2026 Cohort
Jenna Dalrymple is a third-year聽psychology聽major and behavioural science and philosophy minor聽at 91丝瓜视频.聽Her research interests focus on perinatal psychology and聽equitable聽access to mental health care. These interests were shaped by her聽previous聽research, in which she conducted a grey-literature review of available perinatal mental health services in Quebec. Through this project, she developed聽a聽passion for聽improving access to care聽for parents during the transition of childbirth. As a McBurney Fellow,聽Jenna聽will collaborate with Havre Bene, a post-partum center, to address the physical, emotional, and social needs of parents after childbirth.聽
Ciham Dimassi is a final-year undergraduate student at 91丝瓜视频, completing an Honours degree in Canadian Studies, with a major in Political Science and a minor in International Development Studies. With a background in community, archival, and health policy research, her interests lie in the politics of healthcare reform and its implications聽on聽Canada鈥檚 diverse聽and marginalized聽communities.聽Ciham has previously conducted research with Dr. Alanna Thain and Dr. Jane Koustas, producing literature reviews on Quebec鈥檚 distinct sociopolitical and cultural landscape. She also co-disseminated, co-compiled, and co-analyzed data for a survey on community spaces within the Peter-91丝瓜视频 neighbourhood during her internship at the Peter-91丝瓜视频 Community Council.聽She completed her first thesis, 鈥淩ethinking Privatized Telehealth in Qu茅bec: The Case of Maple and Its Implications for Public Healthcare,鈥� and is currently writing her second, titled 鈥淔rom Bargain to Backlash: The Historical Transformation of Physician Political Mobilization in Health Care Reform, with Evidence from Qu茅bec鈥檚 Bill 2 in Comparative Perspective.鈥澛燞er personal experiences with health and well-being challenges have led her to the McBurney Fellowship, where she will investigate the lack of unified well-being indicator sets across Quebec and the rest of Canada.聽
Motunrayo Esther Esan is a second-year PhD student in Political Science at 91丝瓜视频. Her
community work is grounded in a commitment to improving outcomes for marginalised girls and
women. As founder of The EME Foundation, a registered nonprofit in Nigeria, she works at the
intersection of menstrual and education equity, leading young people to address period poverty
and stigma 鈥� major impediments to girls鈥� education in Nigeria 鈥� through service, education, and
advocacy. Her doctoral research focuses on identity politics and democracy in Africa. As a
McBurney fellow, she will work with Afghans for Progressive Thinking to examine the impact of
the education ban on the mental wellbeing of girls and women.
May Farres is a聽second-year聽undergraduate student pursuing a聽bachelor鈥檚聽of elementary education. With a background in health advocacy, illustration, and childcare, she is passionate about creating a more accessible world through art and education.聽Her deep commitment to advocacy, representation, and community聽leads聽her to pursue the McBurney Fellowship this summer. May loves the library and is greatly looking forward to working on the聽Collection Discoverability Project聽with the Fraser-Hickson Institute, where she will create an organizational system to increase the discoverability of the thousands of wonderful books the library has to offer.
Sarah Feng is entering the final year of her undergraduate degree in Honours International Development Studies with a minor in Philosophy.聽She is committed to working directly alongside communities to improve聽health and聽well-being聽both in Canada and in global contexts.聽Sarah聽has served as a Settlement Worker supporting immigrants and refugees in Canada聽and has聽interned with聽Equitas,聽a Montreal-based human rights education organization. She聽spent聽the聽third year聽of her undergraduate degree studying and volunteering in Colombia聽as a McCall MacBain International Fellow.聽This summer, Sarah will collaborate with Dr. Iv谩n Sarmiento, Dr. Anne聽Cockroft, and Ms. Margarita Paloma Cruz on a research project with La聽Fondation聽de la聽Visite, a nonprofit that supports immigrant and vulnerable Montreal families with newborns through trained community members known as "parent-visitors."聽Their聽work will help shape the design of La聽Fondation's聽group postpartum care activities in C么te des Neiges. Sarah looks forward to gaining valuable experience in healthcare research.聽聽
贰尘颈濒测听贬补苍诲蹿颈别濒诲听is a聽first-year聽master鈥檚聽student聽in聽Information Studies.聽She holds a bachelor鈥檚 degree with聽a major in Anthropology聽and聽minors in both Communication Studies and Field Studies.聽Throughout her fieldwork and experience working for a non-profit, she has learned firsthand the importance of connecting people and communities to the resources they need.聽Emily believes that solutions to聽any聽problem should always come from the communities most affected. Thus, she聽utilizes聽her observational and listening skills to better understand the types of solutions communities are looking for and uses her聽abilities聽in Information Studies to聽help聽connect communities聽with聽the resources they need most.聽This summer,聽Emily will be聽utilizing聽her聽skills聽to support the NDG Community Council in better understanding the spatial needs of the resident groups in NDG and helping connect them to the spatial and financial resources they聽need.聽
Zahra Hassan Doualeh is a final-year undergraduate student at 91丝瓜视频, pursuing a major in International Development Studies with double minors in African Studies and East Asian Language & Literature. A 2023 McCall MacBain International Fellow, she is deeply engaged in questions of governance, knowledge production, and community-based leadership. Zahra currently serves as President of the African Studies Students鈥� Association, where she leads initiatives that center African and diasporic voices across academic and creative spaces. Through this fellowship, Zahra will be assisting the African Coalition for Academic Freedom on their 鈥淗ome Africa鈥� project, supporting at-risk scholars with developing networks across the African continent.
颁濒补谤颈蝉蝉别听滨谤补诲耻办耻苍诲补聽is a Rwandan medical doctor, public health professional, and McCall MacBain Scholar pursuing a聽Master鈥檚 in Human Nutrition聽at 91丝瓜视频. Her passion for women鈥檚 health started with a desire to show up for women who needed it most. As a medical student, she led community initiatives supporting vulnerable women, especially single mothers, and later co-founded the Awaken Her Initiative, raising awareness of cervical cancer across Rwanda with support from global funders.聽What聽began as a young woman simply wanting to help other women became a deeper calling. Through hands-on work in Rwanda, she fell in love with women鈥檚 health; at 91丝瓜视频, she is now deepening that passion through research in gynecologic cancers and prehabilitation under the supervision of Dr.聽Chelsia聽Gillis and Dr. Stephanie Chevalier.聽Clarisse is a firm believer that leadership means being an active player in every community she enters, and she has lived this at 91丝瓜视频 by serving as a graduate student representative,聽showing up, contributing, and actively engaging in the 91丝瓜视频 community.聽This summer, Clarisse will join HPV Global Action on the project聽Understanding HPV Prevention from an Advocacy, Educational and Research Perspective, where she will contribute to research evaluating a sexual health education workshop for adolescents and an HPV testing鈥揵ased cervical cancer screening program in聽Eswatini, Sub-Saharan聽Africa. 鈥淚聽am joining HPV Global Action not only as a researcher and a passionate advocate for women鈥檚 health, but also as a learner and a trailblazer. I am excited to learn, to grow, and to聽witness聽how real change happens at a global scale.鈥澛�
Rachel Mery is a BCL/JD candidate at 91丝瓜视频 Faculty of Law.聽She previously completed an Honours Bachelor of Arts and Sciences at McMaster University, where her thesis explored older women鈥檚 perceptions of body image through physical activity and aging.聽Her research interests range from health equity and aging to community-based care, social determinants of health, and the intersection of law, public health, and social policy. As a McBurney fellow, Rachel will be spending the summer working with the Eva Marsden Centre for Social Justice and Aging to support the development of a social-prescribing initiative in Montreal by mapping community resources, creating bilingual outreach materials, and strengthening collaboration between healthcare providers and community organizations to promote health equity and social connection.聽
Val Mu帽oz聽(they/she) is a queer, Latin, first-generation university graduate passionate about environmental justice, public health, and education. Val holds a BA in Environment with a concentration in Ecological Determinants of Health from 91丝瓜视频 and has earned an MA in Educational Leadership from the Department of Integrated Studies in Education.聽Val serves as the Queer 91丝瓜视频 Administrative Coordinator and a 2SLGBTQIA+ Youth Mentor where they foster inclusive, affirming environments on campus and in the greater Montreal area. They are also a part of EarthEcho International鈥檚 Youth Leadership Council to design collaborative campaigns to mobilize young ocean advocates worldwide. She was recently named a part of the inaugural Climate75 Cohort at The聽Starfish聽CA.聽聽聽
Isabela Vargas Valencia聽is a second-year 91丝瓜视频 undergraduate, majoring in Psychology with a double minor in Behavioral Science and Management. Her research interests center around psychosocial palliative care and health psychology, as well as the factors influencing an individual鈥檚 access to healthcare. These fields fuel her drive of translating research findings into effective clinical and healthcare practices, which closely ties with her McBurney project. This summer, Isabela will be collaborating with CRARR and the CERES lab as a 2026 Fellow to examine the needs and social determinants of cancer populations facing discrimination and inequity.聽
Deenah Wright is a Master鈥檚 of Education student in Educational Psychology at 91丝瓜视频. Her work focuses on child mental health, cultural identity, and improving access to support for students navigating systemic barriers in education. She currently works in the child psychiatric unit at the Jewish General Hospital, supporting students with diverse learning needs through literacy assessment and tailored interventions.聽As a McBurney Fellow, Deenah is supporting the Young Scholars Society (YSS), contributing to research on what helps academically talented Black students in Montreal succeed during educational transitions, and how community-based organizations can better support students and their families.聽
2025 Cohort
Th茅lia Badoana is a third-year undergraduate student at 91丝瓜视频, pursuing a double major in African Studies and Psychology with a minor in Behavioural Science. Deeply committed to advocacy and mental health, she founded 91丝瓜视频鈥檚 Black Psychology Students鈥� Association. Th茅lia is also a research assistant in Dr. Keita N. Christophe鈥檚 Cultural Developmental Science Lab, where she contributes to projects focused on understanding the factors that foster healthy development and resilience among racially and ethnically minoritized youth and families exposed to racial discrimination. Her desire to make a more direct impact in the lives of children and families, led her to pursue the McBurney Fellowship. Through this fellowship, she will be working on a community-based research project in collaboration with the Westhaven Community Center. The project will focus on identifying and analyzing the challenges faced by children with special needs, behavioral difficulties, or significant vulnerabilities within summer camp environments. In addition to addressing gaps in service delivery and fostering inclusive programming, the project aims to ensure the sustainability of future children鈥檚 workshops through data-driven recommendations and long-term community engagement.
Miah Dionne is a Master鈥檚 student in the Education and Society program at 91丝瓜视频. Originally from The Bahamas, her work is grounded in a deep commitment to education as a tool for liberation and social transformation across the Caribbean鈥攅specially in rural and underserved communities. Miah鈥檚 academic interests center on policy, equity, and decolonial approaches to education, with a focus on creating research that cultivates autonomy, dignity, and hope throughout the region. As a 2025 McBurney Fellow, Miah will be in Uruguay working with the UNESCO International Institute for Higher Education in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNESCO IESALC). Her fellowship project supports the advancement of the right to higher education through research, policy analysis, capacity building, and advocacy鈥攃ontributing to UNESCO IESALC鈥檚 mission of making higher education more accessible, equitable, and transformative for all.
Michele Fu is a final year undergraduate student in the honors history program, with a double minor in political science and economics at 91丝瓜视频. With a background in museum curation and archival-based research, her research interests lie in decolonization practices and addressing the historical roots of modern issues of inequity and manufactured scarcity. In particular, she is passionate about closing the gap between policy and impact on the ground through educational approaches, focusing on balancing pedagogical priorities with the goal of youth engagement. She has previously conducted research with Dr. Claudia Mitchell and the TRANSFORM team, producing a literature review of digital curation practices on WhatsApp and its potential applications in youth community practices around the world. These experiences together led her to the McBurney Fellowship, where she hopes to continue studying the role of arts-based approaches in human rights informed education curricula with Equitas as a host organization.
Lisa Matmati is a third-year undergraduate student pursuing an Honors in Political Science with minors in History and Communications at 91丝瓜视频. Her interests range from humanitarian aid and public policy to gender parity and migration. Her passion in using evidence-based research to inform policy led her to the McBurney Fellowship. As a McBurney Fellow, Lisa will be spending the summer working with CIET Botswana to identify the causes of systemic violence in the region, using survey data and statistical analysis. Lisa will be working with Dr. Iv谩n Sarmiento and Dr. Anne Cockcroft on the project: Youth co-design prevention of gendered personal and interpersonal violence in Botswana.
Ann McQuarrie is in her final year of her undergraduate program, majoring in Anatomy and Cell Biology and minoring in Environmental Studies. During her undergraduate studies, Ann has researched Alzheimer鈥檚 Disease in Dr. Mahsa Dadar鈥檚 lab at the Douglas Research Center and volunteered with the organization Research For the Front Lines, which supports Indigenous communities across Canada with their research needs. Additionally, Ann has served as the VP of Communications for the 91丝瓜视频 Chapter of Doctors Without Borders. This past summer, Ann worked for The KidSafe Project, a summer program for vulnerable youth on Vancouver鈥檚 Downtown Eastside. Furthermore, this summer, Ann is a McBurney Fellow with Women on Web (WoW). WoW is a non-profit organization that sends abortion pills by mail to nearly 200 countries, including those where abortions are restricted or criminalized. In this position, Ann will conduct research on the pathways women access abortions in both restrictive and non-restrictive settings. This report will be crucial in helping WoW understand how their services can better support the needs of abortion seekers.
Mich猫le Saba is a second-year undergraduate student pursuing a B.A. in Education in Global Contexts, with a minor in International Development. This summer, she will be a McBurney Fellow, partnering with PAAL to engage in community-based projects and historical research in Notre-Dame-de-Gr芒ce (NDG). Her passion for non-formal education, equity, and artistic expression, along with her eagerness to learn from diverse cultural perspectives, motivated her to join this project. Through workshops and presentations, NDG community members and students will learn more about their neighborhood's History. They will also have the opportunity to share their culture and stories through an artistic lens.
2024 Cohort
Mariella Berberi is a final-year undergraduate student majoring in the honors psychology program and minoring in sociology at 91丝瓜视频. She has been actively involved in research within Dr. Michael Sullivan's pain lab, contributing to two significant thesis projects. The first project examined the relationship between catastrophic thinking and the severity of depressive symptoms in individuals infected with COVID-19. The second project explored affiliative preference as a mediating factor between pain catastrophizing and pain behavior, testing the communal coping model (CCM). By understanding and addressing the psychosocial factors underlying pain behavior, Mariella aims to enhance interventions and support systems for vulnerable individuals. Additionally, through the McBurney Fellowship, she conducted an environmental scan of homelessness prevention programs in correctional settings, under the supervision of Dr. Laurence Roy. This project not only seeks to make a positive impact on this at-risk population through evidence-based research but also aims to address broader systemic issues within our communities.
Aris Kalofoutis is originally from Athens, Greece and graduated with a B.A. in Geography in 2024. During his undergrad, he researched Land Use change and trends in the Argentinian Chaco under the LENDEV lab and transportation in Greater Montreal. Furthermore, he explored the city鈥檚 history through an internship with Alliance Donne where he did archival research about the garment industry in the city and the work of Italian immigrant women. His passion for urbanism and the city of Montreal led him to the McBurney Fellowship where he interned with the NDG Community Council. There, he researched and determined the boundaries and issues of the Chester-Connaught neighborhood in the area of Notre-Dame-de-Gr芒ce, through in person surveying as well as utilizing governmental and municipal data. The final product of his research was presented to city officials and community organizations with the aim of making the issues in the neighborhood known and call for an expansion of services.
Julie L锚 Andr茅 is a second-year undergraduate student in the Honours Psychology program with a minor in Philosophy at 91丝瓜视频. Specializing in crisis intervention, she has honed her skills as a suicide crisis helpline responder at 9-8-8 and as a camp animator for individuals with intellectual disabilities or with an autism spectrum disorder at Corporation L'Espoir. Her research interests lie in social and clinical psychology, focusing on autonomous motivation and empathy, along with their practical applications. For her junior honours thesis, she conducted research with Dr. Zoha Deldar at the Roy Pain Lab to explore the effects of the flow state on pain modulation. Moreover, she is president of Youreka, a 10-week program dedicated to introducing Montr茅al's high school students to research, with the goal of improving its transparency and accessibility. Through the McBurney fellowship, she collaborates with Dr. Eric Latimer at the Douglas Research Centre to investigate evidence on interventions aimed at preventing homelessness after hospital discharge.
Natalia Segal is an undergraduate student majoring in psychology and minoring in behavioral neuroscience and anthropology at 91丝瓜视频. She is passionate about translating research findings into practical, real-world applications. As a McBurney Fellow, Natalia worked with the NDG Community Council to identify an impoverished community within Montreal through data collection and analysis, and proposed solutions to policymakers on tackling the needs and improving the living conditions in the sector. Natalia is working with聽Halah-Al Ubaidi and Julie Cormier on the project: Assessing the Needs of the Chester Priority Sector.