We are delighted to announce the 2024 Outstanding Service and New & Emerging Professionals Awards – Dr. Stephanie McKeown (left) and Samantha McRae (right)!
Outstanding Service Award
The 2024 Outstanding Service Award winner is Dr. Stephanie McKeown, University of British Columbia.
Dr. McKeown is the inaugural Chief Institutional Research Officer, providing leadership to the Offices of Planning and Institutional Research, Student Experience Evaluation and Research, and Student Experience of Instruction offices. Dr. McKeown’s leadership has resulted in a combined portfolio that has provided outstanding and streamlined service to UBC’s senior leadership, faculties, and students. She has united the different IR campus teams into a critical service unit for the entire institution, whilst retaining the local culture and identity of each.
She served ten years on CIRPA executive as a Member-at-Large, Treasurer, Vice-President, President, and currently serves as the Chair of the Nominations Committee. She co-chaired the 2016 Kelowna Conference and has served on the organizing committee of several other CIRPA conferences. She has made numerous presentations at the Annual Conferences and is a esteemed contributor to the academic field of institutional research.
For all her contributions over the years to the Association, its members and the field at-large, CIRPA is pleased to grant the 2024 Outstanding Service Award to Dr. McKeown!
New & Emerging Professional Award
The 2024 New & Emerging Professional Award winner is Samantha McRae, Conestoga College.
Sam is a strong IR professional who truly embodies the “Student of Data, Data Serving Students”. Sam’s passionate commitment to collaborate and contribute meaningfully underlies all her endeavours. Sam supports the College IRP mandate in numerous ways, such as, designing and reporting on stakeholder feedback, researching and reporting program information to support major quality assurance initiatives, preparing Labour Market reports that analyze and present considerations of new programs, and undertaking ad-hoc reporting to provide strategic planning and decision-making information.
Sam is newly engaging with the IRP practitioners through her first in-person presence at the CIRPA 2024 conference. She has much to offer and contribute to not only Conestoga College but also the overall field of IRP practice and its future in the coming years.
For her incipient contributions to the field and to recognize the potential for further development, CIRPA is pleased to grant the 2024 New & Emerging Professional Award to Samantha McRae!
We would like to acknowledge the members that have taken the time to provide the nominations: Neil Chakraborty (University of Toronto) and Rashmi Gupta (Conestoga College).
Miranda Pearson
CIRPA-ACPRI President