2009 web photo SMedjuck

Dr. Sheva Medjuck

Professor Emeritus

Contact
Phone:     (902) 457-6317
Email:      sheva.medjuck@msvu.ca

 

Background


I received my PhD from York University in 1978.  Since joining Mount Saint Vincent University in 1977, I have served the University in various capacities including:  Professor of Sociology/Anthropology; Chair of the Department of Sociology/Anthropology and Chair of the Department of Women’s Studies, Director of Research and International Activities; and Dean of Arts and Science.

External to the University I have served on a variety of committees including: Commissioner of the Law Commission of Canada; Commissioner of the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission; and Board of Directors of the Muriel McQueen Centre for Research on Family Violence.


Teaching


Principal areas of teaching interest include Race and Ethnic Relations (particularly with a Canadian Focus); Research Methods; and the Sociology of Women.

Research


My current area of research explores the social and economic consequences of caregiving to elderly family members by women who are also employed full time.  This research was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council- Community Alliances for Health Research and entitled A Healthy Balance: A Community Alliance for Health Research on Women’s Unpaid Caregiving (Co-directors B. Neuman and C. Amaratunga, team leader J. Keefe) $1,713,285.   Earlier research in this area was also funded by SSHRC and was entitled “The Costs of Caregiving: Labour Force Consequences for Women Who Care for Elderly Kin ($123,000) with J. Keefe.

I also have done considerable research on issues of ethnicity.  This research can be divided into two issues: the issue of maintaining ethnic identities particularly for people in small ethnic communities; and, secondly the impact of hate literature on ethnic communities

I was the principal investigator in a large international, interdisciplinary research project on developing Women’s Studies Programs. This project was funded by CIDA and entitled “Community Partnerships and Women’s Studies in Indonesia, the Caribbean, and Atlantic Canada”, (CIDA contribution: $748,711).

 

Selected Publications


“Exploring Research Ethics: A Reader. (with J. Jarman)


Empowering Guyanese Women: A Facilitator’s Teaching Guide. Produced under the auspices of the Community Partnerships in Women’s Studies Project and funded by CIDA (2002) editor.


The Women’s Movement in Indonesia.  Produced under the auspices of the Community Partnerships in Women’s Studies Project and funded by CIDA (2002) editor.


Participatory Research in Three Community Projects. Produced under the auspices of the Community Partnerships in Women’s Studies Project and funded by CIDA (2002) editor.


Introducing a Feminist Perspective: Module for Women’s Studies Graduate Program, University of Indonesia. Produced under the auspices of the Community Partnerships in Women’s Studies Project and funded by CIDA (2002) editor.


The Changing Global Environment and the Impact on Caribbean Women. Produced under the auspices of the Community Partnerships in Women’s Studies Project and funded by CIDA (2002) editor.


Women in Indonesia: A National Overview. Produced under the auspices of the Community Partnerships in Women’s Studies Project and funded by CIDA (2002) editor.


Women in the Caribbean: A Regional Overview. Produced under the auspices of the Community Partnerships in Women’s Studies Project and funded by CIDA (2002) editor.


Women in Guyana: A National Overview.  Produced under the auspices of the Community Partnerships in Women’s Studies Project and funded by CIDA (2002).


Women in Atlantic Canada: A Regional Overview. Produced under the auspices of the Community Partnerships in Women’s Studies Project and funded by CIDA (2002) editor.


Women in South Sulawesi: A Regional Overview. Produced under the auspices of the Community Partnerships in Women’s Studies Project and funded by CIDA (2002) editor.


Maintaining an Identity: The Needs of Smaller Communities in R. Klein (ed.) Book chapter in From Immigration to Integration, Toronto, Ontario: Malcolm Lester Publishing, March 2001.


Taking Equality into the 21st Century:  Commentary, National Journal of Constitutional Law, Volume 12, 2000-2001, 49-58.


“Available But Not Accessible: An Examination of the Utility of Workplace Policies for Caregivers of Elderly Kin,” Journal of Family Issues, 19(3) 1998 with J. Keefe.


“The Contribution of Long Term Career Costs as Predictors of Strain for Employed Women Caregivers,” Journal of Women and Aging, 9 (3) 1997, 3-25 with J. Keefe and P. Fancey.


“Behind the Rhetoric of ‘My Yidishe Mama’: The Status of Older Jewish Women,” in S. Berrin (ed.) A Heart of Wisdom: Making the Jewish Journey from Midlife through the Elder Years.   Woodstock, Vermont: Jewish Lights Publishing, 1997, 139-146.  A revised version of this article appears in Canadian Women’s Studies, 16 (4), 1996, 86-90.


“Re-examining the Meaning of Freedom of Expression: The Case of Malcolm Ross,” in John Portelli and William Hare (eds.) Philosophy of Education: Introductory Readings. Calgary, Alberta: Detselig Enterprises Limited, 1996, 165-179.


“If I Cannot Dance to It, It’s Not my Revolution: Jewish Women and Feminism in Canada,” in Robert J. Brym, et. al (eds.) Jews in Canada. Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1993, 328-343.


“Jewish Survival in Small Communities in Canada,” (reprinted) in  Robert J. Brym, et. al (eds.) Jews in Canada. Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1993, 363-378.


“Rethinking Canadian Justice: Hate Must Not Define Democracy,” University of New Brunswick Law Journal, June, 1992, 285-294.


The Jews of Atlantic Canada, St. John’s: Breakwater Press, 1986.