“I didn’t expect it. Of course I feel good and I feel proud, but it’s very humbling,” he said. “I know other people who have won it but I certainly don’t consider myself in their league.”

Saxena has been previously rewarded for his teaching with both the College of Medicine Excellence in Teaching Award and the Canadian Association of Medical Education’s award of merit for contribution to medical education.

Saxena receives the Master Teacher Award at Fall Convocation 2009

The recipient of the Master Teacher Award is determined through a nominations process. Students, alumni, faculty, departments and colleges are all eligible to submit a nomination. The selection committee is chaired by Provost and Vice-President Academic Brett Fairbairn, and includes past winners of the award.

Saxena, a professor of pathology and the assistant dean of postgraduate medical education in the College of Medicine, began his career at the University of Saskatchewan as a resident in 1991. “For me, the main reason to join the university was to teach. It’s a very good job because I get to do the clinical research, the teaching and the administration.”

Although Saxena’s duties are varied, he remains passionate about teaching. “The most important thing for me is the sense that I may have contributed something to someone’s learning. I can make something complex easier to understand and pass on the values of our occupation to the next generation.”