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Estimated Read Time:
6 min read
CBC Manitoba’s Future 40
Five Rady faculty members have been recognized as part of CBC Manitoba’s Future 40, recognizing outstanding Manitobans under age 40. Those recognized were:
Dr. Robert Beattie [B.Sc.(Hons.)/09]
Renée El-Gabalawy [B.Sc./08, MA/10, PhD/15]
Dr. Ivan Iurchenko (pharmacy)
Shakerah Jones Hall (nursing)
Dr. David Perrin (medicine)
College of Community and Global Health
Douglas Brownridge [MA/94, PhD/00], professor of community and global health, received an award at the Institute on Violence, Abuse & Trauma’s Hawai’i Summit for his research, “Cannabis use and intimate partner violence victimization: An analysis of risk across concordant and discrepant couples in a nationally representative sample.” The award recognizes outstanding research on interpersonal violence or trauma.
Amani Hamad [PhD/20], assistant professor of community and global health, Canada Research Chair in population data science and data curation, and CHRIM researcher, received $43,000 through a Manitoba Medical Services Foundation Research Operating Grant for “Familial associations in childhood mood and anxiety disorders and the role of poverty.” Hamad also received the Kerry Bittner Communications Award from the Manitoba Medical Services Foundation.
Punam Mehta [M.Sc./08, PhD/21], instructor in the College of Community and Global Health, received UM’s Faculty Sustainability Award. The UM Sustainability Awards recognize the efforts of students, faculty and staff in advancing UM’s commitment to excellence and leadership in sustainability. She was also recognized as the Fellow of the Year by UM’s St. John’s College.
Tamara Taillieu [BA/05, B.H.Ecol./08, M.Sc./11, PhD/19], assistant professor of community and global health and researcher with CHRIM, received a $300,000 SickKids Foundation – CIHR Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health New Investigator Research Grant for “A population-based cohort study on adolescent substance use: Adverse childhood experiences, protective factors and longer-term health and social outcomes.”
Amani Hamad
Punam Mehta
Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry
Dr. Anil Menon, assistant professor of preventive dental science and researcher with CHRIM, received $70,000 from the CIHR Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis for “Oral health and frailty in older adults: A longitudinal analysis of CLSA data” as principal investigator.
Dr. Ayesha Saleem, associate professor of oral biology and CHRIM researcher, received $50,000 through the CHRIM 2026 Operating Grant for “Extracellular vesicles as non-invasive biomarkers for MELAS syndrome: An iron-dependent mechanism of altered EV composition and function.”
L-R: Anil Manon and Ayesha Saleem
Max Rady College of Medicine
L-R: Alicia Berard and Vernon Dolinsky
L-R: Meaghan Jones and Jiming Kong
Dr. Alicia Berard [PhD/15], assistant professor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive sciences and researcher with CHRIM, received $130,000 in funding from Research Manitoba’s New Investigator Operating Grant for “Investigating the role of mTOR in the vaginal microenvironment.”
Dr. Vernon Dolinsky [B.Sc.(Hons.)/96, M.Sc./98], professor of pharmacology and therapeutics and researcher with CHRIM, received $450,000 through Diabetes Canada’s End Diabetes Award for his research on “Beta cell SIRT3 and gestational diabetes.”
Aleah Fontaine [BA(Hons.)/16, MA/19, PhD/24], assistant professor in clinical health psychology, is a co-principal investigator on a CIHR-funded project that received $489,600 for “Building emotional awareness and mental wellbeing for Indigenous families: Cultural adaptation of a scalable digital mental health program to support intergenerational wellness.”
Keith Fowke [B.Sc.(Hons.)/88, PhD/95], professor and head of medical microbiology and infectious diseases, is the lead principal investigator, and Dr. Julie Lajoie, assistant professor of medical microbiology and infectious diseases, is a principal investigator on a CIHR-funded project that received $2 million for “Inflammation, sex hormones and human papillomavirus (HPV) expression: Assessing their relationship in menopausal women and evaluating interventions to prevent cervical cancer in older women.”
Lesley Graff [PhD/93], professor of clinical health psychology and former head of the department, received the 2026 Canadian Psychological Association’s John C. Service Member of the Year Award. Graff and a co-chair were recognized for leading a national task force on psychologist recruitment and retention.
Dr. Meaghan Jones, associate professor in biochemistry and medical genetics and CHRIM researcher, received $75,000 for the Career Establishment Research Award from the Lung Health Foundation for “Identifying windows of opportunity for prevention or reversal of cigarette smoke-induced epigenetic programming of human lung epithelia.”
Yoav Keynan [PhD/14], professor of internal medicine and head of adult infectious diseases, is the lead principal investigator for “Strengthened Prairies Integrated Knowledge Exchange (SPIKE) hub: Enhancing community responsive and peer integrated clinical trials,” which received $800,000 in funding from the CIHR Pan-Canadian Network for HIV/AIDS STBBI Clinical Trials Research.
Dr. Jiming Kong, professor of human anatomy and cell science, received $500,000 from the ALS Society of Canada and Brain Canada Foundation to advance his research on the development of a novel therapy for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
Dr. Joel Pearson, assistant professor of pharmacology and therapeutics and researcher with CHRIM, received a $130,000 Research Manitoba New Investigator Operating Grant for
“Understanding the role of a TEAD/homeobox axis in the genesis and evolution of distinct small cell lung cancer subtypes.”
Dr. Cedric Tremblay, assistant professor of immunology and researcher with CHRIM, received a $130,000 Research Manitoba New Investigator Operating Grant for “Investigating the role of interferon signaling in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia.”
College of Nursing
Jennifer Dunsford [BN/03, MPA/18, PhD/25], assistant professor of nursing, is the principal investigator on “Implementation of gentle persuasive approaches dementia education for acute care staff on a medical unit: Implications for staff, behavioural outcomes and family perceptions of care,” a research contract with Advanced Gerontological Education for $65,343. She also received $10,000 from the College of Nursing Endowment Fund for “Exploring Manitoba nurses’ experiences of workplace violence.”
Tara Horrill [BN/05, PhD/21], assistant professor of nursing, received $130,000 from Research Manitoba’s New Investigator Operating Grant for “Co-development and feasibility testing of a social needs assessment tool in an outpatient oncology setting.”
Dr. Marnie Kramer, assistant professor of nursing, received funding for “Empowering young nurses: Unraveling attributions in the critical transition to practice,” from Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada for $67,451.
Dr. Diana McMillan [MN/95], professor of nursing and Health Sciences Centre Clinical Chair, received $115,909 from the Health Sciences Centre Foundation’s Gembey Nursing Research Grant for “Enhancing evidence-informed patient care through clinical and research partnerships.”
Vanessa Van Bewer [BRS/00, MN/13, PhD/21], assistant professor of nursing, is principal investigator of “Unsettling stories: Trickster tales for leadership,” which received a $74,983 Insight Development Grant from Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
Roberta Woodgate [BN/89, MN/93, PhD/01], distinguished professor of nursing, Canada Research Chair in child and family engagement in health research and healthcare, and researcher with CHRIM, received a $1.4-million renewal of her Canada Research Chair from CIHR.
Marnie Kramer
Tara Horrill
College of Pharmacy
Dr. Abdullah Al Maruf, assistant professor of pharmacy and researcher with the Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba (CHRIM), received $192,000 from the Victoria General Hospital Foundation for “Pharmacogenomics-Supported Psychotropic Prescribing Trial (PGx-SUPPORT).” He is also co-investigator for “KINDtrials - Kids and Beyond NeuroDevelopmental Trials,” which received $40,000 from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).
Dr. Sherif Eltonsy, associate professor of pharmacy and researcher with CHRIM, is a co-investigator on “UNderstanding ChildhOod eVEnts Related (UNCOVER) to cardiomyopathy study,” which was awarded $400,000 by the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
Dr. Kaarina Kowalec [B.Sc. (Hons.)/08, M.Sc./11], associate professor of pharmacy, received the Terry G. Falconer Memorial Rh Institute Foundation Emerging Researcher Award at UM’s Chrysalis Awards, recognizing early-career excellence.
Dr. Shweta Mital, assistant professor of pharmacy and researcher with CHRIM, is a co-principal investigator on “Universal drug coverage for diabetes medications in Canada: Evaluating current impacts and assessing future expansion,” which was awarded $447,085 by Diabetes Canada. Mital also received a Rh Chrysalis Award for Exceptional Early-Career Recognition for her health economics research.
Samantha Pauls [B.Sc.(Hons.)/09, PhD/17], assistant professor of pharmacy and researcher with CHRIM, was named 2026 Bioscience Educator of the Year by Bioscience Association Manitoba.
Abdullah Al Maruf,
Kaarina Kowalec
College of Rehabilitation Sciences
Cara Brown [MBROT/96, M.Sc./08, PhD/19], associate professor of occupational therapy, and Dr. Patty Thille, associate professor of physical therapy, are co-investigators on “Evaluating the implementation of team-based primary care in Canada: A multiple case study and deliberative dialogues,” which received $1,147,500 from CIHR.
Dr. Amine Choukou, associate professor of occupational therapy, received $120,000 through Mitacs Accelerate for “Developing a technology-driven, digital health solution to ensure seamless and supportive transitions for older adults from hospital to home in Manitoba.” He also received $25,000 from CIHR for “Promoting inclusive and equitable eHealth futures: Confronting digital ageism and marginalization of racialized older adults.”
Dr. Mirella Veras, assistant professor of physical therapy, is a co-applicant on “Evidence and gap maps for health equity: A strategic tool to drive transformative health research priorities,” which received $493,424 in funding from CIHR.
Amine Choukou
