When Assistant Professor Asif Khowaja looks out across his classroom, he sees more than students. He sees future leaders in the making.<\/p>\n
Khowaja received the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences 2025 Teaching Excellence Award in recognition for his dedication to supporting students\u2019 academic and personal growth.<\/p>\n
His own journey brought him thousands of kilometres from his home country of Pakistan. He came to Canada as an international student with the dream of becoming an educator.<\/p>\n
The challenge of building a new life in an unfamiliar place shaped his approach to teaching and mentorship, particularly when working with international students.<\/p>\n
With the mindset that home is where you make it, he quickly embraced campus life when he moved his family from Vancouver to join the University.<\/p>\n
Brock, he says, has become the centre of his community.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you treat a place as home, you naturally meet people, collaborate and build something together.\u201d<\/p>\n
That openness has led to impromptu hallway conversations that turn into guest lectures, cross-disciplinary research and friendships. He\u2019s collaborated with students and colleagues across campus and from a range of disciplines.<\/p>\n
In the classroom, Khowaja quickly recognized the need to engage “digital native”, or Generation Z, students differently.<\/p>\n
While he teaches large Health Sciences courses, he weaves through the room instead of lecturing from the front, often sitting among students to create a two-way dialogue.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou learn together. It\u2019s not a one-way street,\u201d said Khowaja, adding that he\u2019s had positive feedback from students about the collaborative, inclusive learning environment he strives to create.<\/p>\n
And his support doesn\u2019t end at the classroom door.<\/p>\n
Many who visit his office hours are international students seeking advice about school, career paths and life beyond graduation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey see me as a brown person, someone who looks like them and has had a similar journey,\u201d he said. \u201cThey ask, \u2018How did you get here?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
These conversations are a meaningful part of teaching, for Khowaja. Having faced similar challenges, he aims to offers empathy, encouragement and lessons from his lived experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing fully present, especially in today\u2019s distracted world, is a small but powerful gesture,\u201d he says. \u201cIt builds trust.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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