This year’s Governor General’s Gold Medal has been awarded to Master of Social Work graduate Marlae Vermeer with a GPA of 4.275. Granted to those with the highest academic standing in a graduate degree program, it is one of UFV’s most prestigious awards. When Vermeer learned of the achievement, she was shocked. Right away, receiving…

Could viewing immigrants as one homogenous group be a costly mistake for Canada? That’s a question that Dr. Karun Karki, a UFV social work professor, will be investigating as part of a two-year research project funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SHRCC). The $72,000 SHRCC insight development grant will be…

The faces of the women are unforgettable. Their voices still echo in her head. Dr. Rita Dhungel, an assistant professor with the School of Social Work and Human Services at UFV, becomes overwhelmed with emotion, mostly sadness, whenever she revisits those vivid memories from inside a brothel in India 18 years ago. Dhungel was working…

Reinventing yourself with your career is a daunting idea for anyone. But try doing it at 51-years old like Rose-Mary Siemens. In 2019, after a decade-long career in tourism followed by a 20-year run managing wine stores, Siemens hit a crossroads professionally. Opportunities in the wine industry had dried up. She also felt unfulfilled. And,…

The International Transgender Day of Visibility began in 2009 when Trans, gender-diverse, and Two-Spirit people recognized the need to celebrate Trans individuals and communities and their contributions to culture and society. This day is marked as a celebration, in contrast to the Transgender Day of Remembrance, which memorializes those who have lost their lives to…

Queering Cancer (www.queeringcancer.ca) is a new website that addresses systemic disparities in access to cancer support and information for people who identify as LGBTQ2+. The site is the brainchild of a research team that includes Dr. Evan Taylor, an assistant professor in the UFV School of Social Work and Human Services, and colleagues from Queen’s…

Kelly Ridder knows a thing or two about juggling priorities. She balanced a full-time job in the human services field with studies toward a Master of Social Work degree over the past 20 months, and with being a mother to six children between the ages of 13 and 25, all still living at home in…

Three decades ago, in a different life, professional actor Robert Harding sat with a friend — one of New Zealand's top Maori actors — watching a news report showing Indigenous peoples protesting Columbus Day on New York City streets.  "Pete turned to me, and said, 'What're the Indians so upset about, mate?'" Harding recalls. "When…

Adrienne Chan has filled many roles in her 15 years at UFV. While her most recent position was one of formal leadership (she was AVP of Research from 2013-2018), she has also been a leader outside of that role while serving as a faculty member in the School of Social Work, as a member of…

A chance meeting at UFV’s National Indigenous People’s Day celebration at the Abbotsford campus in June led to the creation of a week-long day camp for Métis children in the Fraser Valley. Dr. Elizabeth Cooper, a post-doctoral fellow in the Faculty of Health Sciences ay UFV, struck up a conversation with Lisa Hendry, a representative…

UFV helped Jacqueline Strating of Abbotsford discover and develop her passion for helping others. And now her education is helping her make a difference in the lives of marginalized women and their families on two continents. Jacqueline, who recently completed her Master of Social Work at UFV, is the 2018 winner of the Governor General’s…

From a BC government news release: Sixteen Métis participants in the Lower Mainland have the opportunity to create a brighter future for themselves, their families and their community, with the launch of the Métis Community Support Worker program. “This partnership, between the University of the Fraser Valley and Métis Nation British Columbia, is helping Métis…

Many people note the over-representation of Indigenous people in the federal corrections system. UFV alumna Emily Henry has built a career on designing programs to help them. For her leadership role in introducing treatment programs influenced by Indigenous cultural beliefs and practices, the University of the Fraser Valley is recognizing Henry as its Distinguished Alumni…

We hear a lot about consumerism this time of year. On the heels of the American Thanksgiving holiday come Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday, all days that are focused on supporting the economy by buying material goods. But Giving Tuesday, which comes immediately after these days devoted to consumerism, is all about…

Kristy Kardos can see the surface of her dining room table for the first time in two years. And her ever-patient husband and friends are happy that she’s free to take part in social activities again. Everything’s been on hold as she immersed herself in social work studies at the University of the Fraser Valley,…