awards.
The cuccio awards
Recognizing contribution, innovation and dedication in the higher education IT Community.
Awards.
Annually, we take time apart from our busy schedules to recognize and celebrate the incredible efforts and contributions from individuals, groups or institutions whose work exemplifies CUCCIO’s founding principles of innovation, collaboration, community, and excellence within Canada’s university IT community. Dozens of applications are cut down to a series of finalists by a panel of expert judges. Finally, we gather each year at CANHEIT to award our winners and celebrate the enormous contributions of our community.
General considerations.
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Nominations must be submitted by a CUCCIO member.
Projects must have a completion date that falls within a year before or after the nomination.
Self-nominations are acceptable.
Nominations must have the approval of the CIO or equivalent for all categories except the CIO of the Year (you may want to keep it a surprise for your CIO).
An individual may not win the same award more than once. This includes the CIO of the Year, which was previously called “Community Award”.
All member institutions are eligible, and encouraged, to submit nominations, regardless of size, complexity or geography.
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Opening Date: Coming soon!
Closing Date: TBD
Awards Gala: Annually at CANHEIT
Category specific considerations.
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The SIG Lead of the Year Award recognizes a champion within the Special Interest Groups. This individual demonstrates going above and beyond in a voluntary capacity to drive their SIG forward in the spirit of community.
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The Innovation Award celebrates significant advances in teaching, learning, research, or administration through the application of IT. The outcomes contribute to improved processes, better student and staff experiences, management of risk and/or control of costs. Enables your institution to make exceptional progress in daily activities through innovation.
Criteria:
Innovation in the application of existing tech or the development of new ones.
The impact of benefits achieved or planned.
Applicability to other members.
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The Collaboration award recognizes sharing between institutions, campuses, faculties or departments that lead to a next level of efficiency and effectiveness through the application of IT.
Criteria:
Breadth and extent of collaboration.
Impact of benefits achieved or planned.
Applicability or other members.
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The Emerging Leader award recognizes an up-and-comer who builds, supports, and represents the coming wave of leaders in university IT. This individual demonstrates ongoing technical and creative expertise as well as growth in responsibility and leadership. Currently not in the CIO role, candidates are participants in the Leadership Development Program (LDP and ISLDP) and/or other IT members, as nominated by their CIO.
Criteria:
How have the nominee's responsibilities grown over the past year?
Please provide an example of an initiative the nominee led that supports their institution's IT strategy. Describe how they may have ‘gone out on a limb’ or supported a collective effort to lead their team to achieve more than they have previously, or led a new initiative through to success.
How has the nominee's contributions introduced some significant positive change on Canadian Higher Education IT?
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The CIO of the Year award recognizes a CIO (or equivalent) who builds, supports, and enriches our community. This award celebrates outstanding contributions by an exemplary leader who demonstrates vision, innovation, transformation, and professional excellence. This individual will be a role model not only within their institution, but throughout the wider CUCCIO community.
Criteria:
What IT initiative(s) has the nominee shepherded to support institutional strategy and demonstrate their status as an exemplary leader?
How has the nominee demonstrated leadership in the CIO role (best practices, managing resources, professional development, influencing change, etc.)
In what ways has the nominee supported CUCCIO and the higher education community?
Celebrating past submissions
Our industry moves at the speed of thought. It's always relevant to look back on the past moments of celebration to see all that we’ve accomplished. Take a look at the projects that are thought of as the worthy of note.
2025
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Recipient
Jennifer Burns – University of British Columbia
Jennifer Burns has redefined what CIO leadership looks like in Canadian higher ed. She led UBC’s decade-long transformation to Workday, impacting over 90,000 users and aligning IT with institutional strategy in visionary ways. As a champion of AI innovation, cybersecurity, data governance, and inclusive leadership, Jennifer has positioned UBC — and CUCCIO — as a leader on the global stage. From launching Canada’s first university Chief Data Officer to empowering her team with mentorship and curiosity, Jennifer’s legacy is one of bold thinking, deep collaboration, and lasting impact. -
Recipient - Edgar (Ed) Lazar – Emily Carr University of Art + Design
Ed Lazar’s collaborative, strategic leadership has modernized systems, enhanced risk management, and inspired a culture of mentorship at Emily Carr. His work has not only elevated IT services but has set a bold example for future leaders in the CUCCIO community. -
Recipient (s)
Recipient(s) - Greg Atkinson (McMaster University) and Michael Laurentius (University of Toronto)
Greg and Michael are being recognized for their exceptional leadership of the Research Information Security SIG. These co-chairs have united experts across the sector, created a shared training repository, and produced a white paper that’s informing national strategy on research security in higher ed.
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Recipient - York University – Automated University Response Assistant (YU AURA)
York’s YU AURA platform democratizes AI development through a no-code, in-house solution that empowers faculty and staff to build AI assistants in minutes. With plans to open-source the platform, York is leading the way in ethical, scalable, and inclusive AI for higher education.Finalists
McMaster University – CRM Implementation
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Recipient - Inclusion in Cyber Security Canada
A cross-sector initiative championing diversity and equity in cybersecurity across higher education. Through mentorship programs, sector-wide webinars, and an expanding resource hub, ICC is driving systemic change and community-driven leadership in an evolving digital landscape. This project includes participants from University of Toronto, CUCCIO, Laurier University, ORION, McMaster University, Sheridan College, Humber College, Durham College, and CANARIE.Finalists
The CANCICM (Canadian Continuous Improvement and Change Management) 2024 Conference
Wilfrid Laurier University
University of Waterloo
Canadian University Council of CIOs
University of Regina
LeanHE Canada
Advancing efforts to innovate, leverage and ensure sound stewardship of the use of Generative AI tools and Resources
McMaster University
Data Transformation
Dalhousie University
Shared Technical Support
Thompson Rivers University
Simon Fraser University
YU Aura
York University
Google Workspace Storage Optimization
University of Alberta
Life After Broadcom
Simon Fraser University
Thompson Rivers University
OCADU
Carleton University
The Information Security Expertise Center (CESI)
University of Quebec (UQ) Network
UQAM : Université du Québec à Montréal
UQTR : Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières
UQAC : Université du Québec à Chicoutimi
UQAR : Université du Québec à Rimouski
UQO : Université du Québec en Outaouais
UQAT : Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue
INRS : Institut national de la recherche scientifique
ENAP : École nationale d’administration publique
ÉTS : École technologie supérieure
TELUQ : Université TÉLUQ
UQSS : Université du Québec, siège socia
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Innovation - University of Alberta’s Plaintext Password Sniffing Project.
FinalistsUniversity of Toronto | NGSIS Platform Modernization
University of Victoria | Research Administration Information System
Collaboration - Information Security SIG’s Cyber Incident Response Framework
FinalistsUniversity of Alberta | Learning Management Consortium Migration of Moodle to the Cloud
The University of British Columbia | The learning Technology Environment (LTE) Renewal Project
Community - Gayleen Gray, CTO and AVP IT at McMaster University
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Innovation - The University of British Columbia’s Emerging Media Lab
Finalists:
Simon Fraser University | A New Network Data Architecture using Software Defined Architecture
University of Ontario Institute of Technology | Artemis Cloud Implementation
Collaboration - Nova Scotia Higher Education IT Shared Services (HISS)
Finalists:
Simon Fraser University | Development of SFU’s One I.S. Strategy
University of Victoria | Higher Ed IT Procurement Project
Community - Art Exner, Associate Vice President Information Technology (IT) Services, University of Regina
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Innovation - University of Northern British Columbia’s Enhanced Business Continuity Through the Application of Docker Containerization
Finalists:
Simon Fraser University | The Official SFU App Suite
University of Calgary | Secure Compute
Collaboration - University of Alberta’s ShareIT Project
Finalists:
Simon Fraser University Data Centre: Installation of Cedar
Laurentian University | Ontario Group’s Shared CISO
Community Rick Bunt, retired CIO University of Saskatchewan
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Recipients and finalists
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Innovation - University of Toronto’s Online Proctoring Pilot Project
Collaboration - New Brunswick/Prince Edward Island Education Computing Network.
Community - Jeff Gardiner, chair CUCCIO’s Security Information Group
The latest in Awards.
