Student Concerns Subcommittee
The Student Concerns Subcommittee (SCS) includes three elected members representing Canada’s regions: Western (BC, AB, SK, MB), Central (ON, QC), and Eastern (NB, NL, NS, PEI). Three additional elected members will hold cross-appointed positions on this subcommittee representing (and liaising between) the Black Caucus, Decolonization, Equity Issues, and Francophone Affairs Subcommittees.
The members of the subcommittee choose the Chair (who sits on the Executive Committee). Additional consultative members may be appointed by the subcommittee, with the approval of the Executive Committee, to develop policy, participate in programs or initiatives, and take action in special areas or regions, as required.
The mandate of the subcommittee includes;
- Identify priorities with respect to issues affecting students
- Advise on student funding programs and assist with adjudication
- Stimulate and facilitate communication among students
- Membership on Association initiatives supporting students
- Membership on the Awards Committees
- Knowledge sharing through virtual events, website resources, and Conference sessions
2026-2027 Subcommittee Members
The Subcommittee members are excited to continue building an inclusive, supportive, and informed student culture. We welcome ideas and involvement from all sociology students.
- Nicole K. McNair - Chair/Decolonization Rep
Nicole K. McNair (they/them/any)
PhD (Sociology and Gender & Social Justice Diploma Program - current, McMaster University); MA (Sociology, McMaster University); BEd (Junior/Intermediate Education, Nipissing University); BA (French and Sociology, Honours, McMaster University)
I am very grateful for the opportunity to serve on the CSA Student Concerns Subcommittee as the cross-appointed Student Representative of the Decolonization Subcommittee. I have been actively involved in my department's student caucus for the past three years because I am passionate about advocating for student concerns, especially for students from equity-deserving groups. As the Student Caucus Chair for the past year, my passion for student and social justice advocacy has been a driving force behind changes I have been working on implementing within the department. I hope to continue with this work and apply the skills and knowledge I have learned beyond the departmental level, to have a broader impact with sociology students nation-wide.
My academic interests and research focus heavily on decolonial methodologies, Indigenous thought and settler-colonial studies, and critical feminist theory. As a settler and treaty person with a responsibility to actively practice decolonization, this position allows me the opportunity to engage in practical decolonial work, while specifically addressing the needs and concerns of students. Through this position, I hope to contribute meaningful and solution-based advocacy that works towards dismantling colonial practices within the institution to improve the experiences of the CSA's student membership.
- Emma Nelson - Eastern Canada Rep
Emma Nelson, Dalhousie University
Educational background: BA (English Literature, Montana State University)
MA (English, York University), MES (Environmental Studies, York University),
PhD (Sociology, Dalhousie University) - in progressPronouns: they/them
I am grateful and excited to serve as the Eastern Rep. I am interested in hearing
from other students about the issues they face with equity and opportunity in research in our East Coast context and aim to highlight the important work that students do throughout the early stages of their careers. Please feel welcome to reach out to me at any time.I currently live in the Kjipuktuk in the Sipekne’katik region of Mi’kma’ki, also known as Halifax, Nova Scotia. My early interest in mid- and late 20th century literature developed into a desire to work directly on issues arising from unfettered capitalism. In addition to organizing with the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty and Toronto Against Fascism, I obtained a Master of Environmental Studies with a focus in Urban/Community Planning and Environmental Education for which I produced a podcast exploring the ways settler-identified people in the planning field understand and make use of land acknowledgments in their land-based
work. These experiences serve as the foundation for my anti-colonial approach in research contexts.During COVID, my partner and I moved to the North Shore of Nova Scotia, where we co-owned and operated a bakery for 4 years before returning to school in 2025. My current research interests lie in the professionalization of birth and death workers as well as rites of passage and (de)medicalization.
- Sara Hormozinejad - Central Canada Rep
Sara Hormozinejad, University of Toronto
Education: PhD Candidate (Sociology; University of Toronto), MA (Anthropology; University of Toronto), BA (Anthropology; University of Calgary)
I am grateful to serve as the Central Canada Representative on the CSA Student Concerns Subcommittee. I have been an active member of the CSA since 2021 and joined the subcommittee in 2024 with the goal of helping improve the experiences of student members. I look forward to connecting with fellow students, understanding their experiences as CSA members, and advocating for their concerns.
I am currently a PhD Candidate in sociology at the University of Toronto and a researcher at the Global Migration Institute at Toronto Metropolitan University. Throughout my academic journey, I have actively engaged in conversations about issues that concern students, including evolving discussion around EDI and the growing role of AI. I have recently served as a student member on the Ad-Hoc Committee for AI in Grad Education and on the Anti-Racism and Equity Committee at the UofT Department of Sociology, where I have represented graduate students and advocated for their concerns. I am also an active member of the working group on Activism in the Reflexivities in Migration Studies Standing Committee at IMISCOE.
I am committed to bringing my advocacy experience to the CSA to represent students, particularly those from Central Canada. Please feel welcome to reach out to me with any questions or concerns.
- Md. Nazmul Arefin - Western Canada Rep
Md. Nazmul Arefin, University of Alberta
Pronouns: he/him
Nazmul Arefin is a PhD candidate and Killam Scholar in Sociology at the University of Alberta, Canada. He is also an ex-Fellow of the University of Kassel, Germany, where he served as a Visiting Scientist. Currently, Nazmul works as a research coordinator on a National Dorothy Killam Fellowship project focused on BIPOC officials in the Canadian Criminal Justice System. Demonstrating his academic leadership, Nazmul served as President of the Sociology Graduate Students' Association (SGSA) at the UAlberta and is involved with the Canadian Association for the Study of Islam and Muslims (CASIM).
Nazmul is bilingual in Bengali and English. Arefin’s doctoral research investigates the lived experiences of Muslim people and Muslim university students in Canada, addressing the rising climate of Islamophobia and right-wing extremism. His work seeks to provide vital data and grassroots policy recommendations for the nationwide effort to combat Islamophobia.
Nazmul’s academic achievements have been recognized with several prestigious awards, including the GSA International Student Award (2025), the Dorothy J. Killam Memorial Graduate Prize (2024), the ASC-DIC Best Student Paper Award (2024), and the Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Scholarship (2024), among many others. He has presented his research at major conferences, including the American Society of Criminology and the International Sociological Association (ISA). A dedicated member of the CSA, Nazmul presented his research at the CSA Congress in 2023 and 2024 and received the Congress Graduate Merit Award in 2023.
Driven by a commitment to advancing equity, evidence-based policy, and inclusive academic dialogue, Arefin seeks to contribute to the subcommittee by leveraging his research experience and global south insights into issues of ensuring EDID and social justice. His dedication to fostering critical scholarship and supporting diverse voices aligns with the CSA’s mission to promote sociological excellence and social justice in Canada’s multicultural context.
- Janaya Davis - Communications
Janaya Davis, Athabasca University
BA (Sociology – Current; Athabasca University), Dip. (Justice Studies, Red Deer Polytechnic)
Language Proficiency: English (Fluent), French (Intermediate)
I am excited to serve as the Communications Representative on the CSA’s Student Concerns Subcommittee. I am currently in my fourth year of a BA in Sociology at Athabasca University, with plans to pursue a Master’s and PhD. I have a profound admiration for sociology; my mission as Communications Rep is to make the discipline intellectually alive and accessible for students across Canada. I look forward to amplifying diverse peer voices, strengthening national networks, and bridging the gap between social theory and real-world issues.
My studies focus on comparative historical sociology, specifically examining war, state formation, and religion within the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. I am deeply committed to postcolonial frameworks and recovering the contributions of historically overlooked scholars, bringing a rigorous commitment to nuance when studying conflict and power. This academic trajectory is uniquely grounded by a diploma in Justice Studies and practical experience working on the frontlines of addiction and structural homelessness. I bring this blend of theoretical dedication and real-world perspective to the subcommittee, and I warmly invite student members to connect and collaborate.
