SASKATOON — Below are 10 of the most memorable news stories from USask in 2024. From a student making a splash at the Summer Olympic Games to another sending a satellite into space and groundbreaking research in feeding the world, our students, faculty and staff continue to make positive impacts in their university community and beyond.
Five things to know about the upcoming solar eclipse: USask space expert
Image of the moon transiting across the sun, taken by the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) in 171 angstrom extreme ultraviolet light on August 21, 2017. | Photo by NASA/SDO
As a solar eclipse crossed the skies on April 8, USask space experts discussed some interesting facts about how an eclipse actually works.
Nine USask faculty members named distinguished professors
Professors emeriti and current USask faculty members who hold academic qualifications corresponding with an appointment at the rank of full professor are eligible for appointment to the distinguished professor position. (File photo)
Nine USask faculty members have been awarded the title of distinguished professor, a designation that honours and celebrates outstanding achievements in research, scholarly, and artistic work.
USask research: For water in Western Canada, forget the old normal
Dr. John Pomeroy (PhD) inspects a monitoring station near the Global Water Futures Observatories site on the Athabasca Glacier in the Canadian Rockies. (Photo by Sam Baardman)
“We’re seeing new climates emerging in Western Canada and we don’t fully understand them yet and what they’ll mean. We will have to adapt very quickly in how we manage water and manage every aspect of our lives,” said Dr. John Pomeroy (PhD), the Canada Research Chair in Water Resources and Climate Change and Director of the Global Water Futures program at USask.
USask Engineering graduate heading to Stanford for her PhD
Katie Sofko, a graduate of the USask College of Engineering, served as president of the Mechanical Engineering Students’ Association during her final year in the college. | Photo by Submitted)
A USask College of Engineering graduate has been accepted to study in an innovative new PhD program at one of the world’s best medical schools.
More than $10 million awarded to USask crop research projects
Clockwise from left: Dr. Steve Shirtliffe (PhD), Dr. Kate Congreves (PhD), Dr. Bunyamin Tar’an (PhD), Dr. Kirstin Bett (PhD) and Dr. Curtis Pozniak (PhD). | Photo courtesy University of Saskatchewan
Twenty-nine crop science projects from researchers at USask have received a total of close to $7.5 million from the Governments of Canada and Saskatchewan and more than $2.5 million in co-funding from industry partners.
USask achieves personal best in QS World University Rankings
The 2025 QS WUR announcement marked two celebratory milestones for USask: achieving a highest-ever performance and being granted the “Most Improved – Canada” award.
USask achieved its highest-ever performance in the QS World University Rankings – an accomplishment that helped garner an award for the most improved university in Canada.
New USask graduate set out to do the impossible
Dylan Haussecker holds a rocket he and an international team of students built at the 2020 CaNoRock program at the Andøya Space Center in Norway. | Photo submitted
USask graduate Dylan Haussecker was a core member of the student team that designed and built the first made-in-Saskatchewan satellite in space.
PATH TO PARIS: USask student makes splash with bronze medal at Olympics
USask College of Kinesiology student Rylan Wiens, sporting his Olympics bronze medal from the Summer Games in Paris. | Photo by Alyssa Wiebe)
A student in the USask College of Kinesiology, Rylan Wiens returned to campus this academic year as an Olympic medallist.
Kennedy Marley (left) and Caydence Marley began clerking at the Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan in Regina on June 3. | Photo by Larry Kwok
Identical twin sisters Caydence and Kennedy Marley, award-winning students and citizens of the Métis Nation–Saskatchewan, are the USask College of Law’s top graduates.
USask honours achievements of two new Rhodes Scholars
USask College of Law graduate Kennedy Marley (JD’24) and current College of Engineering student Colin Dyck. (Photos: Submitted)
Two USask students have been selected to receive prestigious Rhodes Scholarships for the second time in two years. Only 11 scholarships are awarded to students across the country each year.
— Submitted by USask Media Relations
