Head and shoulders image of Dr. Audrey Zbitnew, Microbiology.

Bio/Historical Note: Dr. Audrey Zbitnew was born in 1933 and raised on a farm near Buchanan, Saskatchewan. At an early age she became an avid reader with a quest for knowledge. This drive to learn resulted in Zbitnew getting her first job at the local pharmacy; it was here that her love of science grew. Her post-secondary education began at Regina College with a laboratory technician course. In 1957 Dr. Zbitnew entered the University of Toronto. She completed a BA (1964) and an MSc in Virology (1967) at the School of Hygiene, University of Toronto. Dr. Andrew Rhodes (one of Canada's pioneers in Virology) is quoted as crediting Dr. Zbitnew with playing an important role in developing teaching and research in the field of medical virology. She left Toronto for Saskatoon in 1969 to assume the position of Virologist at University Hospital. She taught in the Department of Microbiology in the College of Medicine until her retirement in 1995 after a dedicated career in the field of medical science. Dr. Zbitnew died in Saskatoon in 2013.