About Me
My name is Dax and I'm currently the Peacock Postdoctoral Fellow in Pedagogy in the Department of Political Studies at Queen's University and a Research Affiliate with the Centre for Constitutional Studies in the Faculty of Law at the University of Alberta. I'm also affiliated with the Centre for Free Expression at Ryerson University, where I blog occasionally and serve as a member of its Working Group on Academic Freedom.
Although I grew up in Sault Ste. Marie, ON, I've been living elsewhere while I pursue various academic opportunities - mostly in Ottawa, Edmonton, and now Kingston. I have a Bachelors Degree in Public Affairs and Policy Management (2013), a Masters Degree in Political Economy (2015), and, most recently, a PhD in Political Science from the University of Alberta.
My academic interests are diverse but most of my research revolves around free expression. My doctoral research project - which received a SSHRC Joseph-Armand Bombardier Doctoral Scholarship - examined the contemporary state of freedom of expression on Canadian university campuses. The project blended literature from the fields of Political Science, Law and Legal Studies, and Philosophy, and uses a qualitative mixed-methods approach that included literature reviews, legal analysis, media analysis, personal interviews, and freedom of information requests. My MA thesis (passed with distinction) examined the demise of Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act and the politics of free expression.
Occasionally, I also research and write about the politics of 'alternative sports' and subcultures. This work has recently focused on how skateboarding subculture will change as it becomes an official 'sport' at the Olympic Games. In addition to academic research, I'm also deeply committed to knowledge mobilization and have had research and writing appear in several non-academic venues. This work has included blog posts, essays, journalism, and opinion editorials. To get a sense of my research and writing portfolio, you can find some of my published work in the 'Academic Research' and 'Knowledge Mobilization' sections of this site.
I've been the recipient of several academic awards and scholarships, including the Faculty of Arts Graduate Teaching Award (2018), the Andrew Stewart Memorial Graduate Prize (2020), and the Alberta Graduate Excellence Scholarship (2020, 2021). Throughout my studies, I've been involved in a number of community and non-profit groups. My major extra-curricular project as an undergraduate student, for example, was creating and hosting a regular documentary film screening series at Carleton University. More recently, my passion for teaching has led me to spearhead a working group dedicated to pedagogical training, mentorship, and collaboration among graduate students and faculty (at both the University of Alberta and Queen's University). Over the past few years, I've helped to organize countless academic and non-academic events, including conferences, debates, film screenings, lectures, and panel discussions.
Although I grew up in Sault Ste. Marie, ON, I've been living elsewhere while I pursue various academic opportunities - mostly in Ottawa, Edmonton, and now Kingston. I have a Bachelors Degree in Public Affairs and Policy Management (2013), a Masters Degree in Political Economy (2015), and, most recently, a PhD in Political Science from the University of Alberta.
My academic interests are diverse but most of my research revolves around free expression. My doctoral research project - which received a SSHRC Joseph-Armand Bombardier Doctoral Scholarship - examined the contemporary state of freedom of expression on Canadian university campuses. The project blended literature from the fields of Political Science, Law and Legal Studies, and Philosophy, and uses a qualitative mixed-methods approach that included literature reviews, legal analysis, media analysis, personal interviews, and freedom of information requests. My MA thesis (passed with distinction) examined the demise of Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act and the politics of free expression.
Occasionally, I also research and write about the politics of 'alternative sports' and subcultures. This work has recently focused on how skateboarding subculture will change as it becomes an official 'sport' at the Olympic Games. In addition to academic research, I'm also deeply committed to knowledge mobilization and have had research and writing appear in several non-academic venues. This work has included blog posts, essays, journalism, and opinion editorials. To get a sense of my research and writing portfolio, you can find some of my published work in the 'Academic Research' and 'Knowledge Mobilization' sections of this site.
I've been the recipient of several academic awards and scholarships, including the Faculty of Arts Graduate Teaching Award (2018), the Andrew Stewart Memorial Graduate Prize (2020), and the Alberta Graduate Excellence Scholarship (2020, 2021). Throughout my studies, I've been involved in a number of community and non-profit groups. My major extra-curricular project as an undergraduate student, for example, was creating and hosting a regular documentary film screening series at Carleton University. More recently, my passion for teaching has led me to spearhead a working group dedicated to pedagogical training, mentorship, and collaboration among graduate students and faculty (at both the University of Alberta and Queen's University). Over the past few years, I've helped to organize countless academic and non-academic events, including conferences, debates, film screenings, lectures, and panel discussions.
