The Office of the Vice- Principal (Culture, Equity, and Inclusion) has organized a five-part speaker series titled “Re-Imagining Academia.” The series is designed to highlight critical themes in Indigenization, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Accessibility, and Anti-Racism (I-EDIAA), focusing on their application in Canadian higher education. The series will explore issues such as decolonizing institutional practices, amplifying underrepresented voices, embedding anti-racist frameworks in research and leadership, and re-imagining accessibility across academia.
Speakers
Speaker
Dr. Carl James, Professor, Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community & Diaspora, York University
Presentation
“Beyond Admission: The Need for Policies and Practices to Ensure Black Students’ Success at University.”
Date and Time
February 19, 2025 (2 - 3:30 pm EST)
Event Registration
Please register using . Once you are registered, a Zoom link will be sent to you.
Event Format
This session will include a 30-minute talk followed by a moderated 45-50-minute Q&A session with the audience.
Moderator
Dr. Alana Butler, Associate Professor of At-Risk Learners & Student Success, Faculty of Education, Queen’s University.
ֱ the Event
Although access to higher education has improved, Black students often encounter structural inequities that impact their academic success, sense of belonging, and overall university experience. In this session, Dr. Carl James will highlight the need for institutions to move beyond symbolic diversity initiatives and implement comprehensive policies and practices that actively support Black students. Drawing on his extensive research, he will also examine how intersecting factors such as race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status contribute to the challenges faced by Black students in academic environments.
Participants will gain valuable insights into how universities can create inclusive and supportive environments for Black students. The discussion will focus on actionable strategies to address inequities and ensure equitable outcomes, highlighting the importance of culturally relevant pedagogy, mentorship programs, mental health support, and anti-racist institutional frameworks. This session also offers educators, administrators, students, and community members an opportunity to reflect on their roles in advancing equity in higher education and contribute to building more inclusive academic spaces.
ֱ the Speaker
is the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community & Diaspora at York University, where he teaches in the Faculty of Education and in the Graduate Program in Sociology and Social & Political Thought. His research explores how race – intersecting with ethnicity, gender, sex, class, generational status, etc. – mediates the educational, employment, judicial, and career opportunities and achievements of racialized people. A particular interest is the ways in which institutional policies, programs and practices shape the academic performance and social outcomes of young people – particularly Black students.
Carl’s publications include: Colour Matters: Essays on the Experiences, Education, and Pursuits of Black Youth, and with Leanne Taylor, First-Generation Student Experiences in Higher Education; Counterstories. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, he holds the 2022 Killam Prize in Social Sciences and the Canadian Sociological Association’s Outstanding Contribution Award, as well as Honorary Doctorates from McGill University and Uppsala University, Sweden, where he taught in the Teacher Training Department.
This five-part speaker series will continue throughout the year, so we encourage you to regularly check back as we announce new speakers.
Speaker
Dr. Mark Green, Professor and NSERC Scholar in Residence, Dept of Civil Engineering, Stephen JR Smith Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, Queen’s University
Date/Time
March 27, 2025 (1:30 - 3 pm EST)
Event Registration
Please register using . Once you are registered, a Zoom link will be sent to you.
Event Format
This session will include a 30-minute talk followed by a moderated 45-50-minute Q&A session with the audience.
Presentation
Centering Indigenous Knowledge and Truth — Moving Beyond Performative Gestures
Moderator
Dr. Aleksandra Bergier, Research Advisor, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Indigenization (EDII)
ֱ the Event
As universities across Canada respond to the calls for truth and reconciliation, there is an urgent need to move beyond symbolic gestures and toward meaningful systemic change. In this session, Dr. Mark Green, Professor and NSERC Scholar in Residence for Indigenous Collaboration (ֱ), will highlight the responsibilities of academic institutions in authentically centering Indigenous knowledge and truth. He will also discuss the significance of decolonizing curricula, research methodologies, and institutional policies to ensure that Indigenous perspectives are included and intertwined as foundational elements of academic and administrative practices.
ֱ the Speaker
Dr. Mark Green is a distinguished professor of Civil Engineering at Queen’s University and a respected leader in Indigenous engagement within engineering education. His research focuses on the structural performance of concrete in fire conditions, applications of fibre-reinforced polymers (FRPs) in construction, and sustainable materials for buildings.
Beyond his technical expertise, Dr. Green is deeply committed to advancing Indigenous knowledge and partnerships in engineering. He led the $1.65 million NSERC CREATE program, Sustainable Engineering in Remote Areas (SERA), a multi-university initiative focused on best practices for sustainable engineering projects in collaboration with Indigenous communities.
A member of the Turtle Clan in the Kenhtè:ke Longhouse in Tyendinaga, Dr. Green carries the Kanyen'kéha name Rahswahérha ("he builds a bridge"). His dedication to Indigenous education and reconciliation is evident through his leadership as Co-Chair of Queen’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission Task Force (2016–2017). Additionally, Dr. Green, who served as Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic) at Queens (2020-2022), was an advisor to the Dean of Engineering and Applied Science on the development of the Indigenous Futures in Engineering Initiative, and he served as Co-Chair of the Indigenous Council of ֱ and as Chair of the First Nations Technical Institute.
Speaker
Dr. Jay Dolmage, Professor, Chair of English, University of Waterloo
Date and Time
April 16, 2025 (12 - 1:30 pm EST)
Event Registration
Please register using . Once you are registered, a Zoom link will be sent to you.
Event Format
This session will include a 30-minute talk followed by a moderated 45-50-minute Q&A session with the audience.
Presentation
Accessibility Matters: Redefining Equity in Canadian Academic Institutions
Moderator
Kate Brothers, Special Project Advisor, Human Rights and Equity Office, ֱ
ֱ the Event
We have a crisis of help-seeking around disability on our college and university campuses. The vast majority of disabled students will leave our campuses without ever seeking help. There are a variety of possible reasons for this crisis, but most of them are related to the ableism that has always been a part of the structure and identity of higher education. Yet we have had an opportunity, over the last five years, to redesign higher education in ways we never have before. In this presentation and discussion, some possibilities for building a more accessible classroom and campus will be suggested and explored. Come and share your own experiences, ideas, challenges, and questions.
ֱ the Speaker
Dr. Jay Dolmage is a Professor and Associate Chair at the University of Waterloo. He specializes in rhetoric, composition, and disability studies. A leading scholar in the field of disability and accessibility in higher education, his research explores how rhetorical traditions intersect with ableism and institutional barriers.
He is the author of several books that bring together rhetoric, writing, disability studies, and critical pedagogy, including Disability Rhetoric (Syracuse University Press, 2014); Academic Ableism: Disability and Higher Education (Michigan University Press, 2017 and is available in an open-access version online), and Disabled Upon Arrival: Eugenics, Immigration, and the Construction of Race and Disability (Ohio State University Press, 2018). Dr. Dolmage is the founding editor of the Canadian Journal of Disability Studies.
Speaker
TBA
Presentation
Highlighting intersectional approaches in research and pedagogy at Queen’s.
Date and Time
May 14, 2025 (12 - 1:30 pm EST)
Speaker
Dr. Andrew B. Campbell, Assistant Professor and Director of the Centre for Black Studies in Education, University of Toronto OISE
Presentation
Pride in Practice: Embedding 2SLGBTQI+ Perspectives in Academic Spaces
Date and Time
June 19, 2025 (12 - 1 pm EST)
ֱ the Speaker
Andrew B. Campbell (DR.ABC) is an Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream, in Leadership for Racial Justice in Teacher Education in the Master of Teaching Program at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), University of Toronto OISE. He is Coordinator for the Black Future Educators’ Program (BFEP) and the newly appointed Director of the Centre for Black Studies in Education (CBSE). DR. ABC is known to the OISE and wider community for his leadership on advancing equity, leadership, 2SLGBTQIA+ community, and teacher education.
DR. ABC’s exemplary work has seen numerous awards bestowed to him, such as a 2024 recipient of the Black History Month Award from the Jamaica Canadian Association; The 2022 Award for Excellence in Initial Teacher Education from University of Toronto; The 2021 Distinguish African Caribbean Award from University of Toronto, African Alumni Association; The 2021 Champion Educator Award from the Ontario Alliance of Black School Educators (ONABSE), and numerous others.
He presently teaches courses in anti-discrimination education, leadership, educational change, urban education, and Black Educators’ Identity and Pedagogy. He has presented at numerous conferences and has delivered many presentations as a keynote speaker, motivational speaker, and workshop facilitator. He loves people, food, fashion, travelling, and bringing his community together for a good meal.