Dr. Travis Fridgen has been appointed acting dean of the Faculty of Science effective May 1, 2020. The Board of Regents approved the appointment at its March meeting.

Following a call to faculty members in the Faculty of Science for nominations and expressions of interest for individuals to serve in the position, Dr. Noreen Golfman, provost and vice-president (academic), recommended the appointment, which was accepted by the president.

Dr. Fridgen has been a faculty member at Memorial for 15 years and currently holds the role of associate dean (undergraduate and administration) in the Faculty of Science. He was previously the head of the Department of Chemistry.

He is a physical chemist whose NSERC-funded research involves the investigation of the structure, energetics and reactions of biologically relevant ions in the gas-phase. He has previously received both the Faculty of Science Distinguished Teacher Award and the President’s Award for Distinguished Teaching.

Dr. Fridgen has contributed to chemistry education across Canada as a co-author of a widely-used first year post-secondary chemistry textbook. Before coming to Memorial, he taught at Laurier and the University of Waterloo. He holds a B.Sc. in chemistry from Trent University, and a B.Ed. and PhD from Queen’s University.

Dr. Fridgen replaces current dean Dr. Mark Abrahams who has been appointed provost and vice-president (academic) pro tempore.