Thoms, Andrea

Thoms, Andrea

Pronouns

She/Her/Hers

Job Title

Adult Education Curriculum Consultant, Literacy, Humanities & Social Sciences, Province of Nova Scotia

Workplace

Department of Labour, Skills and Immigration, Skills & Learning Branch, Adult Education Division

EDST Degree/s and graduation year/s

MEd, 2013

Concentration

Adult Learning and Education (ALE)

Residence

Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

I am the daughter of a Canadian father and a Trinidadian mother and both my parents, as well as numerous extended family members, are or have been educators so I’ve always known my path would lead in that general direction. When I was ten years old, my family moved to Japan, where I attended both Japanese public school and the American School in Japan. I had multiple opportunities to teach English as a second language in a variety of contexts. I got my BA (English) at Acadia University in Nova Scotia, and then after a year of living in Vancouver, BC, moved back to the East Coast to do my BEd at St. Thomas University in Fredericton, New Brunswick. Afterwards, we returned to Vancouver for 13 years, had two beautiful daughters, and both got our Masters degrees at UBC. In 2013 we moved back to Nova Scotia. Before landing my current position with the province as a Curriculum Consultant, I taught both general and academic ESL, before becoming a Director of Studies. Through this, I then had the opportunity to really flex my learning muscles as the Head of Curriculum, Research and Development for several affiliated private career colleges where I was able to work with subject matter experts to design programs from 3D Digital Arts and Animation to Interior Decorating to Corrections & Law Enforcement. In 2018 I heard about an opportunity with the government as an Adult Education (Literacy and Adult Basic Education) Curriculum Consultant and was the successful candidate. I love my job and especially the opportunity to work with our Mi’kmaw and African Nova Scotian communities to embed their voices into the curriculum development process and learn from their wealth of wisdom and about diverse ways of seeing, living, and learning. My goal is to ensure diverse perspectives are reflected in the teaching and learning opportunities developed for adult learners in Nova Scotia. I credit my love and passion for education to my parents, and to Dr. Pierre Walter who was my advisor and professor for multiple classes at UBC.

Email: dr3thoms@gmail.com

 

Pomerantz, Shauna

Pronouns

She/Her/Hers

Job Title

Associate Professor

Workplace

Brock University

EDST Degree/s and graduation year/s

PhD, 2005

Concentration

Educational Studies – General – Sociology of Education focus

Residence

St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada

How do young people, technologies, social worlds, creative practices, and families interconnect to affect each other? My research addresses this question as my teen daughter and I explore the importance of social media, particularly TikTok, in the lives of children and youth. You can listen to us talk about it on CBC’s the Current, read my reflections on learning TikTok dances from my daughter during COVID-19 in the Globe and Mail, and check out our new book chapter, A TikTok Assemblage: Girlhood, Radical Media Engagement, and Parent-Child Generativity. We are currently working on new research titled Watching TikTok, Talking Feminism: Slipping the Confines of Adult-Child Hierarchies. More generally, my research interests include media studies, youth studies, girlhood studies, popular culture, gender and education, intersectionality, social justice, qualitative inquiry, and feminist, poststructural, and posthuman theories. I am author of Girls, Style, and School Identities: Dressing the Part (Palgrave, 2008), co-author, with Dawn Currie and Deirdre Kelly, of Girl Power: Girls Reinventing Girlhoods (Peter Lang, 2009), and co-author, with Rebecca Raby, of Smart Girls: Success, School, and the Myth of Post-Feminism (University of California Press, 2017). When not working, I like listening to music, lifting weights, watching smart shows and movies (especially coming of age narratives), and hanging out with my family.

Email: spomerantz@brocku.ca

Website: https://brocku.ca/social-sciences/child-and-youth-studies/people-in-our-department/shauna-pomerantz/

Twitter: @Prof_Pom

 

Jenalee Klutzz interviewed by The Star

Read the article,”Driven by need to protect the planet” here: https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2021/07/15/driven-by-need-to-protect-the-planet.html

Peter Wall Institute Co-op Podcast

Listen to the podcast: https://pwias.ubc.ca/ideas/podcasts/the-diverse-solidarity-economies-collective/

 

Bolderston, Amanda

Pronouns

She/Her/Hers

Job Title

Faculty educator, Radiation Therapy Program

Workplace

University of Alberta

EDST Degree/s and graduation year/s

EdD, 2019

Concentration

Educational Studies – General – Educational Leadership and Policy

Residence

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

My professional background is in the medical radiation sciences, particularly in radiation therapy. I have worked most recently as an educator and researcher in Ontario, BC and Alberta. For the last few years I have been teaching undergraduate students at the University of Alberta in the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry. My professional research interests have always been patient experience and professional identity. They coalesced when I carried out my dissertation research at UBC with the project “An autoethnographic lens on the identity work of lesbian and gay radiation therapists in practice”. My focus was on sexual orientation disclosure and how this might affect relationships with patients and colleagues. Like many in my cohort, this was a deeply personal and satisfying piece of work. The experience of diving into the world of sexual and gender minority (SGM) patients and staff led to a CIHR grant and the co-founding of a website for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer and two spirit plus people affected by cancer as well a passionate sideline in providing education about SGM healthcare. I am the Editor in Chief of the medical radiation sciences professional journal (the Journal of Medical Imaging and Radiation Sciences and publish regularly on issues related to SGM health and other topics. I’m married to a fellow queer academic and have two almost-adult boys who enrich my life in exciting and unexpected ways!

 

Website: QueeringCancer.Ca

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-bolderston-2377b463/

 

Evans, Karen

Pronouns

She/Her/Hers

Job Title

Retired. Former Vice-President, Students

Workplace

University of the Fraser Valley

EDST Degree/s and graduation year/s

EdD, 2006

Concentration

Educational Studies – General

Residence

Campbell River, BC, Canada

I am a lifelong learner. Over the past 30 years I have worked with students and clients in a variety of roles, in both the public and private sector. I have worked as a banker, a post secondary educator and a business development consultant. In 2015 I retired from the University of the Fraser Valley, as the Vice- President Students, after serving in a variety of leadership roles, including University Secretary, Registrar, Associate Vice- President Teaching and Learning, and various Dean appointments involving International Education, Business, Information Technology, Continuing Studies, College and Career Preparation. Throughout my career, my focus has always been on development of the individual , whether it be in higher education or in assisting individuals in achieving their business/career goals and objectives. Most recently I have been involved in an anti-racism initiative and am learning more about the topic of white privilege. It has been very educational and useful as I come to terms with the injustices, including racism, that accompanied settler behaviour and the colonization of Turtle Island. I completed my Doctorate in 2006 and my thesis focused on educational policy issues related to the intersection of private interests in the public sphere and on the commercialization of higher education. I have taken professional development certificates in intercultural studies, quality assurance (ISO 9000) and lifeskill instructor. I am currently working as a volunteer board member for a multicultural and immigrant services organization on Vancouver Island. I am a beginner potter and have a great love for photographing nature.

 

Email: karen.evans2pets@gmail.com

 

 

 

Sikkes, Ryan

Pronouns

He/ Him/ His

Job Title

Assistant Deputy Minister, Schools and Student Services

Workplace

Yukon Department of Education

EDST Degree/s and graduation year/s

EdD, 2019

Concentration

Educational Studies—General

Residence

Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada

Biography:

Ryan has spent almost 20 years a practicing K-12 educator in Yukon’s public schools. Ryan was drawn to the EdD program as it gave him an opportunity to critically analyze his practice as a K-12 educator. He researched the history of the governance of Yukon’s public schools and identified significant parallels to Yukon’s constitutional development as a territory. He is currently the Assistant Deputy Minister of Schools and Student Services with Yukon’s Department of Education and provides oversight and supervision of 30 public schools and programs.

 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-sikkes

 

Dr. Jude Walker – Associate Professor

See her profile: https://edst.educ.ubc.ca/facultystaff/jude-walker/

 

Career Resources for Education Graduate Students

Career resources for graduate students interested in diverse/Alt-ac careers

Alt-ac career resources

  • Alt-Academy
    Humanities scholars reflect on what they do, & how they came to be.
  • Beyond the Professoriate
    Helps grad students and PhDs leverage their education into meaningful careers, whether in academia or beyond

  • From PhD to Life: Meaningful Careers for PhDs
    Dr. Jen Polk is a regular contributor to University Affairs. She is active in supporting people with PhD as they navigate their careers.

  • Papa PhD (Podcast)
    Dr. David Mendes (located in Montreal) interviews individuals who have completed PhDs and have chosen non-academic careers. He interviews in French and English.

  • Jobs on Toast
    Dr. Chris Humphrey provides good resources and a lot of information on transferrable skills.

  • Anne Krook
    Dr. Krook supports "graduate students and postdocs transition to non-academic workplaces and help undergraduate humanities majors translate their skills into jobs."
  • Graduate Students Resources by the Public Humanities Hub at UBC
    Resources for graduate students who are interested in learning more about alt-ac, post-ac, or other diverse career options.

Career resources by sector

All /General

Further Education Resources

Higher Education

K-12 Education

Public Sector

Federal level

Provincial level

Municipal level

Tip: Canadian Government, BC Public Service Agency and Metro Vancouver are often employers in the UBC Virtual Career Fair. Visiting their booth is quite helpful for insights on the work application process in the public sector.

Non-profit, community sector or International Organizations

Non-Profit

Non-profit Field specific

International Organizations

Websites for finding work in International Organizations such as the UN, and WHO.

For-profit Sector

  • UBC Career resources: https://community.grad.ubc.ca/event-calendar/event-resources

Related projects

at UBC

in Canada

  • Degrees of Success: Labour Market Transition of PhD Graduates
    Published by the Council of Canadian Academies (CCA)
  • TRaCE 
    A "national project that works to find out more about PhDs in the humanities, social sciences, and fine arts, and to create a community of peers for mentorship and networking. There is a dearth of information on the career paths of PhDs, especially those who work outside the academy. We want to demonstrate the value of PhDs in what we call the human sciences in relation to the larger labour force in Canada, to change how Canadians think about the PhD, and to connect PhDs with one another and to begin a long-neglected project of community building and peer-mentorship."
  • Rethinking the PhD
    Published by Canadian Association For Graduate Studies (CAGS)

A warm thanks to Isabeau Iqbal, PhD for her contribution to this list!

David N. Wilson Award for Distinguished Service 2021

Dr. Ali Abdi, Professor in EDST, is the 2021 recipient of the David N. Wilson Award for Distinguished Service. The award, which is bestowed by the Comparative and International Education Society of Canada (CIESC), recognizes outstanding achievement and contribution in research, mentorship and teaching. The award criteria are long term distinguished service to CIESC; distinguished achievement in research and teaching; exemplary mentorship of students; and service to the international network of comparative and international scholars.

Congratulations Dr. Abdi!

Text by Dr. Blye Frank

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