Librarian Award Recipients

The Librarian Award recognizes demonstrated excellence in professional service to the unit, the University and/or the community.

Award recipient(s) will receive a certificate of recognition and a monetary award of $2,000 as a one-time payment (subject to applicable deductions).

Key criteria: Service

2026 recipients

Melissa Helwig

TMU Libraries

Melissa Helwig’s leadership was central to the opening of the Bikram S. Dhillon and Family Medical Library at TMU. She ensured that the inaugural cohorts of Undergraduate and Postgraduate Medical Education learners were welcomed into a space intentionally designed for equity, accessibility, and innovation in learning. This milestone represents not only a major expansion of the Libraries’ footprint but also a transformative step in supporting the launch of TMU’s School of Medicine. Through her steady guidance and commitment to service, Melissa has strengthened the Libraries’ role in advancing medical education and affirmed TMU’s reputation for inclusive, community‑engaged academic excellence.

Nazia Sheikh

TMU Libraries

Nazia Sheikh has demonstrated excellence as Assessment Librarian. Her work enables the library to benchmark services and resources over time. This was an exceptional year, as Nazia analyzed and shared results from the new university-wide survey she led for the library. In addition to her thorough analysis, she led the implementation of new statistics-collection solutions for instruction and service desks at the library. Nazia contributed to the university through her solidarity work including development of a Palestinian Research Guide used over 1100 times in the year, as well as collecting Palestinian materials to meet student and faculty research needs.