Our 2026 undergraduate Academic Teaching & Excellent Award recipient

Just as important is the sense of community. Even in a virtual environment, there is a strong culture of collaboration and shared commitment to quality learning. That combination of support and purpose, she says, elevates teaching and makes the experience deeply rewarding.

Q&A with Eldeen Pozniak

What does receiving this award mean to you?

This award tells me that the work matters — not just the content, but the care, the intention and the commitment behind it. It tells me that the effort to support, challenge and empower students is having a real impact on their confidence, their careers and the workplaces they influence every day. In occupational health and safety, the stakes are incredibly real. The people we teach go on to protect families, communities and lives. To know that my teaching plays even a small role in that is humbling.

What makes this award especially special is that it reflects a shared commitment. Teaching excellence does not happen in isolation. It happens because UFred fosters a community where educators are encouraged to innovate, to connect and to create learning that truly resonates. This recognition is not just a personal honour; it is a reminder that UFred and I are aligned in purpose: empowering the next generation of safety leaders to make a difference.

At its core, this award tells me that the values I bring to the classroom — compassion, clarity, practicality and purpose — are making a positive difference. And that is the greatest honour I could receive as an educator.

What does great teaching mean to you, beyond delivering course content?

Great teaching, to me, is about far more than presenting information or guiding students through modules. It is about creating a learning experience that transforms how people see themselves and the role they play in the world.

Great teaching means recognizing that every student arrives with a full life behind them. They bring experience, stress, hope and responsibility into the classroom. Meeting them where they are, with empathy, flexibility and respect, is at the heart of great teaching.

It is about building confidence as much as competence. When students feel safe to ask questions, challenge ideas and explore new perspectives, real learning happens. Great teaching invites curiosity and encourages students to think critically about the systems, behaviours and decisions that shape workplace safety. It helps them connect theory to practice in ways that feel real, relevant and actionable.

Great teaching also means fostering a sense of purpose. In Occupational Health and Safety, the work is deeply human. Every concept we teach has a direct line to someone’s wellbeing. Helping students understand that their voice matters, that they can influence change, protect others and shape safer cultures, is one of the most meaningful parts of the role.

Ultimately, great teaching is about empowering people. It is about helping learners believe they are capable of making a difference, not just in their assignments, but in their workplaces, communities and careers. When students leave a course feeling more confident, more aware and more equipped to lead with care, that is great teaching.

When you think about your impact as an educator, what matters most to you?

What matters most is knowing that students leave my courses feeling capable, supported and empowered. If they walk away with the confidence to speak up, influence change or protect someone’s wellbeing, then I have done my job.

My impact is not measured in grades. It is measured in safer workplaces, stronger leaders and people who go home to their families because someone I taught made a thoughtful decision.

What’s something you’ve learned from your students that has shaped how you teach?

One of the greatest lessons my students have taught me is the importance of designing learning that is flexible, human-centered and grounded in real-world application. Their lives are full. They are working long hours, raising families, supporting aging parents, navigating shift work and still choosing to invest in their education. Watching them balance all of that with such determination has reshaped how I think about teaching.

My students have shown me what resilience truly looks like. They show up — sometimes late at night after a 12-hour shift, sometimes between family responsibilities, sometimes carrying the weight of difficult workplace experiences — and they still bring curiosity, insight and a desire to grow. Their commitment reminds me that learning must honour the realities people face, not ignore them.

They have also taught me the value of perspective. My classrooms include frontline workers, supervisors, managers, newcomers to Canada, seasoned professionals and people transitioning into OHS for the first time. Their stories, challenges and successes have broadened my understanding of what safety leadership looks like in different contexts. Because of them, I teach with more empathy, more practicality and more respect for the diverse paths that bring people into this profession.

Their lived experiences have reinforced that teaching in OHS is not theoretical. It is deeply human. It is about real decisions, real consequences and real people. My students have taught me to create learning that is not only academically strong, but also accessible and immediately useful in their day-to-day work. They have shaped me into an educator who listens more, adapts more and designs with purpose.

And perhaps most importantly, they have taught me that great teaching is a partnership. I may guide the learning, but they shape the journey.