Dean’s Community Engagement Series
Join Dr. Jan Hare, Dean and Professor, Canada Research Chair (Tier 1), Indigenous Pedagogy, for the fourth annual speaker series putting a spotlight on important questions and significant priorities that are engaging educators today.
This virtual session will feature Dr. Marika Kunnas, Dr. Glory Ovie from the Faculty of Education, UBC Education Alumna, Nikitha Fester, and UBC Arts Student, Nola Charles.
Together, they will explore innovative approaches and practices that best support Cultivating Black Flourishing in K-12 Education. The session will examine strategies to building thriving learning communities that are more inclusive, equitable, and anti-racist. It will be an opportunity to critically explore the ways in which districts and schools can remain adaptable to dismantling anti-Black racism and all forms of oppression across the K-12 educational landscape, as well as acknowledge Black history and excellence.
Learn more about the 2024-2025 Dean’s Community Engagement Series
Watch the Recording
About Dr. Marika Kunnas
Marika Kunnas (she/her/elle) is an Assistant Professor in the department of Language and Literacy Education. She is a former secondary school French teacher in Ontario. Her research specializes in French immersion programs and antiracism.
Through her research and as a teacher, Marika seeks to disrupt the status quo and make education more inclusive, equitable, antiracist, and anticolonial. Her research aims to explore the realities of being a racialized minority in French immersion, to give voice to POC students, and to engage in antiracist pedagogy with FSL teachers.
Broadly, Marika’s research interests lie within French, second/additional language acquisition, race, culture, decolonization, and equity.
About Dr. Glory Ovie
Dr. Glory Ovie is an assistant professor at the Department of Educational Studies, Faculty of Education. She holds a PhD from the University of Calgary. She is a former K-12 teacher and administrator. Dr. Ovie was also a visiting scholar at the Universidad Nacional, Sede Regional Brunca in Costa Rica.
Her research interests include crisis management in schools, educational leadership and administration, equity, diversity, inclusion and decolonization, the intersections of teaching and learning, mental health and well-being, and research methodologies. Dr. Ovie’s research seeks to disrupt the status quo in teacher education, making practices more inclusive, equitable, and anti-racist.
In her research, she employs mixed methods and qualitative studies, including ethnographies, duoethnographies, and narrative inquiry.
About Nikitha Fester
A UBC Education Alumna, Nikitha teaches and works towards truth and reconciliation on the unceded and traditional territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh People. Recently, she has begun her PhD journey at the University of Toronto, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. This learning venture reinforced her interest in the role of Black women as educational leaders.
During her career, Nikitha has successfully piloted district learning programs focused on Black Canadian History, supported the first UBC Black Futures program, and contributed to a Black Peoples’ History of Canada, among other local and national projects. She is also engaged in supporting pre- and in-service teachers in the areas of anti-racism, anti-oppression, and inclusive classroom practice both in English and in French.
Currently, she sits as an executive member of BC Black Educational Leaders Association (BC BELA). In and out of the classroom, Nikitha is focussed on empowering students and teachers to be joyful, critical, and engaged
About Nola Charles
Nola Charles (she/her) is a first-year Arts student at UBC. Before transitioning to postsecondary, Nola focused her efforts on community engagement, anti-racism, and youth empowerment outside of school.
At her high school, Nola played a key role in establishing the first mentorship program for Black students, fostering a sense of belonging and confidence. She has also contributed to the City of Vancouver’s first anti-youth violence action plan and helped facilitate important dialogues, including the Educators Anti-Racism Summit. Additionally, Nola serves as a youth mentor with the Students Commission of Canada, offering guidance and encouragement to young people across the country.
Nola is committed to continuing her community work while making the most of her time at UBC, striving to create meaningful and lasting change.
