To become Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS) at Queen’s University is one of the greatest honours of my life. Being the first woman to hold this position is especially meaningful. I want to thank Dr. Richard Reznick for his amazing 10 years of service as Dean. He has accomplished so much and has kindly provided me with a great orientation to get started.
Shortly after my arrival at Queen’s ten years ago, I brought about a dozen IT experts into my office from across campus and asked them what social media approaches I should use to stay connected with our students, staff, faculty and alumni. I was expecting the focus to be on Facebook or Twitter, but what was suggested was that I write a blog. Unknowingly, and somewhat naïve, I agreed to the suggestion, not really understanding the magnitude of the undertaking.
When Sarah Corbeil, a third-year political science student, arrived at Queen’s in 2018, she found very little in the way of American Sign Language (ASL) resources on campus. She knew this had to change. Although Sarah is a hearing person, she first became interested in learning ASL after travelling with her friend who is Hard of Hearing. During their travels, Sarah learned some ASL to communicate in tricky situations, and took her passion for the language with her back home.
The impact of the COVID-19 coronavirus has been felt around the globe and a race to find a vaccine is on. Moreover, the safety and health of our communities have been pushed to the forefront, with our healthcare leaders being the public face of the pandemic.
I want to start this week’s blog by letting you know that I am spending a lot of time listening right now. Since the Faculty of Health Sciences posted a 4-part statement on Twitter condemning racism and violence against Black people and voicing our solidary with the Black community, I have heard from our community. I have received tweets and emails, and I have watched conversations unfold on social media.
I am pleased to share a guest blog with you today, written by Megan Edgelow, an Assistant Professor in the School of Rehabilitation Therapy. She is an occupational therapist and an educational researcher.
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