Jessica is the Manager of the Dr. Gilles Arcand Centre for Health Equity and brings extensive research administration and management experience both as a community-engaged researcher and leader committed to transformative approaches to health equity and health research. Her work is shaped by a commitment to address health access and outcome disparities as a feature of settler colonial and carceral violence, and the importance of learning from the knowledge of equity-seeking groups disproportionately impacted by incarceration and criminalization.

Prior to joining the Arcand Centre, Jessica held an academic position at Lakehead University, where she was cross-appointed between the Departments of Gender & Women’s Studies, Indigenous Learning, and the Social Justice MA Program. Jessica holds a PhD in Political Science from McMaster University and is a trained Walls-to-Bridges facilitator. She has a passion for grassroots community-building through working across difference and developing and sharing skills that support community care, transformative justice, and transformative reconciliation. Since her daughter was born, she has found deeper understanding and appreciation for the role children play in initiating new cycles of life-affirming growth and healing.