Dr. Wesley Burr, associate professor and chair of Mathematics & Statistics at Trent University is cementing his place among the country’s most innovative and effective educators as the recipient of two national honours for teaching excellence: the Statistics Society of Canada’s (SSC) 2026 Early Career Educator Award and the Canadian Mathematical Society’s (CMS) 2026 Excellence in Teaching Award.

"Stemming from his ability to combine expertise with enthusiasm and curiosity, Dr. Burr’s work is transforming the experience of learning math and stats for countless learners,” says Dr. Cathy Bruce, Trent University president and vice-chancellor and mathematics educator and researcher. “Some students are intimidated by mathematics, and Wesley is effectively changing that experience. He is helping students build confidence and competence in their learning journey of statistics. These national honours recognize Dr. Burr’s commitment to ensuring every student has the opportunity to succeed.”

Prof. Burr’s teaching career began young, following an early aptitude for math and statistics in high school. He accelerated his way through high school and first-year university mathematics requirements to be hired as a teaching assistant at Queen’s University during his second year of his bachelor’s degree. His teaching experience advanced with reinforcement from supervisors and mentors, including retired professor Leo Jonker, the inaugural CMS Excellence in Teaching Award recipient in 2004, and supported by personal passion that math and statistics are subjects anyone can and need to learn.

“Mathematics and statistics are fundamental for life and learning, particularly in the sciences, but like a language, you have to practice and speak it regularly to gain fluency. All it takes for kids to believe they can't do math is one bad year, so people close that door too early and shut themselves off from some really interesting possibilities,” explains Prof. Burr, adding his philosophy for course design and teaching:

“Like a story, courses in math and stats should take students on a journey. Students start somewhere, arrive somewhere else, and along the way they’re connecting ideas, reinforcing concepts and growing."

Prof. Burr has applied that philosophy thoroughly over a decade of work designing courses and curricula at Trent, including labs and workshops that help students test, apply and ultimately retain what they've learned. He’s building upon Trent’s teaching excellence and leadership in the discipline. Past chair and retired professor David Poole received the CMS award in 2009 and today supports ongoing learning and engagement in math through an annual public lecture in his name.

Since joining Trent in 2016, Prof. Burr has taught 19 different unique courses, some as many as 13 times, and has transformed the University's approach to statistics education. He built a cohesive statistics curriculum and re-launched a specialization that blends theoretical insight with hands on computational practice using real data and R programming. At the first-year level, his two courses now focus less on hand calculations and more on the skills students need in modern science: data analysis, computation, reproducibility and communication.

The CMS and SSC awards, along with his 2025 selection for OCUFA’s Teaching Award, highlight the recognition of Prof. Burr’s approach to mastery‑based grading, which offers students multiple chances to demonstrate understanding, and his exceptional efforts toward student inclusion and accessible support. Like his own mentors, he aims to advance student learning and achievement, rather than emphasizing high stakes testing.

Transforming Career Trajectories
Today, many of Prof. Burr's former students are professors at universities, still pursuing doctoral studies, conducting research, working in government and applying statistical expertise across industries ranging from health care to banking and green tech.

“Wes always believed in my abilities. His unwavering support encouraged me to push past my self-doubt, allowing me to surprise myself and build my confidence,” says Sophie Bull, one of Prof. Burr’s former master’s students in the Applied Modelling and Quantitative Methods program. “Wes presented me with the chance to participate in an external research contract with the Government of Canada, an experience that ultimately led to securing permanent employment as a federal public servant following my graduation.”

Bull is now working for Health Canada as a program analyst. Shannon Jarvis, another former graduate student of Prof. Burr’s, is working as an analyst at Statistics Canada.

"Throughout my academic journey, I have never encountered a professor as thoughtful, supportive and passionate as Professor Burr," writes Jarvis in a nomination letter of support for one of his national awards. "He has a remarkable ability to understand his students' needs and meet them where they are."

Skye Griffith, now an assistant professor in Statistical Sciences at the University of Toronto, credits Prof. Burr with changing the direction of her life in her nomination letter.

"I had no interest in statistics prior to Wesley’s arrival at Trent in 2016, the third year of my undergrad. Yet, for the next two years, he would guide me through a series of courses and enrichment opportunities that he often manufactured from scratch,” writes Griffith. “He saw that I had a passion for music, so he found an application of time series analysis that would showcase my knowledge of music theory. To bring this to life, he bought a textbook for me on music data analysis, which I referenced as he supervised my undergraduate honours thesis.

“Professionally speaking, Wesley Burr has been the single most influential person upon the last decade of my life. If it were not for him, I would never have taken an interest in statistics, I would not have pursued academia, and I possibly would not even have completed my undergraduate degree."

Rewarding Research
While many now know Burr as an award-winning educator, he also works alongside researchers across disciplines to develop statistical tools that help answer complex real-world questions, in addition to his own tri-council-funded research program. One current project is a collaboration with Trent Biology professor Amy Greer and Environmental & Life Sciences graduate student Shawn Yip to better understand gaps in data related to the toxic drug crisis. Their work aims to identify what information communities and policymakers are missing to support evidence-informed responses to one of Canada's most pressing public health challenges.

"One of my favourite roles in science is to build tools so other scientists can do cool work," says Prof. Burr.

His instinct to help others solve problems, in a classroom or a research collaboration, is the common thread behind the awards, showing that when you highlight the human experience in any subject, even statistics, people thrive.

This June, Prof. Burr will formally receive the CMS Excellence in Teaching Award at the 2026 CMS Summer Meeting in Saint John, New Brunswick and the SSC Early Career Educator Award at the 2026 SSC Annual Meeting in Hamilton, Ontario.

Learn more about Mathematics and Statistics at Trent University.