Linda Briskin (Division of Social Science, Faculty of Arts) was awarded a 3M 1999 Teaching Fellowship for her exceptional contributions to university teaching and learning. This prestigious award is given to individuals who not only excel in the teaching of their own courses, but who also demonstrate an exceptionally high degree of leadership and commitment to the improvement of university teaching across the disciplines. Linda is the sixth faculty member from York to receive a 3M Teaching Fellowship; she shares the honour with Avi Cohen (1995), Brock Fenton (1993), Arthur Haberman (1996), Pat Rogers (1990), and Ron Sheese (1986). For the 1999 3M Teaching Fellowship competition, Linda is one of ten recipients selected from 43 nominations from 24 Canadian universities. Each will receive a citation of excellence and be honoured at a three-day retreat at Chateau Montebello in Quebec in November. Below is the text of Linda's citation that accompanied the announcement of her award.

Linda Briskin has been recognized by faculty, students and tutorial assistants as someone who has a passion for teaching. Her early days as a high school teacher, and her subsequent career as a college instructor have given her an in-depth understanding of pedagogy that she continues to develop in the university setting. One of the main themes of this pedagogical work is power in the classroom. This work on the dynamics of how power operates and how it can be negotiated in the classroom, particularly with reference to race, gender, and sexual orientation, has earned Linda both a national and international reputation. Her 1990 publication, Feminist Pedagogy: Teaching and Learning Liberation, is widely circulated and reprinted in a variety of publications.

Students speak of the lasting impact of Linda's teaching and the degree to which she can make personal sense of contemporary issues. "There are few professors that can challenge students to think critically and encourage students to reach their full potential," says one of Linda's students. The dedication and commitment Linda brings to her teaching are reflected in student evaluations. She earns ratings that are consistently above 4 on a 5-point scale, and that are well above the average for first year courses.

The Faculty of Arts recently introduced the Foundations Programme where first and second year students in the Divisions of Social Science and Humanities take courses that are explicitly designed to develop their critical skills in reading, writing and analytical methods. Linda's teaching colleagues in her Foundations course – Women and Society – define her as a fabulous teacher who organizes material beautifully and gives first year students a sense of academic security that makes it possible for them to dramatically improve their performance. Linda has taken a leadership role in developing the Foundations Programme by identifying key issues and strategies. She was recently named a 1998 recipient of the Faculty of Arts Dean's Award for Teaching at York University.