ACADEMIC PROFILE
Alexandria identifies as a critical "Pain Sociologist", where her academic inquiry revolves around the social elements of psychological and physiological suffering. Her trauma-informed community-based research and qualitative approach is inherently interdisciplinary by combining elements of social psychology, medical anthropology, disability studies, community and public health, sociological theory, and anti-oppressive methodological frameworks.
Alexandria received her Sociology Honours B.A. (Summa Cum Laude) from York University in Toronto. With a major focus on medical sociology, she had a minor focus in medical anthropology and was the Blishen-Richmond Award recipient of her graduating class. At YorkU, Alexandria was the sole sociology research assistant in the Infant and Child Mental Health Psychology Lab working under Dr. Yvonne Bohr on the CIHR-funded Inuit youth suicide prevention project – “Making I-SPARX Fly in Nunavut.”
Alexandria is currently funded by the Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Canada Graduate Scholarship Doctoral, and is a two-time Dean’s Scholarship (MA, Doctoral) recipient studying at the University of Saskatchewan’s Department of Interdisciplinary Studies (PhD). Alexandria received the Outstanding Graduating Sociology Student award for her Master's level work on behalf of the Canadian Sociological Association while studying in the Department of Sociology (MA), where she also received SSHRC CGS-M. In 2023, she was a Mental Health Research of Canada Studentship and Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation doctoral grant recipient. In 2024, she received the highly competitive USask College of Graduate & Post-Doctoral Studies and Graduate Students' Association "Research Excellence in Interdisciplinary Studies" Award.
Having been employed in various medical and legal settings prior to attending university, Alexandria previously held medical support roles in pediatric psychiatry and pedtriatic palliative care, and was the “PAWS Your Stress” Program Coordinator for USask campus - see the program work here. Since 2019, she has had a strong focus on knowledge translation and mobilization, and has been a graduate research and teaching assistant under the supervision of Dr. Colleen Anne Dell in the Office of One Health & Wellness. Here, she contributes to and helps lead various research endeavours exploring experiences of pain and the implementation of animal-assisted services in facility settings, while also helping instruct a 300-level "Animals in Society" course.
Alexandria has contributed as a patient advocate and knowledge translation specialist for the Saskatchewan Pain Society, and has conducted health research, interviews, and narrative analysis through the "Improving Pain in Saskatchewan" multi-year project. In Fall 2022, Alexandria joined the Family Health Lab assisting with user experience (UX) research for adolescent girls experiencing dysmenorrhea utilizing a phone app to gain mindfulness skills to assist with their pain management. Currently, Alexandria continues to work closely with colleagues in the PAWSitive Connections lab on diverse projects, such as the development of a animal-human bond scale, advocating for accessible housing for pet owners, working towards national standards for service dogs, the implementation of animals in recovery work, while also contributing to the development of courses on Veteran wellness and the substance use workforce.
An academic CV or industry resume is available upon request, with a condensed version here. but her current project involvement is available here.
More information regarding her research, project management, and administrative skills can be found on LinkedIn.