荔枝视频

It came out of the blue. Stacked among dozens of emails was a message from a former student, sent with a photo taken outside a West London pub.

The (BHSc) graduate had met two friends at the John Snow, a well-known watering hole named after the British physician who identified the nearby water pump as the source of a mid-1800s cholera outbreak. 

Thrilled to be near the site of a major scientific discovery she and her friends had studied in school, Dr. Whitney Ereyi-Osas, BHSc鈥�20, MD鈥�23, captured the moment in a photo and sent it straight to their former epidemiology professor, , BSc'98, PhD鈥�10.

鈥淚t was totally unexpected,鈥� says Aparicio-Ting, affectionately known by her students as Dr. Ting. 鈥淚 guess they thought, 鈥榃ho would love this? Dr. Ting would love this.鈥�

鈥淭hose are the things that make you feel good as a teacher. It makes it worthwhile.鈥�

Finding your impact

A respected BHSc professor at the (CSM) for close to 15 years, Aparicio-Ting develops and teaches courses on health equity, the social and structural determinants of health, public and global health, and epidemiology.

Recognized by students and faculty as a passionate and committed educator, mentor and educational leader across the 荔枝视频, Aparicio-Ting is the recipient of the 2025 .

Aparicio-Ting has had a valuable and sustained impact in the classroom while shifting between leadership responsibilities within the CSM鈥檚 Undergraduate Health and Science Education (UHSE) portfolio. She served as associate head of education for the Department of Community Health Sciences from 2021 to 2023 and was appointed associate dean of UHSE immediately after. She鈥檚 also director of the BHSc honours program and co-director of the Bachelor of Community Rehabilitation (BCR) program.

Balancing the roles of professor and administrative leader, she remains committed to teaching excellence while introducing visionary ideas for innovation in education. Aparicio-Ting supports students in meeting degree requirements and managing academic program changes, oversees curriculum development, student learning and experience, and is responsible for administration of the BHSc and BCR programs.

鈥淵ou鈥檙e here doing all this because you want to make a difference. You鈥檙e looking for how you can have an impact,鈥� she says. 鈥淔or me, it鈥檚 education. That鈥檚 my impact. That鈥檚 how it鈥檚 going to get passed forward.鈥�

The undergraduate professor is quick to clarify that teaching is not simply about the slides and lectures, or the methods used in the classroom. The most rewarding part of teaching is watching students go through their journey as they discover who they are as people, and who they are as professionals.

鈥淚t鈥檚 about getting them to grow in whatever way that is going to be for them,鈥� Aparicio-Ting says.

A guide on the learning journey

Former student Duaa Fatima, BHSc鈥�23, wrote in her nomination of Aparicio-Ting that her professor鈥檚 mentorship extended well beyond the classroom 鈥� to career advice, help with navigating university systems and direction toward opportunities for professional development.

鈥淎s the first in my family to pursue graduate and professional studies, I found in Dr. Aparicio-Ting a mentor who not only supported my academic goals but also created a space where I felt seen and valued,鈥� Fatima wrote.

Aparicio-Ting prefers to give students their own agency, abiding to a philosophy that places students as the drivers of their own learning. In certain cases, as with the final-year capstone project, she expects students to set their own learning objectives and deliverables. 

Fatima is now pursuing a joint Master of Science and undergraduate medical degree through the CSM Leaders in Medicine program, advancing in her own journey as a student and future clinician-scientist 鈥� a testament to Aparicio-Ting鈥檚 support.

鈥淭he best students are sometimes the ones who reach out for a bit of guidance at first," Aparicio-Ting says. "Then you stand back and watch them flourish. I鈥檓 really just a guide.鈥�

On the ground in the classroom

But CSM Dean Todd Anderson, MD, recognizes that Aparicio-Ting鈥檚 value is greater than that of a guide.

鈥淪he exemplifies a commitment to supporting students through their discovery of knowledge and in their discovery of who they are as learners," Anderson says. "Dr. Aparicio-Ting achieves this by empowering students as active participants in their education, and by offering authentic learning experiences relevant to current research and public health."  

The McCaig-Killam Teaching Award is not Aparicio-Ting鈥檚 first teaching accolade. She received the Certificate of Merit in 2014, a 荔枝视频 Teaching Award in 2018, the Killam Undergraduate Mentorship Award in 2020, and two U荔枝视频 Students鈥� Union Teaching Excellence Awards in 2020 and 2024. 

鈥淚 think its critical for me to be on the ground in the classroom,鈥� Aparicio-Ting says. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 where you hear the buzz, hear how the students are doing, see how they show up.

鈥淏eing in the classroom with students informs everything I do as an associate dean.鈥�