Congratulations to Dr. Jo-ann Archibald and Dr. Balbir Kaur Gurm for receiving the 2021 YWCA Women of Distinction Awards!
Dr. Jo-ann Archibald BEd’ 72:
Jo-ann – Q’um Q’um Xiiem is an esteemed scholar and member of the Soowahlie First Nation and Professor Emeritus, Educational Studies at UBC. Dr. Archibald was the first Associate Dean of Indigenous Education in a Canadian university. In this role, she substantially increased the numbers of Indigenous undergraduate and graduate students and faculty members, expanded Indigenous course and program offerings, established Indigenous Ph.D. scholarship funding and expanded partnerships with Indigenous communities and other post-secondary institutions. Jo-ann co-developed Supporting Aboriginal Graduate Enhancement (SAGE). This student peer support network has become a province-wide multi-disciplinary peer support and mentoring network that supports more than 100 Aboriginal graduate students annually to make significant educational and social change using research, Indigenous knowledge and community-oriented approaches.
Dr. Balbir Kaur Gurm BSN’ 83, MA’90, EdD’04:
Balbir Kaur is the Founder and Chair of Network to Eliminate Violence in Relationships (NEVR), and a Professor Faculty of Health, Kwantlen Polytechnic University. Dr. Gurm started the grassroots, interdisciplinary group in 2011 and has grown to more than 200 members from more than 100 participating organizations, groups and individual members. Dr. Gurm’s book Making Sense of a Global Pandemic: Relationship Violence and Working Together Towards a Violence Free Society was published in 2020 and includes multiple perspectives and resources to provide a comprehensive overview of relationship violence. It serves as an online platform and living resource. As a Nursing Professor, Dr. Gurm is a role model for nursing students. She introduces the concepts of violence being a community issue and facilitates nursing students to participate in community activities within their classes
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