Tuesday, February 24th, 2026
Top Stories
Annual Black History Month event shines spotlight on Black artists - On February 10th, the Faculty of Education community gathered for Word, Sound, Power — the annual celebration of Black Artistic Expressions presented by the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community & Diaspora, with the support of UPS. Watch highlights
A Path Toward Change: Understanding Youth Success Beyond the Classroom - Professor and Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora at York University, Carl James, was featured in an article on the Royal Society of Canada’s web site for Black History Month. Read more
York researcher highlights power of Black matriarchal storytelling – Stephanie Fearon, York’s inaugural assistant professor of Black thriving and education, partners with Black mothers to research and honour cultural storytelling traditions. Read more
In recognition of Black History Month in Canada, University of Toronto Press (UTP) spotlighted assistant professor Stephanie Fearon's article I See You, Mama: Low-Income Black Mother Leaders Reimagining Schools as Homeplace for Their Children in the Journal of Canadian Studies. UTP has made the article free to read for the month of February, 2026
The Public Education Exchange (PEX), directed by Sue Winton, has created a short video with York FoE alumnus Lana Parker. Speaking with Aastha Shah (PEX Research Assistant), Parker discusses the defunding of public education in Ontario and what is at stake when education is treated as a cost rather than a public good. Watch the interview on the PEX Website
Course Director Karen Armstrong gave the keynote address at the Tenth Annual Conference on Research in Education, Teaching and Learning held in Copenhagen, Denmark November 21-23, 2025. The title of her talk was ‘I have no hands to caress my face’: navigating troubled times with--and for--our children”
How one Toronto teacher is stepping up to fight the city’s deep freeze – M.Ed. student Katrina Cain-Griffin shares the story behind launching her fundraiser, CARE4CARE, to help unhoused people in Toronto amid the city’s harsh cold snaps. Read more
SHIFT 2025: FESA’s Professional Development Conference – This past November, the Faculty of Education Students’ Association (FESA) hosted their annual Professional Development Conference bringing together students, faculty and education professionals for a powerful day of learning. Read more
Teaching & Learning
Teaching Ethics Through Historical Fiction – Fresh off a recent speaking tour at Harvard University, author and University of Toronto professor David Townsend, visited assistant professor Lorin Schwarz’s Teaching English in the Intermediate/Senior Division classes to speak with students about his book The Ram in the Thicket. Read more
Outdoor Learning from the Huron-Wendat Trail – As part of the Health and Physical Activity PJ and JI courses, course director Wahid Khan took students for a day of outdoor learning and honouring Indigenous histories and territories. The groups ventured alongside the Black Creek and Huron-Wendat Trail to learn about the history of the sacred Parson's site and the significance of the trail
Program Office Updates
Professional Learning Office
York U teacher candidates graduating this spring can get a head start on earning their first AQ! This graduating cohort is able to take our late spring AQs starting May 5th. Registration is now open
- $50 off each course with a May 5th start date by selecting, "I am a York U BEd graduate during the 2025/26 academic year"at checkout. York student ID required
- No textbooks or extra fees. All resources are included in York AQs
- Classes run fully online May 5th to June 12th – register by April 28th
- More AQ offerings available to new graduates than in previous years!
- Includes 6 weekly evening Zoom sessions
If you or your students have any questions please contact raiseyouraq@edu.yorku.ca,
call 416-736-5003, or drop in to see us anytime at 3150 V.P. Dahdaleh Building (DB)
Resources for Faculty
The Future of AI Models As artificial intelligence continues to evolve rapidly, 2026 is shaping up to be a pivotal year defined by evaluation, governance, and practical integration into academic and professional settings. Researchers, industry leaders, and global analysts highlight several themes relevant to higher education.
Shift towards Evaluation
Stanford experts note that after several years of accelerated development, 2026 marks a turn toward rigor, transparency, and real-world utility in AI systems, with growing focus on benchmarks, oversight frameworks, and assessments of actual value. IBM anticipates increased attention to security, quantum integration, and applied use cases as AI moves into a new phase of technological maturity
- Full Articles:
Analysts foresee a transition beyond massive general-purpose models toward agentic systems—AI tools capable of taking multi-step actions and working autonomously toward goals. MIT Sloan predicts continued growth of agentic AI as organizations integrate AI more systematically
- Full Articles:
Global AI Competition and Sovereignty
Stanford's forecasting emphasizes that AI sovereignty—governments and Institutions seeking control over their own models, data, and infrastructure—will grow significantly in 2026
- Full Article:
Implications for Higher Education
Faculty studies (Shata, A., Hartley, K. 2025) highlight both optimism and concern: professors recognize the usefulness of AI tools but cite challenges around ethics, training, institutional support, and workload. Global faculty surveys (Digital Education Council, Global AI Faculty Survey, 2025) show broad engagement with AI but clear calls for governance frameworks and stronger AI literacy to support responsible adoption
- Full Article:
Preparing for the Next Phase
Analysts agree that the coming years will require stronger security practices, transparent evaluation, and deliberate integration strategies. Microsoft's 2026 outlook emphasizes AI not as a replacement for human work but as a collaborative partner
- Full Article:
New Publications
Assistant Professor Stephanie Fearon and Community Research Assistant, Terry-Ann Groves, co-edit the monthly community-based journal A Love Letter to Fellow Dreamers. The journal centres the research, art, and lives of Black mothers, women, and girls across Canada. This latest issue features written contributions and reflections from Black Canadian scholars
- Roberta Timothy - a Black mother, researcher, and creator of the University of Toronto’s Master of Public Health Program in the field of Black Health
- d’bi.young antiafrika - an artist-thinker-teacher and Founding Artistic Director of The Black Theatre School
- Yvonne Brown - a grandmother, mother, and upcoming Elder in Residence at OISE's Centre for Black Studies in Education
- The latest publication from Prilly Bicknell-Hersco, a York University doctoral candidate in the Faculty of Education
Current PhD candidates Katie Barron, Ryan Collis, Ellie Van Berkel and recent PhD graduate Aaron Richmond, have published an article titled "Disability Evasiveness: Disability Representation in AI-Generated Flash Fiction" in Harvard Educational Review exploring Critical Literacy and disability representation
Charles Hopkins and Katrin Kohl have co-edited two special issues on policy perspectives on ESD and provided the editorial foreword titled “Policy Perspectives on Education for Sustainable Development: Taking stock of the Field in the era of the UN Sustainable Development Goals” in the Journal of Education for Sustainable Development
In The Media
Please note: Some media stories mentioning York University are behind paywalls. To ensure accuracy and accessibility for our community, we only include articles we can fully access and verify.
Jean Augustine Chair showcases Black artists Professor and Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community & Diaspora Carl James was mentioned in The Caribbean Camera Feb. 16
Faculty of Education Student Association (FESA)
Employment & Recruitment Fair – Event Recap - Thank you to everyone who attended FESA’s 2026 Employment & Recruitment Fair in partnership with ApplyToEducation! With 40+ school boards and organizations and over 700 hundred students in attendance, the event provided meaningful networking, hiring insights, and pathways into the profession
Professional Learning (PL) Student Survey - The Professional Learning Office is inviting all graduating B.Ed students to share input on upcoming Additional Qualification (AQ) offerings. Professors are encouraged to share the PL survey with their classes and ask students to complete it by February 27. Student feedback directly informs which AQ courses will be offered in the upcoming session. New Grad AQs Student Survey
Alumni News
Congratulations to alumna Marika Kunnas (PhD) on being announced as the recipient of the 2016 American Association for Applied Linguistics (AAAL) Dissertation Award. Kunnas received the award for her dissertation titled "Monologues from the margins: Voices and experiences of racially minoritized French immersion students"
News from the York Community
Discover York Academics Drop-In Sessions - Research Commons and the Discover York Academics (DYA) team are excited to offer weekly drop-in sessions this winter to assist faculty members in creating their DYA profiles. These sessions will be available both in-person and online. Learn more
Nominate faculty for 2026 honorific professorships - York University’s Senate Committee on Awards is inviting nominations for two of its highest faculty honours: the University Professorship and the Distinguished Research Professorship. Learn more
York University Whistleblower Policy – York University fosters a culture of accountability through effective ethical, legal, environmental, managerial, and professional standards. We are equally committed to acting in accordance with all applicable legislation and regulatory requirements, as well as the University’s policies and procedures. Learn more
Tips to prevent slips, trips and falls - As temperatures drop, sidewalks and pathways become icy and uneven, increasing the risk of incidents. Building entrances, exits, outdoor stairs, ramps and parking lots can all become slippery in wet or icy conditions, creating additional hazards. Learn more
Winter Well-being Week - A campus-wide celebration of holistic health, inclusion and thriving runs March 2 to 6. Learn more about events and resources on York's campuses. Learn more
Submit a story for the ED Blog
Whether it is work-related news, achievements, or personal milestones, we’d love to help celebrate what is happening across the Faculty of Education community.
We welcome written submissions from faculty and staff that highlight our people, programs, and impact. Please send your submissions via our blog submission form. Once the completed form has been received, a member of the Faculty of Education’s marketing and communication’s team will be in touch.
Tell us what you think of the ED News Bulletin. We would love to hear from you.
Thank you to everyone who contributed to this edition of the Faculty of Education News Bulletin.
Created by:
Anderson Coward
Communications & Marketing Specialist
Adam Riley
Web Designer & Developer
Devonte Ellis
Communications & Marketing Assistant
Work-study Student
Barb Rodezno
Director - Strategic Communications, Marketing & Outreach