his students about events of the past, he is deeply committed to their future. He has been a monthly contributor to the Supporting Our Students initiative for years, serves as a spokesperson for the campaign and is also on the SOS community building subcommittee. For Hay, participating in SOS is an exercise in empathy.

“Anybody who’s gone the distance in academia should have no trouble relating to the struggles students face,” says Hay. “Once you’ve reached the PhD level, financial pressure is something you understand very well. Contributing to SOS is a way to let students know that, as professors, we’ve been through the same thing. We get it, we’ve been there and we want to help.”

Hay says that the challenges students face today are even greater than when he went to university, and believes the benefits of the SOS program extend far beyond financial relief.

“There is a community of people that make SOS possible,” says Hay. “We’re not just helping students out from under the pressure of how to pay for school. We’re creating a culture. The shared belief that students are important enough to put our dollars behind binds us together, and the overall effect is a sort of intangible positivity that reaches far beyond individual financial situations. It’s like an extended family. We’re all in it for the students, and we all want to see them succeed.”

Current participation in SOS university-wide is around 30 percent — a rate Hay would very much like to see increase. His own department, the Department of History, has the highest rate of participation (100 per cent for seven consecutive years, to be exact), and Hay challenges every department to achieve the same.

“Students need to know we are committed to their success,” he says. “The amount you give is not as important as the fact that you give. You can simply sign up on-line, via The Bridge. It’s quick and easy, and even five dollars a month will make a difference. The success of our students is worth it.”

Join David and support our students today.

Distinguished Teacher Hay where he wants to be

trevor.kenney — Mon, 07 May 2012 20:23:04 +0000

When Dr. David Hay discovered he could actually study knights and castles in school, he never wanted to leave the educational environment. It's good fortune for the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge that he still hasn't.

Dr. David Hay has always had a great love of history, and revels in the chance to share his passion for historical learning with his students.

The winner of the 2012 Distinguished Teaching Award says he's always had a love of history, and it's his great fortune that he's been able to turn it into a rewarding career.

"As teachers, we should never forget just how lucky we are to be able to make our living helping people learn," says Hay, who came to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ in 2000, his first professorship after earning his Phd from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Toronto.

"It really is a pleasure to go into my classroom and study history with my students. I'm often reminding myself that not a lot of people get to do what they love everyday and I have that opportunity."

Hay discovered early that history was his calling. He remembers being a disinterested student until Grade 4 when he saw another social studies class was studying knights and castles.

"I thought, 'Wow, you get to do this in school?' I'd been doing that at home by myself and started to realize you could study history in school."

It didn't necessarily put him on a path to be an educator but it ignited a passion.

"I was the first person in my family to go to university so I never really had that as a model," says Hay. "I never knew what the professor life involved and how I would go about being one. I just figured I'd keep studying history until they told me I had to get a real job."

Hay's course load includes Western Civilization, Main Themes in Medieval History, The Crusades, Medieval Britain, Violence in Medieval Society, and The Twelfth Century Renaissance. His courses are in demand by students, and often the cause of enthusiastic discussion beyond the classroom. His course on The Crusades is the most popular offering by the Department of History.

"To see students progress is very gratifying," says Hay. "I also just enjoy hearing new ideas and being able to explore them together with my students. If I were to summarize my teaching philosophy, I would characterize it as a pedagogy more of practice than of theory – which is merely to say that I have learned more inside of the classroom than outside of it."

Hay is known as a reflective scholar, constantly changing his teaching in response to his own reflections and the advice of students. The result has been consistent improvement in the organization and delivery of course content, and in subsequent evaluations by his students. A widely respected and popular teacher, Hay has a teaching performance rating that, over the past decade, has never dipped below the outstanding level.

"It's satisfying to get the recognition from my colleagues because I hold them in very high esteem," says Hay. "As well, to read the comments from my students, that they had a positive experience and learned something in my classes, is deeply satisfying to me."

This story first appeared in the May issue of the Legend. For a look at the full issue in a flipbook format, follow this link.

U of L Long Service Awards

trevor.kenney — Fri, 07 May 2010 22:02:22 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ is holding its annual Long Service Awards and Retirement Recognition Ceremony on Wednesday, May 5, at 1 p.m. in the Students' Union ballrooms. A total of 116 employees who have completed 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and 35 years of service will be honoured, along with 20 retiring employees.

Following is a list of honoured employees.

Retirees

Hart Cantelon, Adrian Cooke, Hank DeRidder, Linda Gray, Rose Helmer, Bill Hennessy, Randy Joseph, Dave Kunimoto, Toni Nelson, Rita Nieuwenhuis, Fran Olivier, Joanne Overn, Frank Perrotta, Ralph Pollock, Kent Rolfson, Gloria Samuels, Jonathan Seldin, Dennis Thompson, Frank VandenHeuvel and Hafizah Yahya

Long Service Recipients

35 Years | Reg Bibby, Merle Christie, Richard Epp, Christina Lastuka, Leroy Little Bear and Ian Wells

30 Years | Lynn Arnold, Leslie Lavers and Timothy Pope

25 Years | Donna Court, Marion Eastman, Rita Law, Jennifer Mather, Ralph Pollock, Leslie Robison-Greene, Pamela Loewen and Charlene Sawatsky

20 Years | Scott Allen, Pat Anderson, Steve Calvert, Garth Copeland, Leslie Dawn, Karen Dow-Cazal, Barbara Dudley, Linda Embury, Kim Fowler, Rumi Graham, Ruth Grant Kalischuk, Linda Gray, Anthony Hall, Wendy Herbers, Pat Hodd, Shelly Hutchinson, Leona Jacobs, Tom Johnston, Cindy Kabelka, Stella Kedoin, Hadi Kharaghani, Al Kizuk, Vern Leckie, Patti Leeb, James McDowell, Ken McInnes, Mike McKenna, Glen Montgomery, Jane O'Dea, Fran Olivier, Joanne Overn, Debbie Payne, Margaret Rodermond, Catherine Ross, David Siminovitch, Jackie Slezina, Dan Sudo, Darlene Sutherland, Julie Tran, Nancy Walker, Wendy Westergreen and Pamela Winsor

15 Years | Nola Aitken, Heather Anderson, Katherine Chiste, Fred Del Cid, Susanne Garner, Linda Gilbert, Al Hill, Rebecca Johnson, Lyn Jose, Catherine Kanashiro, Terry Kirkvold, Marc Roussel,and Lorne Williams

10 Years | Amir Akbary-Majdabadno, Debra Basil, Michael Basil, Jasminn Berteotti, Brian Black, Jodie Black, Bill Cade, Jane Cahoon, Steve Craig, Brian Dobing, Anne Dymond, Richard Feenstra, James Graham, Arlene Grimes, Thelma Gunn, Erika Hasebe-Ludt, David Hay, Lynn Hopkins, Gordon Hunter, Tanya Jacobson-Gundlock, Mary Kavanagh, Dan Kazakoff, Abdie Kazemipur, Stefan Kienzle, Danny Le Roy, Becky Lore, Heidi MacDonald, Kevin Matis, Muriel Mellow, Richard Mueller, Brenda Nixon, Sam Ogita, Gail Postman, Drew Rendall, Kelly Roberts, Gongbing Shan, Kim Skura, Heather Stevens, Trent Takeyasu, Gwen Umeris, Paul Vasey, Cindy Venhuis, Mike Whipple, Ilsa Wong and Wei Xu

Celebrate Long Service Awards

trevor.kenney — Wed, 05 May 2010 17:01:14 +0000

Following is a list of honoured employees.

Retirees

Long Service Recipients

35 Years | Reg Bibby, Merle Christie, Richard Epp, Christina Lastuka, Leroy Little Bear and Ian Wells

30 Years | Lynn Arnold, Leslie Lavers and Timothy Pope

25 Years | Donna Court, Marion Eastman, Rita Law, Jennifer Mather, Ralph Pollock, Leslie Robison-Greene, Pamela Loewen and Charlene Sawatsky

UNews - David Hay

Teaching the past, supporting the future

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