Research Project Changing Black Youths Future
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The LaSalle Multicultural Resource Center is currently undertaking a research project titled, Changing Black Youths Futures which examines the trajectory of Black youth from high school to work or higher education. The project runs until March 2023 and is funded by Heritage Canada. The goal of this research project is to understand the impacts of anti-Black Racism on the educational pathways of Black youth attending high school, adult learning centers or alternative schools on and off the island of Montreal.
The results of the project will support the LMRC as it seeks to address inequity in the education system through its work with the Black community. Existing research indicates that Black youth are least likely to complete high school within five years and that the situation is even more dire for Black Anglophone youth who must attend Francophone schools, as mandated by the Charter of the French Language in Quebec. Anecdotal evidence indicates that anti-Black racism coupled with the challenges of second language learning cause severe academic delays for young Black Anglophone students in Montreal, with the problem beginning very early in pre-school.
The project Changing Black Youth Futures is now in the recruitment phase. Parents of Black children between the ages of 12 and 30, Black youth between the ages of 12 and 30, teachers and administrators are invited to participate in the research
Why participate in the Research
Anti-Black Racism is a specific form of racial discrimination against Black people which has its roots in the Transatlantic Slave trade and Colonization. Black people of African descent experience this harmful and hurtful racial discrimination in all sectors of society. Education is one sector of society that is supposed to improve the standard of living and quality of life of all citizens. However, the effects of anti-Blackness in schooling continue to limit the achievements of Black students in Quebec. By sharing your experiences and observations as a parent, student, teacher, or administrator the ways in which anti-Black racism is manifested in the formal curriculum and hidden curriculum in the Quebec context will be revealed.
How to participate in the Research
Contact the LMRC at researchconfidential@lmrcenter.org or by phone 514-367-3383 to receive the information document and consent forms.
- Parents, current and former teachers, and administrators and Black students ages 12 to 30 years
- You are invited to participate in an individual interview
- Youth 18 to 30 years
- You are invited to participate in focus group
Meet the Research team
This project is the first empirical research being undertaken by the LMRC. A strong desire to produce impactful and credible research led the LMRC to reach out to university professors at McGill University and Université du Québec à Montreal, other community organisations such as the Quebec Board of Black Educators and former teachers in Montreal to create an Advisory Board to provide guidance to the project. The implementation of the research is being undertaken by university graduates from Montreal and Calgary. The research has ethics approval from the Community Research Ethics Office CERO at the Centre for Community Research which supports community research in Canada.
The project team is composed of six women who bring a wealth of professional and personal knowledge to the research. As women of colour each has their personal experiences with racism in education in Canada. Critical Race Theory informs this qualitative research project, as such the women are not expected to “bracket out” their lived experiences. Instead, a rigours accounting of their experience throughout the project is expected to enhance the credibility of the study.
Jodania Ossé
Jodania Ossé graduated in spring 2022 from UQÀM with a Bachelor’s degree in Pre-school and Elementary Education. She also has a certificate in Administration and Social Sciences. Of Haitian origin, she is mainly interested in researching the advancement of Black people in Quebec and other visible minorities. She is also interested in research on education, human behavior and psychology. This research project is closely related to her profession and its conclusions will allow her to implement preventive measures in her future.
Blandine Mbonyumuvunyi
Blandine Mbonyumuvunyi has a Bachelor’s degree in Urban Planning from the Université de Montréal. A second generation immigrant, her interests converge on the study of neighborhoods considered disadvantaged. Her terminal project focuses on the study of the evolution of social and spatial fragmentation in the Little Burgundy neighborhood, which historically marks the Black community of Montreal as the first Black borough in Montreal. Today, it consists of a concentration of social housing and faces challenges that reveal factors of exclusion. From an urban planning point of view, her study consisted in analyzing its evolution and determining the levers that would make it possible to mitigate social and spatial fragmentation in the future. Her project also allowed her to become familiar with the socio-demographic and economic aspects of this typical neighborhood, which is the source of her interest in actively participating within the Black community.
Gloria Ann Cozier
Gloria Ann Cozier work as an Assistant Executive Director of Region 18 health and Social Services, delegate of Youth Protection, and passionate about her volunteer program development consultant and researcher role at Lasalle Multicultural Resource Center in her spare time. She is a three-time graduate of McGill University, MSW, PSW, presenter, license psychotherapist and member of the Canadian Counselling and psychotherapy Association (CCPA), Quebec Counselling Association (QCA) and the International Society of Substance Use Professional (ISSUP) – special Drug Demand Reduction specialist. She is a local, National, and international presenter at various academic conferences and avid supporter of human rights and Justice. She helped undertake the research and development of the first Land Base Addiction wellness model program in Quebec for indigenous population. She received the professional citizens award from the SPVM and the Moulin D’or award for her humanitarian work.
Saba Raja
Saba Raja received her MA in Sociology from the University of Toronto. She has a variety of research interests, but currently specializes in immigration and systematic barriers experienced by racial and cultural minorities in Canada.
Salina Berhane
Salina Berhane Born and raised in Montreal, Salina is a first-generation Canadian of Eritrean and Ethiopian immigrants. She is multilingual and is currently working on her Master of Education at the University of Toronto in Social Justice Education. Concurrent to her formal education, Salina is teaching herself about an important subject matter her history teachers never taught her: Black Canadian History. In her future graduate research, she will make it an obligation that the current Canadian and Quebec curricula extend their historic attention and make space for the Afro descended Canadian presence, which has influenced our current world. Salina hopes that in learning more about Black Canadian history herself, she seeks to create contemporary lesson plans for future kindergarten and elementary educators.
Lerona Dana Lewis
Lerona Dana Lewis PhD is a graduate of McGill university and a multidisciplinary research scholar. She writes about the role of racial literacy in helping Black Caribbean parents navigate the Francophone education system in Quebec. She also writes in the field of medical education with a focus on culture of Faculty Development in Medical Education. She serves as the lead researcher on this project Changing Black Youth Futures
