Provost's Award for Teaching Excellence Recipients

2026 recipients

Edward Bechard-Torres

Lincoln Alexander School of Law

Professor Edward Béchard-Torres has distinguished himself as an innovative, thoughtful, and dedicated teacher. An expert in business law, he is ambitious in the way that he blends theory and practice. His courses weave legal doctrine, comparative law, theoretical scholarship, and experiential simulations. He goes to great lengths to employ innovative pedagogical techniques to stimulate student engagement. He also remains deeply committed to creating inclusive, supportive, and caring spaces – and to foster robust mental health. He is a winner of the Professor of the Year Award (2023) from the Law Students’ Society, as well as the Dean’s Teaching Award (2024).

Claire Deng

Ted Rogers School of Management

Dr. Claire Deng is recognized for her outstanding innovation in teaching that transforms accounting education into an ethical, reflective, and human-centred practice. Through her creative integration of film, critical scholarship, and student-led dialogue in AFA 511 – Ethics and Sustainability in Accounting, she engages students in examining how accounting practices, such as performance management and budgeting, shape organizational behaviour and societal values. Her film-based approach, notably the use of Next Sohee, has deepened students’ empathy, ethical awareness, and understanding of the human consequences of accounting. Dr. Deng’s award-winning pedagogy exemplifies TMU’s commitment to innovation, inclusion, and socially responsible learning.

Krystal Nunes

Faculty of Science

Dr. Krystal Nunes demonstrates exceptional teaching excellence through innovative and inclusive evidence-based approaches that enhance undergraduate science student learning. She has positively transformed first-year science education by redesigning laboratory experiences and implementing classroom interventions that build resilience and belonging among students. Her pedagogical research has earned national and international recognition, with invited presentations at leading universities across the globe. Equally notable is her mentorship of over 45 pedagogy-focused graduate and undergraduate projects at TMU. Empowering emerging scholars to engage in the scholarship of teaching and learning, Dr. Nunes is truly an inspiration for the next generation of educators and researchers.

Past recipients