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Created in 1991, the Killam Annual Professorships, named after Izaak Walton Killam and Dorothy Killam, aim to recognize eight Professors of the University of Alberta who succeeded to stand out for the quality of their academic activities (teaching, research, publication, Graduate student supervision, etc.). At Campus Saint-Jean, Hassan Safouhi is the second recipient of this prize, after Claude Couture in 2006-2007.
A recognition plaque will be handed over to him during a reception on October 18th, 2017.
Biography
Hassan Safouhi received an MSc in Applied Mathematics from University Hassan II, Morocco in 1994, and a Diploma of Advanced Studies in Pure Mathematics from Caen University, France in 1996. He received his Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics from the University of Blaise Pascal, France in 1999. He also graduated from École Française de l'Enseignement Technique as a Programmer Analyst in 1994.
In 2001, he joined the University of Alberta as an Assistant Professor after completing a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Québec à Montréal (1999-2001). He became an Associate Professor in 2005 and a Professor in 2008. From 2010 to 2016, he held the position of the Associate Dean Research and Graduate Studies at Campus Saint-Jean (CSJ).
Dr. Safouhi is an internationally recognized expert in the field of applied and computational mathematics. He is a leader in extrapolation and collocation methods for the numerical treatment of scientific problems. Dr. Safouhi's career is singled out by the interdisciplinary character of his research. He has had productive collaboration with PCL Industrial Management Inc., Optimum Instrument Inc., and Landmark Master Builder. He was the leading researcher in the development of a mathematical model of a decision-making tool for resource allocation that was applied in the war disrupted Sierra Leone and Liberia.
Dr. Safouhi holds Research grants from the National Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada and from other prestigious agencies. He published 64 articles, 3 book chapters, 1 technical report, and edited the proceedings of an international conference published by Wiley in 2009. His research has been recognized by three editorial board positions and a scientific directorship for a national meeting of the Canadian Mathematical Society. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Mathematical Society as the Director of Western Provinces & Territories (2011-2015).
Dr. Safouhi has also contributed meaningfully to the teaching community, championing excellence in teaching in a plethora of ways from collegial mentorship to technical teaching innovation. He has been for many years a Peer-Consultant in teaching with the University Teaching Services. In 2011, he founded the Research-Apprentice Program at CSJ and has been a Faculty Ambassador for Undergraduate Research Initiatives since 2014.
Dr. Safouhi has been recognized by the Graduate Student Supervisor Award in 2014, the Rutherford Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching in 2012, the Best Paper Award by the American Society of Civil Engineering in 2009, the McCalla Professorship in 2007. He received the CSJ Excellence in Research Award three times (2004, 2005 and 2007), which is a unique feat, and the CSJ Excellence in Teaching Award twice (2004 and 2008). In 2009, he was nominated Expert in Applied Mathematics by the Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie.