Charity is in her fourth year as a PACS major and is a candidate for a Diploma of Environmental Assessment. She said that her interest in an environmental focus arose while taking Jennifer’s Peace and Environment class (PACS 310). “Jennifer inspired me to take more environment courses during my undergrad, which has led me to pursue a Master’s program that combines my passion of peace and the environment.” Charity also discovered the benefits of the class’s Circle format, in which a group is seated in a circle with structural elements in place to ensure equality throughout discussion. She shared that this class was a pivotal point in her university career. “Jennifer has taught me what it means to be an advocate for peace through academics, practice, and simply living in the world.”
One of the graduate courses that Jennifer teaches is Conflict Transformation and Peacebuilding (PACS 605). Master of Peace and Conflict Studies (MPACS) student Heidi Lamb found this course to be “unlike any other class I’ve had.” She shared that “the warmth that Jennifer brought each and every week was one of the contributing factors to PACS 605 being one of my favourite university classes I’ve taken.” Jennifer’s courses have had a lasting impact on Heidi’s perspective. She explained that Jennifer is “constantly willing to make changes as an educator for the betterment of her students and their learning experience.” Heidi said that because Jennifer is easy to approach, her invitation to comment on how the class is going is meaningful. She teaches her classes “on an even playing field” so that students are able to share what they think about the class and what they are getting from it.
Heidi has also been influenced by the Circle instruction that Jennifer incorporates into her classes, which led her to take Jennifer’s summer Peacemaking Circles Training, offered through the Certificate in Conflict Management. “I was fortunate enough to take the course last summer where I learned even more about the practice of Circle and the potential it holds.” She added, “When I decided to begin utilizing Circle at work and in my personal life, Jennifer was right there encouraging me and providing me with positive feedback so that I can better my role as a Circle Keeper.”
Theo Wiederkehr is in his last term of PACS and has embraced a new understanding of effective dialogue through Jennifer’s PACS 323 Negotiation: Theories and Strategies and PACS 310 Peace and the Environment courses. “I have learned more of the importance of listening lightly – paying attention to what another is saying out of care for them without constantly contrasting it with my views.” Theo said that Jennifer motivated him to “connect what I learn in class to the rest of my life.” He shared that her classes felt more an “equitable gathering than a lecture” and that Jennifer leads her students to “explore what is already in us and how that can be a gift.”
Students in the PACS program are learning to be peace practitioners, whether as a career or lifestyle choice. Ivonne Morales, a second year MPACS student has noticed that Jennifer facilitates her classes to grow together, rather than beside each other. She said the class times gave them an opportunity to exercise the peacebuilding values they were taught. “At the end of the term, there was a connection as a group of individuals, not just classmates, who listened to each other’s stories while constructing knowledge together.” Jennifer helped Ivonne realize her potential for finding “creative solutions to transform situations that are oppressing others.” Ivonne echoed the voices of other students in recognizing Jennifer as a professor who “walks the talk,” and truly cares about the individual peacebuilder. “She made her students understand that the first person who needs to be at peace is ourselves.”
By Elizabeth Robertson