I was hired at TRU seven months before the COVID-19 pandemic began, and the first year of the pandemic was a very bust time for the Learning Technology & Innovation Team as we worked to transition all of the TRU campus faculty to emergency remote teaching. During this time, I was the primary caregiver for my preschool-aged son; we were unable to access any childcare at all from March – August 2020, and then only part-time care was available from September 2020 – August 2021 due to childcare constraints in the region.
During my time at TRU, I have had to take two three-week leaves due to health-related family emergencies in Ontario. These occurred in February of 2021 and July of 2022.
I also had to take time away from work during and immediately following miscarriages in October 2020, July 2021, and December 2021. In March 2022 I had a surgical intervention due to complications caused by the third miscarriage and invasive follow-up testing in June 2022. These episodes resulted in a combined total of approximately seven weeks away from work.
All of these extenuating circumstances have been outlined annually both in my APARs and in my PRC, so context can be reviewed in Sections C and D.7 of this portfolio. I am grateful to the Learning Design and Innovation Department, and the Learning Technology & Innovation Team, for supporting my complex needs over the last three years.
I also request that when reviewing my portfolio materials from my period of employment at Douglas College from 2010-19, the committee note that I was on maternity leave for twenty months from January 2017 – August 2018.
