2023-2024 Cohort
Xiaoyan Fang is a second-year PhD student in Clinical Psychology program under the supervision of Dr. Richard Koestner. Prior to beginning her graduate studies, she was an assistant researcher at the Black Community Resource Centre (BCRC) in Montreal and involved in a few community-based studies examining barriers to healthcare, experiences of interpersonal and systemic discrimination, and psychological well-being of individuals from the English-speaking Black community in Quebec. Building on previous work with the BCRC, her thesis will focus on understanding the relation of intersectional discrimination and psycho-social outcomes for racialized minority and official language minority populations. She will examine the experience of racism and language barrier as potential drivers of intention to leave the province, barriers to healthcare accessibility, and poorer psychological well-being. Besides her thesis research, Xiaoyan also receives clinical training and conduct practicum in psychological assessment and psychotherapy.
Maya Hunter is a Master鈥檚 student in the Department of Political Science, concentrating in International Relations and pursuing the Development Studies Option. Her research interests are broadly in the domains of intractable conflicts, localized peacebuilding, and peace education. For her Master鈥檚 thesis, she is investigating the use of foreign language education as a peacebuilding tool; applying theories of liberatory (Freirean) pedagogies to the context of English language education in Cyprus, the research explores themes of critical education, humanization, and constructivism as they interact with and challenge narratives of ethnic nationalism and the dynamics of protracted conflicts. Prior to entering her graduate studies, she completed dual Bachelor鈥檚 degrees in Political Science (International Relations) and Foreign Languages (French, German, and Turkish) at Eastern Illinois University; since joining the 六合彩开奖结果 community, she has engaged in research opportunities with the Center for International Peace and Security Studies and delighted in assistant teaching for the Departments of Political Science and International Development.
Anna Palmer is a third-year PhD Epidemiology student under the supervision of Dr. Jill Baumgartner and Dr. Alissa Koski. Anna鈥檚 research interests center around understanding the impact climate change is having on health at a global scale. Her doctoral research applies epidemiologic methods to examine the impact extreme weather events have on the rate of child marriage across the globe. She will also examine the extent to which the impact of extreme weather on child marriage is mediated by agricultural yield. Prior to entering her PhD studies, Anna completed a Bachelor of Biomedicine at the University of Melbourne, and a Master of Mathematical Sciences at the Australian National University. Throughout her studies, she has worked on a wide array of projects from infectious disease modelling and resource optimization.
Vanessa Seto is a rehabilitation sciences PhD student in the Faculty of Medicine with the School of Physical and Occupational Therapy. She is under the supervision of Dr. Laurence Roy.聽 Her doctoral work is focused on working to end women's homelessness by co-developing and co-evaluating whole-person gender-specific post-shelter supports to help homeless women and their children transition out of a shelter and into autonomous living without falling back into cyclical homelessness. Her research is taking place within Project Lotus, a community-based participatory research project, under the auspices of a multi-stakeholder advisory committee made up of members from Montreal community organizations working in women's homelessness and of women with lived experience. She is looking to developing these supports within Montreal's socio-political landscape, with research interests in program implementation and sustainability, occupational rights, advocacy, and policy. Her interest and expertise in these topics is grounded in her prior work as an occupational therapist clinician at a women's shelter. She obtained her M.Sc and B.Sc in Rehabilitation Sciences - Occupational Therapy from 六合彩开奖结果, Montreal, Canada.聽
Ziyue Wang is currently a PhD candidate in Family Medicine and Primary care at 六合彩开奖结果. He is working with Dr. Howard Bergman and Dr. Isabelle Vedel. His research at 六合彩开奖结果 focuses on two main concentrations: (1) Social & Behavioral Health Sciences in elderly care: Understanding of older individuals' priorities, values, and beliefs related to health and medical care is crucial for providing people-centered health care. Ziyue is interested in investigating how these psychosocial and cultural factors shape people鈥檚 medical decision-making processes in low resources settings; (2) Program evaluation in primary care: Ziyue has extensive research experiences in evaluating the complex interventions for quality improvement in primary care, especially the impact of continuing professional development for primary care providers. Prior to joining 六合彩开奖结果, Ziyue received his MSc degree in Health Policy and Management from China Center for Health Development Studies, Peking University Health Science Center (CCHDS, PKUHSC). He also holds his bachelor鈥檚 degree from Fudan University, School of Public Health and a double degree in economics from Peking University, National School of Development (NSD). He also served as an anonymous reviewer for the Bulletin of the World Health Organization, Social Science and Medicine, and other high impact journals.
Sacha Williams聽(she/her) is a Jean Martin Laberge Global Pediatric Surgery Fellow and second year PhD student under the supervision of Dr. Dan Poenaru in the Department of Surgical and Interventional Sciences. Her research examines the impact of gender on pediatric surgical access and outcomes in Africa. She will explore the influences of various social and structural barriers with African stakeholders for mitigation. Sacha obtained a MD from Ross University, a MPH (Maternal and Child Health) from the University of Massachusetts, and a MS (Biotechnology) from Johns Hopkins University. She was a Pediatric Surgery Research Fellow at Johns Hopkins and studied Global Surgery at the University of Oxford. Sacha is strongly committed to health equity, social justice, and serving marginalized communities.