Associate Professor Tristan Long named Wilfrid Laurier University Teaching Fellow

May 22, 2026

Wilfrid Laurier University has named Tristan Long, associate professor of Biology, as a Laurier Teaching Fellow. Long is an innovative educator who is reimagining scientific education by embedding active learning, role-playing simulations, student-generated data collection and collaborative problem solving in his course design.

Established in 2013, the Laurier Teaching Fellowship program honours faculty members who demonstrate exceptional contributions to teaching and learning and have established an exemplary record of educational leadership across their department, program, faculty or campus.

“Being named a Teaching Fellow is Laurier’s highest honour for faculty members who have a sustained commitment to excellence in teaching, “says Trish McLaren, associate vice-president: academic. “Tristan Long is a worthy recipient of this honour, and I am pleased to welcome him as a Laurier Teaching Fellow.”

Instead of relying solely on high-stakes exams for assessment, Long uses frequent, lower-pressure evaluation techniques that provide timely, meaningful feedback and support student confidence and growth. Through podcasts, instructional videos and other tools, he has increased student engagement and improved access to course materials.

Since joining Laurier in 2010, Long has shaped the learning experiences of thousands of students. His impact is especially notable in BI111: Biological Diversity and Evolution, a foundational Biology course in which up to 1,100 students a year are enrolled. In these classes, Long uses numerous active-learning and role-playing exercises to engage students and encourage their critical-thinking skills. In BI393: Biostatistics, Long helps students gain hands-on experience with complex real-world datasets and learn how to correctly interpret and effectively present their analyses.

Beyond the classroom, he has served as a faculty peer mentor, guiding colleagues on developing lab experiments students could do during the pandemic, and shared his active learning experiences with educators across the institution.

“I am eternally grateful for all the support, resources and inspiration that the Laurier teaching community has extended to me these last 15 years,” says Long. “I am very lucky to be working at an institution where pedagogical innovation and excellence is valued. It is my hope that in these often-unsettling instructional times that my work as a Teaching Fellow will help my fellow educators develop new ways to inspire their students and help them learn in meaningful ways.”

Long’s artistic talent has also contributed to science education and communication at Laurier. Since 2014, Long has designed and illustrated more than 200 posters to promote Laurier’s Biology Speakers Series, presenting complex information in a non-traditional manner to reach wider audiences. His illustrations have been compiled into two volumes of colouring books available online at no charge.

Long is the recipient of the Laurier Faculty Award for Teaching Excellence in the Sustained Excellence category (2017) and has received several Laurier Merit Awards (2025, 2023 and 2017). He holds a PhD in Biology from Queen’s University, a Master of Science degree in Zoology from the University of Guelph, and a Bachelor of Science degree from Western University.

Long joins Laurier Teaching Fellows Professor Richelle Monaghan, Associate Professor Edmund Pries, Associate Professor Bruce Gillespie, Associate Professor Kenneth Maly, Associate Professor Gavin Brockett, Professor Emeritus Deena Mandell, Professor Eileen Wood, Associate Professor Steve MacNeil and Associate Professor Mercedes Rowinsky-Geurts.