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Book highlights the importance of supports for university students

Campus walk spring students

By Elaine Smith

“Education will get you to the station, but can you get on the train and will you know where to get off?” says Professor Carl James, York University Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora, building on a quote by a Ghanaian refugee, Kofi, that refers to the experiences of first-generation students attending university. In other words, being admitted to university is only the first step; the next is navigating the terrain. 

Book cover for First-Generation Student Experiences in Higher Education: Counterstories (Routledge: 2022)

A book written by James and Leanne Taylor, an associate professor in the Faculty of Education at Brock University, profiles York alumni who participated in a 2002 pilot project, or, as Taylor calls it, “an intervention,” as incoming undergraduates. The project was designed to support first-generation university students during their undergraduate years, recognizing that they didn’t have parents who could offer them insights into the world of post-secondary education. 

“The barriers that they face in accessing higher education don’t go away once they’re on campus,” Taylor says.

First-Generation Student Experiences in Higher Education: Counterstories (Routledge: 2022) catches up with a selection of these students 20 years later and profiles their experiences prior to university, during university and in the years afterward. It is subtitled Counterstories “as a way of pushing back on ideas of the ideal student,” Taylor said. The book highlights the students’ successes and challenges and offers insights into the types of supports that first-generation students find most useful. 

The participating students faced barriers due to race, community, class, gender and/or sexual orientation. 

“We wanted to see how we could assist them when they got to university,” James says. “We as professors don’t necessarily realize that they have no idea how to negotiate university or the campus.” 

The “intervention” 

The pilot project required each participant to take part in an entrance life history interview and follow-up interviews and to keep journals of their experiences. They interviewed family members to learn more about their perceptions and expectation and also had work placements. In addition, Taylor ran a weekly group session, referred to as the ”common hour,” where students could discuss their experiences, goals and aspirations. 

“We worked with two cohorts of students over three years and there was a weekly group meeting, a common hour, where we discussed their experiences, goals and aspirations,” says Taylor, who served as the research assistant for the project while working toward her PhD at York. Combining those sessions with all the other information, “We had a rich, rounded idea of what they needed.”  

During the course of their weekly sessions, Taylor became friends with many of the students, who weren’t much younger than she was. These strong ties made it easy to reconnect with them after many years and arrange further interviews. 

“It was something special to go back and see where their lives have shifted,” she says. 

Many of the students said the weekly common hour was pivotal in their success in navigating the subtleties of university culture and in helping them balance peer and parental expectations with their actual university experiences. They were able to identify the existing conflicts and the areas where there was a lack of support – a gap that parents didn’t always know how to fill. 

“The students also challenged the idea that people from marginalized backgrounds are always behind,” Taylor adds. “They drew on other types of capital, such as community, to help them succeed. They also framed themselves as belonging, but were aware that others saw them as students who were admitted as part of an access program.” 

Taylor says the book challenges the idea that all first-generation students are similar; they are complex and “understood the intersectional pieces of their lives.” She believes universities and schools need to understand from where students draw support and how to help support and mentor them. 

“We also see the counterstories as telling us how students resisted and challenged the university structure and pushed back on the dominant narrative,” she says. “We have to realize that there are inequities in the institution itself.” 

Practical applications 

These discoveries should help inform the ways universities and individual faculty members work with first-generation students and how they address the students’ needs. 

“The book is a useful teaching tool,” James says. “I have used it with teachers and assigned various teachers a student in the book so they could compare their own stories, and participants identified with different stories. Many of them talked of having similar students in their classes.” 

He has also used the book with graduate students when teaching Education in the Urban Context. 

“They liked the book and were able to identify with some of the experiences, and they pointed out that some of the students didn’t always see their own privileges.” 

The book also dovetails nicely with York’s academic priority, from access to success, as set forth in the University Academic Plan. 

Human rights and equity in special education 

Two people sitting on floor, one with laptop, one with workbook

By Elaine Smith

It’s time to rethink our approach to special education, says Gillian Parekh, as she and a group of fellow educators and scholars have put their energies into creating change with Equity and Human Rights in Special Education: Critical Reflective Practice Guide, as well as a corresponding interactive website.

Gillian Parekh
Gillian Parekh

“Our work addresses a need,” said Parekh, a York University associate professor and Canada Research Chair (Tier 2) in Disability Studies in Education. “For a long time, social justice discourse in education has ignored ableism, but we argue that ableism intersects with many types of discrimination. For example, how we evaluate students’ capacity and organize students into ability-based placements and programs as well as who we assume will benefit from particular opportunities and/or interventions can be influenced by gender, racial, class and other forms of bias.

“Disability is also identity. Both the identity and experience of disability can be produced through social, rather than biological experiences. To understand disability solely through a medical lens is a very Western, and limited, approach. Part of our work is to identify how schools exclude on the basis of ability, the implications of those exclusions, and to advocate for practices that generate the best outcomes for students.” 

In recognizing the need for change and planning to effect a shift in attitude, Parekh gathered a team of 10 scholars and practitioners with expertise on equity and human rights and special education from four institutions to create the guide. Her fellow creators are York colleagues Carl James and Angelique Gordon; Kathryn Underwood and Nicole Ineese-Nash from Toronto Metropolitan University; Luke Reid from the University of Toronto; and David Cameron, Alison Gaymes San Vicente, Karen Murray and Jason To from the Toronto District School Board (TDSB).

Alison Gaymes San Vicente
Alison Gaymes San Vicente
Karen Murray
Karen Murray

“The data show systemic issues, not only in terms of which students are overrepresented in special education identifications and placements, but also in regards to students’ future trajectories through school,” said Parekh. “When you’re in a position of power, you need to think carefully and critically about how and why you make certain decisions and how those decisions influence students’ opportunities. Are there alternatives to explore? We’ve laid out a great case for why critical reflective practice is important.” 

Gaymes-San Vicente, a superintendent with TDSB, said, “We are all aligned in the belief that some aspects of the education system need to change to give everyone a fair chance. There are systemic structures and ableist beliefs we need to challenge in order to create a space where everyone can achieve.” 

Murray, a TDSB system superintendent for equity, anti-racism and anti-oppression, added, “Research has shone the light on issues tied to ability that have become normalized and we need to start thinking about how and why we act in specific ways. We need to shine the light on these serious issues.” 

The guide, which is available in both English and French, has chapters devoted to context, such as discussions of ableism and disability as an intersectional experience and a look at human rights in special education. It then moves on to address critically reflective practice; culturally relevant and responsive pedagogy; and racism and bias in education. It closes with ideas about what school districts can do to make improvements.  

Since its release in 2022, the authors continue to disseminate it to audiences who could benefit.  

“It is reflective of educational policy and practice in Ontario, but the broader themes can be applied nationwide,” Parekh said. “There are broader institutional pieces that can be used in any institutional context.” 

The team has presented the document at various events and conferences. The individual members are all involved in consulting, advocacy and/or professional development and they continue to promote it to a variety of audiences. 

“The timing is right,” Parekh said. “Across the province, school boards are heavily engaged in equity work and this is another complementary toolkit they can use.” 

Murray noted, “I use this guide as a framework for conversations around bias. The guiding questions it poses can be used a framework for moving forward. As a tool, it allows you to see how to extend learning and understanding. There are foundational pieces here that can be used as anchors when you’re thinking about planning for your school, and it’s comprehensive in suggesting next steps for various stakeholders. There’s something there for all of us.” 

Just as important, said Gaymes-San Vicente, “It’s user-friendly, can be powerful when the strategies and critical thinking are applied and shares complex ideas in a way that’s digestible. It has the potential to shift some of the existing dominant narratives, which must shift if we really honour education for all children. Finally, of significance, it asks educators to position themselves as learners in service of their students, rather than being content driven and teacher-centred.” 

Collaboration continues to be modus operandi for inaugural Jean Augustine Chair

feet dangling over a ledge with graffiti

By Elaine Smith

“My definition of leadership is not one where people blindly follow you,” says Nombuso Dlamini, associate professor in the Faculty of Education and York University’s inaugural Jean Augustine Chair in Education in the New Urban Environment. “Leaders have responsibility. I see leadership as a cooperative, community-based position.”

Nombuso Dlamini
Nombuso Dlamini

Dlamini, whose research explores youth negotiations of identity in new urban environments, joined York from the University of Windsor in 2010 to assume the newly created position, which has since been renamed the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora. Although it was an academic appointment, there was a public engagement component and Dlamini wanted to create a yearly template for engagement activities during her five-year term (2010-15). Characteristically, she sought to collaborate with others, reaching out to Faculty of Education colleagues who were engaged in research about the urban environment, as well as other peers with similar interests.  

The result? An informal think tank that included Professors Uzo Anucha, Sarah Barrett, Laura Wiseman and Mario Di Paolantonio of York University; Professor Njoki Wane of OISE/University of Toronto; and then-superintendent of schools and York alum Opiyo Oloya, who is currently an associate vice-president at Western University.  

“I wanted colleagues who had an interest in looking at the experiences of people in the city: how they affirm, create, curate, co-curate and resist urban life,” Dlamini says. “I wanted to work with scholars who could help me define what this environment looks like and how to talk about it in an understandable, scholarly fashion.” 

With their input, Dlamini created the Jean Augustine Chair Forum to honour the work of Augustine, a former member of parliament, a past York University board member and a strong champion of women’s rights, as well as Black identity.  

Similar to the political life of Augustine, Dlamini says, “I wanted to ensure that women were respected, valued and revered in their community.”  

The forum was held annually during the week of March 8, International Women’s Day, and it featured a keynote speaker and a week of student and faculty activities centred around issues of global gender parity.  

“Since the Chair wasn’t fully funded then, my ‘think tank’ suggested that I apply for a grant to fund these activities and helped me brainstorm project topics in a tactical way,” says Dlamini. “They also suggested various community partners who were doing work promoting gender parity.” This resulted in the first Jean Augustine Chair-associated grant funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), Engaging Girls Changing Communities. Augustine, herself, was the keynote speaker for the project’s launch. 

Not only did the group meet to assist Dlamini in forging this JA Chair yearly agenda; they met regularly to exchange ideas about research and urban issues, including an annual retreat to write and critique each other’s work. 

This collaboration had an unanticipated result: a published collection of the group’s individual essays co-edited by Dlamini and Swiss researcher Angela Stienen, Spatialized Injustice in the Contemporary City: Protesting as Public Pedagogy (Routledge 2022).  

“When we met to set up actionable activities, we also talked about how our work could help curate urban lives and help educators better understand the experiences of their colleagues,” Dlamini says. “We invited our March 8 speaker to our annual retreats. The book contains essays about living in the city and about how the city is experienced, remembered, created and resisted.  

“It’s about each author’s way of understanding the city and what about the city is enabling or becomes a barrier,” she says. “People produce and consume the city, but they also resist certain kinds of authority and ways of being.” 

As it turns out, the book works as a text in her education research course because it illustrates numerous approaches to research. 

Towards publication, in addition to the obvious focus on the descriptions of the urban environment, “I looked at the book’s other common threads, such as understanding urban life and the experiences of youth, and because I teach research, I began to see a pattern,” Dlamini says. “Each essay is framed more as a research paper, and it provides a template of different possibilities for educational research. 

“Looking back now, I feel really honoured that my colleagues trusted me with their time, ideas and emotions and wanted to engage.” 

Meet York University’s latest commercialization Fellows

man using tablet with graphic image of lightbulb

By Corey Allen, senior manager, research communications

Four budding researchers completed York University’s Commercialization Fellowship program – now in its second year – at the end of April.  

The Commercialization Fellowship program is funded by the innovation arm of the Office of the Vice-President Research & Innovation at York. The program runs from January to April and provides graduate students and postdoctoral Fellows support and assistance to develop their academic research into a commercially viable product.   

The Fellows receive $7,500 as stipend, with a quarter of the funds earmarked for research activities like prototype testing, proof of concept projects, or validation studies. They also participate in workshops and seminars that focus on various topics related to commercialization, including design thinking, intellectual property, licensing, and partnerships. Additionally, Fellows work at and receive advice on patent searching, industry outreach, and pitching.  

“The fellowship provides a valuable opportunity to support and train the next generation of innovators and supports them on their entrepreneurial journey,” said Suraj Shah, associate director, commercialization and strategic partnerships.  

Aspire spoke with the four Fellows about the fellowship program and their products.

Kajanan Kanathipan
Kajanan Kanathipan

Kajanan Kanathipan, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Project title: Modular single-stage step-up photovoltaic (PV) converter with integrated power balancing feature 

Kanathipan’s doctoral research focuses on the development of new extraction techniques for renewable energy, particularly solar power. Solar energy can be tricky to harness for power due to varying atmospheric conditions, like cloud cover.  

Kanathipan is determined to find a way to circumvent this issue and build a device that not only streamlines the conversion process, but can maximize power extraction under all operating conditions. 

Solar energy starts with sunlight, which is made up of photons. Photovoltaic (PV) panels convert the sunlight into electrical currents. This is then converted to electricity that supplies power for machines, homes and buildings to run on. It’s a two-step process involving different converters. 

Kanathipan’s idea would reduce the power conversion to a single step, using the same converter. This converter would also be able to better balance and store power from the PV panels to not stress or drain one converter more than the others.  

The invention would allow the entire conversion system to safely operate under different weather conditions. This would reduce equipment costs and produce a greater amount of energy for PV plants.  

“We are looking to design and control photovoltaic conversion well enough that it provides an innovative solution in the solar technology industry,” says Kanathipan, who works out of the Advanced Power Electronics Laboratory for Sustainable Energy Research (PELSER) and is supervised by John Lam, associate professor at the Lassonde School of Engineering.  

Kanathipan says the fellowship program has provided education and training not found in the lab, like the workshops on how to protect your intellectual property, build business partnerships, or how to determine a potential customer.   

Right now, Kanathipan is working on a scaled down prototype, a key component of his dissertation.   

Kanathipan is a PhD student in the Department of Electrical Engineering at the Lassonde School of Engineering.

Stephanie Cheung
Stephanie Cheung

Stephanie Cheung, Faculty of Education
Project title: VoteBetter 

Cheung created the VoteBetter app, a SaaS (software as a service) product, which aims to drive civic engagement in student politics. The application operates as a virtual election space for post-secondary student constituents, candidates and incumbents, and provides a central source for locating, contributing to and comparing campaign priorities. Users can view candidates’ profiles, submit questions, and view, rank and comment on crowd-sourced campus issues. Once the election is over, the app tracks the campaign promises of elected representatives and serves as a community forum.  

Under the supervision of Natalia Balyasnikova, assistant professor in the Faculty of Education, Cheung’s master’s research examines contemporary trends in political participation on diverse campuses in the Greater Toronto Area and explores how undergraduate student election voter engagement and turnout might be improved. The idea for the app was inspired by her research and Cheung’s own experience in student politics, in addition to a former role as a public servant with the provincial government.  

“VoteBetter can be used as a tool for students to deepen dialogue and focus more on the substantive issues their communities face than surface-level politics,” Cheung says. “Student groups can wield hefty budgets and their constituents deserve well-informed leaders who understand pertinent issues and are equipped to pursue sustainable change.”  

Cheung says the fellowship program has offered structure and guidance as she works through her research and development phase. She says she is interested in the commercialization of her master’s research not for profit, but to extend the impact of her academic work.   

“I am often asking myself how research can live off the page,” she says. “And I’m interested in my work facilitating opportunities for co-constructing knowledge and bridging theory to practice.”  

Currently, Cheung’s VoteBetter app is being validated with end users.  

Cheung is a part-time master’s student in the Faculty of Education and full-time staff at York where she works as manager, student success and stakeholder engagement at Calumet and Stong Colleges in the Faculty of Health.

Mehran Sepah Mansoor
Mehran Sepah Mansoor

Mehran Sepah Mansoor, Mechanical Engineering
Project title: A method of fabricating one-dimensional photonic crystal optical filters  

Mansoor works out of York University’s Advanced Materials for Sustainable Energy Technologies Laboratory. His research at the AM-SET Lab has led to him inventing a novel fabrication method for a photonic crystal optical filter, which can transmit sunlight over a broad range of wavelengths.  

Mansoor, under the supervision of AM-SET Lab’s founder Paul G. O’Brian at the Lassonde School of Engineering, believes the invention could have several applications, but it could be particularly useful to improve thermal energy storage systems, particularly those that store solar thermal energy.   

Thermal energy storage involves preventing losses via heat conduction, convection, and radiation. Mansoor’s photonic crystal filter more effectively controls solar radiation and thermal losses simultaneously and can transmit sunlight to be absorbed and converted to heat in a thermal storage medium.  

The filter can also reflect radiative heat from the medium, which has longer wavelengths than sunlight, minimizing heat losses. The stored energy can then act as a power source later when sunlight is no longer available.  

“The innovation is the way the materials in the photonic crystal filters have been fabricated and the treatment applied to them to achieve the optical properties needed to refract or bend light in a desired manner, as well as the way we have been able to stack all of the materials together,” said Mansoor. “Our method eliminates unwanted energy absorption in the photonic crystal while improving the energy transmission of the filter.”  

Mansoor cites the program’s design thinking workshop as a highlight of his time as a Fellow. He says the fellowship also provided him a greater understanding of how to patent technology. This invention marks his first patent.  

So far, Mansoor has completed simulations of the invention and has some preliminary results. He is in the early stages of creating a prototype.  

Mansoor is a second-year master’s student in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the Lassonde School of Engineering.

Abbas Panahi
Abbas Panahi

Abbas Panahi, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Project title: A novel portable platform based on field-effect transistor integrated with microfluidics for biosensing applications 

Panahi’s academic work studying biosensors – a device to detect and target molecules – grew stronger after a PhD internship at Mitacs. Now in his fourth year as a PhD student and under the supervision of Professor Ebrahim Ghafar-Zadeh at the Lassonde School of Engineering, Panahi has invented a new biosensing platform that can detect disease.  

The platform uses sensor technology that can be used on a portable device, like a smartphone, to analyze the specific concentration of RNA or any biomarker in a saliva sample.   

“This technology has huge potential for medical application,” Panahi says. “The device could be used in hospitals for non-expert users to run clinical tests and help detect viruses quickly and easily.”  

The portable sensor was developed entirely at York University’s Biologically Inspired Sensors and Actuators (BioSA) Laboratory – from the testing and modelling, to all the engineering – by a team of students and research associates under the direction, guidance and conceptualization of Ghafar-Zadeh. The development process involved a variety of tasks, including in-house testing, modelling and engineering design. 

For Panahi, the fellowship program gave him a complete education for what it takes to start a science-based venture. He says the fellowship allowed him to fully consider every aspect of the commercialization process and develop a strong business model. He also says the program’s teachings on how to match the technology with market needs was invaluable.  

Currently, Panahi is working on technology market matching, and readying the device to undergo clinical tests in the next year.   

Panahi is a fourth-year PhD student in the Department of Electrical Engineering at the Lassonde School of Engineering.  

Homelessness Learning Hub continues improving lives, training

Hand reaching out for help

By Alexander Huls, deputy editor, YFile

Four years after its launch, the Homelessness Learning Hub (HLHub) is evolving to continue becoming an essential resource across Canada to the homeless-serving sector.

When the HLHub launched in 2019, the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness (COH) at York University had a clear vision of what it wanted the site to be.

“We’ve always been aware that the sector is quite cash strapped and often doesn’t have resources to send their staff for training,” says Stephanie Vasko, senior director of communications at COH. Because organizations often have time and money for mandatory training (such as first aid or crisis intervention), but not any additional professional development, COH wanted to create a free, self-directed online platform that brings together promising practices and training in the form of practical tools and resources.

Stephanie Vasko
Stephanie Vasko

With funding provided by the Community Capacity and Innovation funding stream of Reaching Home: Canada’s Homelessness Strategy, the HLHub dedicated its first two years with a clear strategy on how it would build a strong training curriculum aimed at service providers, researchers and policymakers. “We committed to developing five original self-paced trainings, or collections of resources, every year,” explains Karen Bosworth, senior instructional design specialist for the COH. “That would allow us to focus on building high-quality materials for the website, while also allowing us time to curate additional, relevant resources for the website’s library.”

The HLHub saw encouraging success out of the gate, but the team wasn’t content to rest on their laurels. Because the homeless-serving sector has frequently evolving training needs, in 2020, COH decided to assess their progress by soliciting and reviewing feedback from participants. “We felt it was an opportune time to understand what functionality on the website was working and wasn’t working. The best way to do that was listen to those who were using it.”

In doing so, it proved to direct not just the future of the site, but boost its success.

Among the surprises feedback revealed was that individuals in administrative, supervisor or human resource positions with no frontline experience were using HLHub to better understand what their staff were doing. There was another unexpected audience, too. “We learned that about half of the participants were coming from colleges. Students were being assigned our trainings as part of their coursework, which is a completely unintended audience,” says Vasko. It was a welcome sign, indicating that HLHub was helping to right the future, with students becoming equipped with the training before they enter careers in the sector.

Karen Bosworth
Karen Bosworth

Inspired by these discoveries and others, COH upgraded the HLHub website in 2021. “We really made it more true to an e-learning platform,” explains Vasko. Adds Bosworth, “We were able to create learning pathways for people, whereas before it was a lot of independent resources loosely gathered in collections.”

They integrated one click enrolment, saving of favourite resources, and progress tracking. “Another important feature – one that our audience asked for – was the ability for participants to earn certificates upon completing training. Certificates keep people motivated to complete courses,” says Bosworth.

A separate survey assessing the state of the sector, conducted by the COH research team in 2021, also highlighted an urgent need for self-care resources to address high rates of turnover and burnout in the sector. Training materials created to promote self-care are something Bosworth is especially proud of, as she ensured they would be personal and empathetic in their promotion of basic self-care (sleep, nutrition, relaxation and more) as well as tools to support emotional well-being, including lessons and activities about personal boundaries, nurturing self-compassion and deepening resilience.

The cumulative effect of these changes in 2021, as well as ongoing growth in awareness, has been significant. “Once we introduced those features, the enrolment in our trainings started to increase. We went from about 1,000 members in 2021 to now over 9,000,” says Vasko.

In 2022, HLHub also saw another form of encouraging success when it was awarded an additional $443,518 from Reaching Home, who is a partner on the project and has been using COH resources within its own community efforts. The team isn’t just grateful for the sign of continued support, but Reaching Home shares an understanding that HLHub is a long-term project.

“It’s gratifying to know that they appreciate it takes time to develop what we’re trying to do,” says Bosworth. “Now that we have a good base, we have to keep it going.”

With considerable success already achieved in its first four years, where does HLHub hope to be in the next few years? There are plans of launching a targeted digital marketing strategy, they also have high hopes for further driving awareness of HLHub’s training.

“Right now, our model is to be an open learning site so people can dip in and out wherever they find an interest or depending on their need,” says Bosworth. “We would like to create core foundational content for new hires, or different cohorts, along with a micro-credential that they could achieve. That’s where I see it going,” Vasko adds.

What’s most important, however, is the content and its audience. “Our focus on creating consistent, high-quality, free content in response to the homeless-serving sectors needs will be integral to continuing to build the reputation and awareness of the HLHub,” says Bosworth.

“Listening to our audience and their needs and developing materials in response to support them will be key to building this momentum. We have to stay current and relevant,” adds Vasko.

York staff, faculty recognized for positive change in accessibility

Award stock image banner from pexels

What does accessibility look like in the classroom? When this question was posed to Course Director Lorin Schwarz, in the Faculty of Education, he answered “inclusion plus access.”

Schwarz, along with Mary Desrocher – associate professor of clinical developmental psychology – were among the many University community members nominated for Student Accessibility Services Awards ahead of its end-of-year celebration on April 6.

Since 2018, students have been encouraged to nominate members of the York community they feel have exceeded the standard expectations of their role for the sake of expanding access to learning opportunities and services on campus. Repeat-nominee Schwarz was most recently among the award winners for the 2020-21 academic year, while first-time-nominee Desrocher received one of the 18 awards handed out at this year’s ceremony.

Desrocher described a “lightbulb” moment that first alerted her to the importance of an accessible learning experience. Over 20 years ago, when she was a newly inducted lecturer at York, a student approached Desrocher after class and disclosed a learning disability to her with some trepidation.

“At that time, we didn’t have Moodle, we didn’t have eClass, we might not even have had Student Accessibility Services,” she said.

Inspired by the exchange, Desrocher decided to pre-emptively provide notes to all of her students, regardless of whether or not they had disclosed disabilities to her or other professors, in order to alleviate the additional pressure of having to do so for those who may have been struggling with ADHD, anxiety or other disorders that could make note-taking difficult. Ever since, Desrocher has reaffirmed that decision time and time again. That first student to privately ask her for assistance eventually graduated from York and followed a career in psychology, a fact which continues to motive Desrocher to help students reach their fullest potentials.

Simple changes can make a profound difference, according to Desrocher. In practice, those changes can look like note sharing; using classroom time to discuss, rather than lecture; and believing her students when they ask to be accommodated. She encourages everyone to remember the ethos of accessibility and reminds her peers that “you are not the expert in someone else’s lived experience.”

Schwarz shared a similar guiding philosophy, explaining that “we’re so afraid of making things personal now… but let yourself care about the students.

“We’re here to increase the joy in the world, not decrease it,” he added. “See people as complicated human beings and not something that you can simplify.”

A full list of 2022-23 Student Accessibility Services Award winners is included below.

  • Ahmad Firas Khalid, sessional assistant professor, Faculty of Health 
  • Amila Butorovic, associate professor, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies  
  • Devin Phillips, assistant professor, Faculty of Health
  • Ivona Hideg, associate professor, Schulich School of Business  
  • Jeanine Tuitt, supports and services coordinator, Office of Student Community Relations  
  • Jennifer Spinney,  assistant professor, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies  
  • Katherine Di Lorenzo, student support advisor, Student Support Advising  
  • Lindsay LaMorre, associate director, Experiential Education, Faculty of Education 
  • Lois King, contract faculty, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies 
  • Makini McGuire-Brown, course instructor, PhD candidate, Schulich School of Business ​
  • Mark Thomas, professor and Chair of Sociology Department, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies ​
  • Mary Desrocher, associate professor, Faculty of Health​
  • Matthew Keough, assistant professor, Faculty of Health​
  • Matthias Hoben, associate professor, Faculty of Health​
  • Ruodan Shao, associate professor, Schulich School of Business ​
  • Stephanie Pugliese Domenikos, assistant professor, Faculty of Science​
  • Taylor Cleworth, assistant professor, Faculty of Health​
  • Theodore Noseworthy, associate professor and research Chair, Schulich School of Business ​
  • Yueting Chen, PhD candidate, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies

For more ways to promote and demonstrate a commitment to an accessible University, see the resources provided on the Student Accessibility Services website.

New project to explore anxiety among Black youth, families

Black woman and child

The recently launched “Retooling Black Anxiety” project at York University looks to examine increased anxiety among Black youth and families who have had encounters with the criminal justice system (CJS).

With $35,000 from the Faculty of Health’s Anxiety Research Fund, powered by Beneva – a Quebec-based insurance and financial services firm – the project is led by two York professors: serving as principal investigator is Professor Godfred Boateng, director, Global & Environmental Health Lab and Faculty Fellow, Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research; co-investigator is Dlamini Nombuso, a professor in the Faculty of Education whose work focuses on youth, especially racialized youth within leadership and political systems. Partnerships with the Ghana Union of Canada (GUC) and Gashanti Unity (GU) is also a critical component of the project in order to help lead community-based research activities and intervention.

Godfred Boateng
Godfred Boateng

The collective goal is to work and mentor youth and their families towards better experiences of addressing anxiety and mental health issues mainly induced by encounters with the criminal justice systems (CJS) and the child welfare systems (CWS).

Research conducted in 2021 by the Department of Justice Canada, and the Federal Anti-Racism Secretariat at the Department of Canadian Heritage, identified how over-policing in schools and in Black communities – particularly in economically marginalized neighbourhoods – as well as police reliance on child welfare agencies, has increased the encounters Black youth have with the criminal justice system. According to the Department of Justice Canada, in 2020-21, Black males made up 19 per cent of all male youth admissions to custody, and Black females made up 11 per cent of all female youth admissions to custody.

According to Boateng, these realities have a profound effect on the mental health of Black youth and their families. The professor shares that he has observed how this has led to a significant increase in stories of anxiety, youth entrapment and disillusionment among Black youth and their families. Given how anxiety and mental health can limit individual potentials and capabilities, and injustices that put Black youth in jeopardy can affect their long-term possibilities, Boateng and his partners have prioritized exploring ways to address these ongoing challenges.

The GUC and GU will play a crucial role in implementing the project in their communities. “An important part of project is to dialogue with community partners to ensure that they feel fully and respectfully engaged and involved as driving forces for this project,” says Boateng. Each organization will leverage their membership, network and cultural community advocates to recruit young adults who have had encounters with the criminal justice system or the child welfare system to be part of the program.

Boateng with members from community partners Ghana Union of Canada and Gashanti Unity
Boateng with members from community partners Ghana Union of Canada and Gashanti Unity

During the project’s early exploratory phase, all partners will work to interview and focus group discussions. Subjects will receive a one-pager that articulate project intent, target cohort, duration and expectation. During the subsequent implementation phase they will recruit participants, identify key needs and work with clinical professionals to provide interventions, as well as work with participants on outcomes.

The interventions will be tailored specifically to subjects’ anxiety. After an initial assessment, referrals will be provided to appropriate support systems for those found to have higher levels of anxiety, stress and/or depression symptomatology. Among the choices of intervention for Black youth will be either a restorative justice program aimed at healing and consciousness raising, as well as helping keep youth away from CJS; or enrollment in Unstuck & On Target, an eight-week program aimed at improving self-regulation and good directed behaviors in Youth with offences in CJS/CWS. Family and caregivers will be offered an eight-week program aimed at educating them on how to identify or flag risky behaviors in children, as well as providing crisis support, counseling and therapeutic services referrals to parents or caregivers.

The “Retooling Black Anxiety” team has further ambitions for the future. “We are hoping to scale up this study and apply for larger research and community funding that will advance the mental health of Blacks in the Greater Toronto Area and reduce anxieties experienced by Blacks and Black families,” says Nombuso. The team expects to apply in the future to the SSHRC Collaborative grant to further scale-up the study.

A website is still in development, but those wishing for further information can reach out to the project team directly by email. Boateng can be reached at gboaten@yorku.ca; Dlamini can be reached at ndlamini@yorku.ca, and project coordinator Salwa Regragui can be reached at sreg97@my.yorku.ca.

Experiential education shines in Faculty celebration

Students and mentor gathered around a table

By Elaine Smith

York University’s annual Experiential Education (EE) Faculty Celebration is a showcase of the creativity faculty employ to provide their students with multi-faceted learning opportunities, as well as a reminder of the University Academic Plan’s commitment to attaining its “goal of providing every student with an experiential learning opportunity, regardless of program.” 

This year’s celebration took place virtually Feb. 9, organized by a committee headed by Lisa Endersby, an educational developer with the Teaching Commons, and Melanie Belore, associate director of experiential education for the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS). “We are thrilled to showcase great work in EE across the campus community,” said Endersby.

Lisa Phillips, provost and vice-president, academic, acknowledged the work done to grow EE at York.

“We currently have 16,000 types of EE opportunities at York,” she said. “It’s meaningful for students to have this type of pathway into their futures.”

Media Creation Lab
The Media Creation Lab in the Libraries is one way York students are engaging in experiential education

Faculty members highlighted specific EE projects that they had undertaken, demonstrating that EE can occur in many settings and forms.

In the Communication & Media Studies program, Andrew Monti oversaw the expansion of the flagship six-credit community field experience course for fourth-year students, COMN 4140. The course now provides 50 students with the opportunity to complete a 144-hour work experience in one of 50-plus partner organizations in the private and public sectors. Once students are hired following the standard competitive process, they work in a variety of fields, such as political communication, public relations and social media content creation, among others.

“Students have been unanimous in their appreciation for the experience,” Monti said. “From applying for the job to using their skills in hands-on projects, students also contextualized their knowledge with targeted readings and critically reflected on their working experience.

“In 2022, 94 per cent of our students received recommendation letters from our partners, and we’re on track to reach our goal of 100 per cent by the spring term of 2024.”

Also at LA&PS, Jennifer Bonnell, an associate professor of history, offers a six-credit honours course in public history that provides students with a 12-week placement; it is capped at 18 students and is the capstone course for a cross-disciplinary certificate in public history.

“The first term focuses on skills development and the second term features the placement,” Bonnell said. “Students can test out career paths and apply their knowledge.”

Professor Andrew Maxwell, Bergeron Chair in Technology Entrepreneurship at the Lassonde School of Engineering, organizes two annual EE three-day events for students – UNHack and the Startup Experience – through Bergeron Entrepreneurs in Science and Technology (BEST). Both events, said Maxwell, “allow the students to work in teams, find their passion and solve problems meaningful to them. The events convince the participants that they can contribute to the world and change it.”

United Nations SDGs
Educators are linking experiential education opportunities to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals

During the UNHack, first- and second-year students from across the University work together in teams to address a local sustainability challenge linked to one of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). During the structured experience, they choose an important problem they care about, create a viable solution and develop a roll out plan that they hope will be implemented. The Startup Weekend Experience allows senior undergraduate and graduate students to collaborate on the development of a business idea which they pitch to a panel of judges.

“We encourage people to come back each year and get more creative at solving important problems,” said Maxwell. “I hope to see more of these projects become prototypes in York’s Living Lab.”

At the Faculty of Education, Celia Popovic, an associate professor (teaching stream), created a capstone course for students in the BA Education Studies program. It requires students work together on a website that features interviews with professionals working in various education-related positions, including teaching, and to work on a practical project for a partner organization. It’s an opportunity for students to widen their horizons, Popovic said, as they look toward career possibilities, and to allow them to use their theoretical knowledge and reflect on their experiences.

The event also featured a talk by executives from York’s partners from Co-operative Education and Work-Integrated Learning Canada (CEWIL); a roundtable discussion of their EE partnerships with students; and presentations by faculty members who successfully incorporate EE into their classes.

The roundtable featured Dana Craig, director of students learning and academic success with York University Libraries; Geneviève Maheux-Pelletier, director of the Teaching Commons; and Yvette Munro, assistant vice-provost, student success. Each spoke about what their areas offer with respect to EE, including:

• EE courses and the Media Creation Lab in the Libraries;
• support for faculty interested in incorporating EE into their courses through the Teaching Commons; and
• support from the Division of Students through initiatives such as Becoming YU.

Charlene Marion, executive director of CEWIL, and Sean Elliott, associate director for the central region, followed the panel, talking about their organization’s support for work-integrated learning (WIL), offering examples. They noted that York has been a longstanding CEWIL partner and has received $2.2 million in funding for 31 WIL projects since Winter 2021, including a project focused on Black student psychology and health and a senior dance project.

Will Gage, associate vice-president, teaching and learning, said, “EE is a cornerstone of what York tries to provide in terms of excellence and students’ readiness to graduate and hit the ground running in the workplace. … It is pivotal to the success of our students.”

To learn more about incorporating EE into your courses, contact the Teaching Commons.

Faculty of Education lecture to highlight sustainable education

Usa globe resting in a forest - environment concept

On March 7, the Faculty of Education will host a public lecture from 7 to 8:30 p.m., by speaker Charles Hopkins, the UNESCO Chair in Reorienting Education Towards Sustainability at York University.

Charles Hopkins
Charles Hopkins

Titled “Educating for Tomorrow’s Unknown: Sustainability Front and Center,” the lecture will address how – through the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) – countries are now called upon to provide quality education that prioritizes sustainability and encourages young people to become global citizens.

Hopkins will illuminate how all levels of educators, education professionals, students and parents can become engaged and make a collective impact with global challenges like climate change, biodiversity loss and rising inequalities – locally or in other parts of the world.

An awarded education leader with several honorary doctorates and professorships, Hopkins has lectured and presented papers in approximately 75 countries. He has coordinated two global Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) research networks – the International Network of Teacher Education Institutions and the #IndigenousESD, which aims to improve the education outcomes of Indigenous youth. Internationally, Hopkins has a long relationship with education and sustainability, chairing the writing and adoption processes of several UNESCO ESD Declarations. He is also the co-director of the Asia-Pacific Institute on ESD in Beijing, China.

This talk is a part of the Faculty of Education’s Public Lecture Series featuring leading scholars from the Faculty sharing their research and scholarship on key publicly relevant issues in education and society.

This free event will be live-streamed on Zoom and all are welcome to attend. Register here.

Click here to learn more about how York University is contributing to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.

Black excellence centre stage at Word, Sound, Power celebration

Coco Murray performance during Word, Sound, Power 2023 (image: Anderson Coward)

Black artistic talent was centre stage during a showcase of performances on Feb. 8 when the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora presented Word, Sound, Power: An annual celebration of Black Artistic Expression.

Watch the video below for highlights from the well-attended event.

The Black History Month celebration spotlights Black cultural and artistic expression through performance, which this year featured:

• York University doctoral student Miss Coco Murray with Coco Collective with a presentation in drumming and dance;
• Peel District School Board student Marie Pascoe with a spoken word performance;
• a performance by York’s Oscar Peterson jazz ensemble;
• a spoken word performance by Canadian poetry slam champion Dwayne Morgan;
• a performance by York’s R&B ensemble;
• a performance by spoken word artist Ryan Burke;
• a presentation by the Toronto Gospel Choir; and
• a spoken word presenation by York University student Ashley Keene.