'I love my job'
Sarah Rosolen does double duty instructing and researching at Aurora College
Paul Bickford
Northern News Services
Monday, May 4, 2015
THEBACHA/FORT SMITH
Sarah Rosolen has two jobs in one. She is both manager of the South Slave Research Centre at Aurora College in Fort Smith and an instructor in the Bachelor of Education and Environment and Natural Resources Technology Programs.
Sarah Rosolen's work at Aurora College includes going on fieldtrips with students in the Environment and Natural Resources Technology Program at Thebacha Campus in Fort Smith. - photo courtesy of Sarah Rosolen |
"I love my job," she said. "I love teaching and I love learning about teaching."
Plus she said she loves working with a dynamic group of people at the South Slave Research Centre.
"We have a great little group here that's always looking for opportunities to work on projects that are meaningful for the community," she said. "That's really rewarding."
Rosolen estimated she instructs about 60 per cent of the time and the rest is dedicated to the South Slave Research Centre, which has been operating since 1991.
She has worked there for five years.
The centre carries out contractual research and conducts research as requested by the community. In addition, it can provide various kinds of support for visiting researchers, such as connecting them with community organizations and government departments and hiring research assistants.
The centre is an arm of the Aurora Research Institute, which is headquartered in Inuvik.
"We're all part of the college," said Rosolen.
The work at the South Slave Research Centre is pretty broad, she explained.
"It has to do with promoting research in the region, supporting researchers, linking the community with researchers, identifying community priorities for research, working on research, communicating research and providing opportunities for researchers to present in the communities. There's some outreach that we do, working with youth and the community. So it's kind of a lot."
Within the college, the centre supports students and staff with research.
"We try to connect students with researchers primarily," said Rosolen. "So if we know that students are interested or that classes are going to be talking about a certain subject and we know that there's a researcher doing those things, we try to connect the classes with researchers so that they have access to the latest and the greatest."
Rosolen, who already has a master's degree in engineering, also does some research of her own.
She is currently working towards a master's degree in education, so her focus is on educational research.
"So right now I'm working on a project looking at decolonizing education," she said. "It's a small project for my master's, but that's what I'm interested in looking at is making education more accessible for indigenous learners and increasing awareness for all students about indigenous issues."
Rosolen noted the two other members of the team at the South Slave Research Centre are also doing their own research.
Jessica Dutton is working on food security and health, while Siku Allooloo is studying indigenous knowledge. At the April 24 convocation ceremonies at Thebacha Campus, Rosolen was recognized with an Innovation and College Improvement Award.
"I was pretty honoured," she said, noting she was nominated by Dutton and Allooloo, and the award helps recognize their projects and approach as a group.
"It's a tribute to the fact that we're all pretty happy in our jobs and we really enjoy it," she noted. "We're all passionate about what we do, and I think that just kind of maybe shines through for all of us. I've got to take it as a team award because it's all of us working together. It's not just me."
Rosolen, who is originally from Ottawa, said she and her team at the South Slave Research Centre are really trying to focus on research that responds to community needs.
While she has been at the centre for five years, the team has only been together for a year or two.
"It's new, but it's exciting, and I think we're starting to make the connections that we need in order to carry out the kind of research that we think is important and to work with the communities so that we can support them in their questions and their challenges."
