Office: Storytelling Research Lab, IIC 2006
Email: kh4345[at]mun[dot]ca

Supervisor
Dr. Julia Christensen

Previous Education
Bachelor of Technology – Engineering and Applied Science Technology

Research Project Description:
Leaving their home communities can result in experiences of disconnection, loss, and grief for LGBTQI2S persons. However, many LGBTQI2S youth, access supports, both formal and informal, by relocating to urban centres. In northern regions like Labrador, regional centres often act as important service and support hubs for LGBTQI2S youth, and more importantly as a meeting places for youth to connect with others with similar experiences. My Masters project aims to address key gaps in knowledge about the emotional, social, and political struggles and successes of LGBTQI2S persons in the accessibility of services such as mental health, housing, medicine, and education in urban migration. This aim will be realized through three specific research objectives: 1) to explore the specific needs and experiences of LGBTQI2S youth in navigating the support services landscape in HVGB; 2) to investigate how cultural traditions are incorporated in LGBTQI2S inclusive practices for service providers and, 3) to illuminate the role of HVGB as an important support hub for IGBTQI2S youth from across Labrador, and the relevance of this landscape to our understanding of northern urban geographies more generally.

Research Assistantship
Research Coordinator, January 2019 – Present
The emergence of the transgender child: parent politics and social change
Principal Investigator: Dr. Jennifer Dyer (Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences\Department of Gender Studies – MUN)

Research Assistant, January 2019 - Present
The Role of Social Capital in K-12 School Improvement Efforts: A Scoping Review
Principal Investigator: Dr. Joelle Rodway Macri (Faculty of Education – MUN)

Research Groups:
ACE Space Lab
Northern Reading Group

Research Interests:
• LGBTQI2S rural and urban geographies
• Indigenous Knowledge
• Decolonizing academic research
• Social determinants of health
• Policy and Governance