Connect with Professors

Professors turn passions into potential

Dr. James Morrison had written personal commendations for other people’s bids for the Order of Canada, so he wasn’t surprised when his wife told him that he needed to return a call from Rideau Hall.

“I was thankful that I was already sitting when they gave me the news that it was me who was to receive the Order of Canada,” Dr. Morrison recalls. “It was a totally unexpected honour.”

An oral history authority, Dr. Morrison will be telling this story for years to come. The commendation recognizes his dedication to the preservation of Nova Scotia’s multicultural heritage. He has published works on Canadian and global history, and contributed actively to the collections and displays at Pier 21, Canada's Immigration Museum. 

But Dr. Morrison knows that to grasp the full scope of history, students must venture beyond familiar surroundings.

“I think it’s important to get the students up and out of Canada and into another cultural environment,” Dr. Morrison notes. “That’s the way they’re going to make these important connections that will shape the way they view the world, no matter the degree they pursue.”

While Dr. Morrison’s oral histories tell a story of the past, Dr. Edna Keeble’s new book provides an inside look on an issue that is very present.

Saint Mary’s political science professor Dr. Keeble teamed up with Dr. Meredith Ralston of Mount Saint Vincent University to write Reluctant Bedfellows: Feminism, Activism and Prostitution in the Phillipines. The book provides needed perspective on the issue of sex tourism and prostitution in the Philippines.

Dr. Keeble’s work has centered on issues of security, particularly from a feminist perspective. Her personal connection with the project, however, made it even more meaningful. “As a Filipino-Canadian, I became part of a project that inevitably spoke to a part of my identity,” Keeble says. “I look Filipino, I know the language, I am well aware of many of the customs, and I have grown up understanding the economic, social and political challenges faced by the Philippines first-hand as I listened to my family and my community — all of whom immigrated from the Philippines to find a ‘better life’ for their children.”

From local histories to international perspectives, Dr. Morrison and Dr. Keeble are two of a wide range of professors and faculty members doing valuable research all over the Saint Mary’s campus. As Saint Mary’s educators look beyond the campus in their academic pursuits, they never lose sight of the important connections — with students.