Harrison Ivaz is an upcoming guitarist and Capilano University Jazz alumni who has performed his original music at venues such as Lollapalooza 2012 and Summerfest 2013 and 2016. Harrison is excited to share his music with the students of SFU.

Cam Peters is Vancouver guitarist and alumni of Selkirk College and Capilano University. When Cam isn’t playing guitar he can be found biking down scenic mountains. Cam is excited to join Harrison to play for the students of SFU.

Canadian jazz pianist, composer, and vocalist Jillian Lebeck is one of the most dynamic and exciting voices on the Canadian Jazz scene. Her debut recording “Living in Pieces” (Maximum Jazz/Universal) spent several weeks in the number 1 position on the national Chart Attack radio charts. She is an alumni of the prestigious Berklee College of Music. Her projects have been featured on CBC Radio’s Studio One Jazz Series during the Vancouver International Jazz Festival and she has received regular airplay on CBC’s “Hot Air”, “After Hours”, l’espace musique, The Signal, KPLU, and NPR. She was recently a jury member for CARAS JUNO Awards.

Jillian has opened for legendary jazz saxophonist Joe Lovano and New York jazz pianist - Bill Charlap. She has toured Canada including dates at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, at the Montreal International Jazz Festival, The Top of the Senator in Toronto, as well as Calgary Jazz Festival, and Medicine Hat Jazz Festival. In Europe she has performed in Sicily, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Portugal, UK, and Spain. She recently performed in Portland Oregon, for the PDX Jazz Festival.Her second release as a leader was released in June, 2007 “Songs and Melodies” on talie Records.

Jillian has been fortunate to work with these fine musicians - Jesse Harris, Gilberto Moreaux, Norma Winstone, Evan Arntzen, Christine Jensen, Brad Turner, Chris Gestrin, Mike Allen, Dave Robbins, Peggy Lee, Christina Maria, George Garzone, Ian MacDougall, Tom Keenlyside, Bill Coon, Tom Wherrett, Joe Poole, The October Trio, Edwin Corzilius, Hans van Oosterhout, Seamus Blake, Kate Hammett-Vaughan, Melody Diachun, among others.

Bill Costin is a professional pianist, musical director, composer, arranger, and instructor living in Vancouver.

A pianist trained in classical and jazz, he plays in performances accompanying singers, musical theatre, cabarets, jazz combos, dance concerts, audition sessions, classical duets and trios, and solo piano. Bill is also a piano instructor and vocal audition coach studying Estill Voice Training.

Bill recently accompanied Beverley Elliott in her one-woman show: “Sink Or Swim” at the United Solo Theatre Festival in New York City where it won best musical. He has also worked as musical director and pianist for the annual holiday production of Bah Humbug! for SFU Woodward’s Cultural Programs.

Other work as an accompanist have been for auditions for the New York, London, and Touring productions of Book Of Mormon. He has also accompanied Miriam Margolyes in “Dickens’ Women” (The Cultch) as well as other artists: Michael Buble, Dal Richards, Chris Diamantopoulos, Ranee Lee, Ann Mortifee, Denis Simpson, Gillian Campbell, Ruth Nichol, Cailin Stadnyk, Azuure Joffre, David Marr, Sibel Thrasher, Susinn McFarlen, Jay Brazeau, Laurie Murdoch, and Tom Pickett.

Jazz pianist, composer and educator, Sharon Minemoto has been a mainstay on the Vancouver jazz scene for over 20 years. She is the leader of a trio, a quartet and a quintet, with CD releases from each ensemble. Her original music draws influences from jazz, classical and R&B music. She also enjoys playing and arranging jazz standards.

Computer Science Diversity Committee (CSDC) & Student Experiences Initiative (SEI) invites you to join Dr. Cinda Heeren's webinar, Redefining the Base Case: Broadening Participation in Computing by Embracing a New Historical Narrative. 

Cinda Heeren is a Professor of Teaching and Associate Head of Undergraduate Programs in the computer science department at the University of British Columbia. Her consistent, engaging work in UBC’s core-CS Data Structures course was recognized with the Killam Teaching Prize in Spring 2020.

Cinda champions inclusive assessment strategies facilitated primarily by an accessible, modern, freely available, scalable, online assessment tool called PrairieLearn. Her most recent creative project is the development of a data structures and algorithms course designed specifically for non-CS majors, that ties together classic problems from CS with applications from the arts and sciences.

Cinda continues to be a vocal advocate for diversifying the field of computing through outreach, program development, and undergraduate community-building. She is the Chair of the CS Department’s Committee on Outreach, Diversity, and Equity (CODE), and she evangelizes for inclusive and innovative teaching practices at every level of instruction.

Computer Science Diversity Committee (CSDC) & Student Experiences Initiative (SEI) invites you to join Wendy Powley's webinar, Tips to Increase Participation of Women in Computer Science. 

Wendy Powley is a computer scientist and diversity and inclusion advocate. Her main area of research includes database management systems and cloud computing. She has served as an executive member of ACM-W, Associate Program Chair of SIGSCE, and Diversity and Outreach committee of CS-CAN/Info-CAN. She is the founder of CAN-CWIC, bringing the ACM celebration of women in computing to Canada. She is currently an Associate Professor in School of Computing, Queen's university. 

SFU Student Experience Initiative presents a conversation with writer and scholar Dr. Billy-Ray Belcourt from the Driftpile Cree Nation in northwestern Alberta. Dr. Belcourt is an Assistant Professor in the School of Creative Writing at the University of British Columbia. The author of This Would is a World, NDN Coping Mechanisms, and A History of My Brief Body, Dr. Belcourt is 2020 Governor General's Award Finalist in non-fiction. Their books can be found and purchased from Massy Books  - https://www.massybooks.com/

He will be joined by Nisga'a writer Dr. Jordan Abel as he shares his experiences as a graduate student, and reads from his work. The conversation and Q & A following will be moderated by SFU Department of English PhD Candidate Mackenzie Ground, a nehiyawiskwew and a writer from Enoch Cree Nation and Edmonton, Alberta, Treaty Six.

The many crises and disruptions that occurred in 2020 have exposed and highlighted systemic racism worldwide. Canadian universities were not exempt from this reckoning. While often claiming to prioritize diversity and inclusion on their campuses, the fact remains that relatively few Black people can be found at Canadian universities. Furthermore, the absence of race-based data has empowered the Canadian Academy to deny its own racism with little consequence, while simultaneously undermining any calls to action expressed by racialized people.

At this particular moment in time, however, many higher education institutions across Canada are poised to critically (re-)assess their anti-racism strategies. As the infrastructure for the collection of quantitative race-based data slowly but surely gains momentum, the perspectives of Black community members can offer invaluable first-hand qualitative information.

The aim of this five-part webinar series is to create a space for dialogue that encourages Black academics to share their stories and experiences. These webinars will provide a platform to amplify the multitude of Black voices that are scattered across the country, with the ultimate goal of creating a digital anthology of the experiences of Black students and post-docs in Canada today. It is our hope that these diverse stories will serve to make connections among Black scholars, to inform University administrators of the challenges experienced by Black students, and to inspire prospective students to pursue and eventually achieve their educational goals.

Join Nisga’a writer and scholar Dr. Jordan Abel and his former doctoral supervisor Dr. Deanna Reder as they discuss his SFU PhD experience.

SFU Student Experience Initiative presents a conversation with Nisga’a writer and scholar from Vancouver, Dr. Jordan Abel, Assistant Professor in the Department of English and Film Studies at the University of Alberta. Dr. Abel is the author of Injun, the Place of Scraps, Un/Inhabited and received his PhD from SFU in 2019. He will be joined by Dr. Deanna Reder to share his experiences as a graduate student and researcher. Dr. Deanna Reder (Cree-Métis) is an Associate Professor in the Departments of Indigenous Studies and the Department of English at Simon Fraser University.

About Jordan Abel: Dr. Jordan Abel is a renowned scholar and author who has won numerous awards for his poetry, including Injun, The Place of Scraps, and Un/Inhabited. His work has appeared in Canadian Literature, The Capilano Review, and Poetry Is Dead. His visual poetry has been featured in exhibitions at the Polygon Gallery, UNITT/PITT Gallery, and the Oslo Pilot Project Room in Oslo, Norway. His latest project, NISHGA, (from McClelland & Stewart in 2020) is an autobiographical work that addresses the complexities of contemporary Indigenous experience and the intergenerational impact of the residential school system.

Dr. Jordan Abel Website: https://www.jordanabel.ca/

Dr. Deanna Reder Faculty Page: https://www.sfu.ca/indg/about/people/deanna-reder.html