IMPACTT Director Dr. McCoy Awarded Killam Memorial Chair

We are proud to announce that our Director Dr. Kathy McCoy has been awarded the highest scientific recognition of the University of Calgary, the Killam Memorial Chair!

Dr. Kathy McCoy, Director of IMPACTT and The International Microbiome Centre was awarded the Killam Memorial Chair at the University of Calgary.

The Killam Memorial Chair is the most prestigious research chair available at the University of Calgary. It acknowledges internationally recognized scholars in all areas of sciences (health, natural, or social) and engineering with an outstanding and impactful contribution to knowledge translation. Since its creation in 1967, only six distinguished scholars have held this prestigious recognition. With the Killam Memorial Chair’s support, Dr. McCoy will “perform exciting and innovative research over the next five years” and “hope[s] to explore new questions and generate preliminary data that can be leveraged to apply for additional funds to follow exciting discoveries.” Dr. McCoy “will address new research questions that are considered high-risk yet high-reward for which funding through traditional channels is more difficult to obtain.”

Dr. McCoy has made “outstanding contributions to the academy through world-class research, extensive knowledge translation activities, and training of the next generation of great researchers,” says Dr. William Ghali, Vice-President (Research) at the University of Calgary. “She has deepened our understanding of the complex relationship between the microbiome and immune system through her novel, creative approach. She is truly deserving of this prestigious honour, and we are thrilled to name Kathy our Killam Memorial Chair.”

“Dr. McCoy has made outstanding contributions to the academy through world-class research, extensive knowledge translation activities, and training of the next generation of great researchers.”

Dr. William Ghali, Vice-President (Research), The University of Calgary

Read more about Dr. McCoy’s key research goals, how she is currently working on developing personalized microbial therapies, and her next avenues of research. By leveraging state-of-the-art facilities and expertise at the University of Calgary and across Canada, she is leading cutting-edge research that will improve human health by harnessing the power of our microbes.

“The Killam Memorial Chair will provide me with the flexibility and security to perform exciting and innovative research over the next five years. I hope to explore new questions and generate preliminary data that can be leveraged to apply for additional funds to follow exciting discoveries.”

Dr. Kathy McCoy, IMPACTT and IMC Director, The University of Calgary