Meet our 2025 Recipients

Nikita Ollin-Bittle

Nikita Ollin-Bittle is an MD/PhD candidate in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology in the Schulich School of Medicine at Western University. Prior to entering the MD/PhD program Nikita completed a BSc (Hon.) in Life Sciences and an MSc in Neuroscience at Queen’s University. Her research characterizes a class of molecules known as lipids in the brain to identify novel therapeutic targets for the development of future treatments for neurological diseases. Nikita has a strong track record of peer-reviewed publications and has been awarded prestigious scholarships for her research including the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Doctoral Award. In her future career as a clinician-scientist, Nikita intends to care for patients, while conducting innovative translational research.

Growing up in a rural area, Nikita has developed a passion for increasing access to mentorship and education in her community. Nikita has worked to mentor high school and undergraduate students through multiple community and academic programs and has served as the Mentorship Chair for the Clinician Investigator Trainee Association of Canada (CITAC). She has also volunteered her time in community programs teaching children in low socioeconomic regions to read, and helping children with disabilities to develop confidence, knowledge and strength through both therapeutic equestrian programs and swim programs. In her spare time Nikita is an avid equestrian and enjoys hiking with her dog.

Nicole Tegg

Nicole Tegg is a Registered Nurse and is currently a second-year doctoral candidate in the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Alberta. Her thesis is a patient-partnered mixed methods study examining the relationship between missing menstrual periods before pregnancy and the development of heart-health related pregnancy complications. She is passionate about women’s heart health and has collaborated on research projects with the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada and the Canadian Women’s Heart Health Alliance (CWHHA).

She has 13 peer-reviewed publications and presents her research at local and national conferences. Nicole’s academic, research and leadership potential have been acknowledged with numerous awards, including funding by the Alberta Women’s Health Foundation through the Women and Children’s Health Research Institute and the Alberta Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research. Nicole actively volunteers with the CWHHA. She also mentors undergraduate and master's level students in research activities. She is honoured to have been selected for an award from the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation of Canada. 

Maris Schneider

 Maris Schneider is a PhD student in Bioarchaeology at Western University. Her research explores the effects of childhood and adolescent malnutrition on the developing skeleton, with a focus on identifying markers of nutritional stress in both archaeological and contemporary populations. She is a strong advocate for accessible, inclusive science communication and regularly presents her research at national and international conferences, with publications in leading journals in human biology.

Passionate about knowledge mobilization and public education, Maris leads a wide range of outreach initiatives through Western’s Department of Anthropology and the Canadian Association for Girls in Science. In these roles, she helps to design and deliver hands-on educational programming that brings anthropology and STEM to life for young learners, particularly girls and gender-diverse youth.

A key focus of Maris' outreach work is increasing the visibility of women role models in science and academia, helping to foster a sense of belonging and possibility for the next generation.