Meet Alaa!

Alaa Salih is currently a graduate student completing a Master of Education (MEd). As someone from a visible minority group, she believes that it is essential to increase minority representation in both professional settings and in academia; therefore, a goal of hers is to raise awareness on the importance of institutional and organizational diversity. With fluency in English and Arabic, and formative years spent in Egypt, she is interested in working with social identity groups who have been historically underrepresented. More specifically, she hopes to work with newcomers in various capacities such as teaching English and/or providing culturally responsive programs and services.

Prior to giving birth, she worked for the Centre for Employment Innovation (CEI) as a research intern. Under the guidance of Dr. Paula Romanow, she conducted an environmental scan on the current state of diversity and inclusion (D&I) policy and practice within Nova Scotia’s not-for-profit, governmental, and business sectors. This environmental scan informed the development of a training resource spreadsheet for D&I, equity, and cultural awareness, as well as a toolbox of policy templates, best practices, and challenges and solutions to developing and implementing D&I policies and practices within Nova Scotian organizations and businesses.

She is interested in the CEI because they strive to ensure that community perspectives are being heard and incorporated throughout the research process. This allows for positive change and innovation to occur within the employment service ecosystem. Additionally, the CEI works alongside different partnerships to provide distributed systems leadership. This idea of distributed leadership ensures that everyone has the chance to flourish. She believes that this philosophy will only lead to a collaborative and successful community. Her work at the CEI has also broadened her understanding of what a “multicultural” organization looks like as well as how diversity, equity, and inclusion impact communities. She now seeks to apply the knowledge gained from the MEd (e.g., adult education programs, theories, principles, and philosophies) to the work that she does at the CEI.