The impact of distance education on higher learning is undeniable, and women have played a significant role in shaping the evolution of this field. However, their leadership contributions have remained largely unacknowledged and undervalued. Women and Leadership in Distance Education in Canada addresses this critical gap by amplifying the voices of Canadian women who have fostered inclusive, relational, and complexity-based leadership approaches that prioritize student needs, accessibility, and social justice. With contributions from instructional designers, faculty members, and senior administrators, this timely and candid collection offers practical strategies for encouraging resilience and mentorship as well as valuable insights on program design, collaborative organizational development, and lived experiences of leadership. Through reflections on systemic barriers and creative solutions, these women leaders highlight the importance of diverse perspectives and provide valuable lessons for educational leaders worldwide.
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. An Old Buffalo Speaks: Reflections on My Years of Leadership in Distance
Education and Online Learning
Lori Wallace
Section I: Planning Learning
2. Decolonization in Distance Education: Trying to Lead through Possibility
and Good Relationships
Kristine Dreaver-Charles
3. Not Just a Pretty Course: Aesthetic Leadership in Distance Education
Cynthia Eden, Natalie Green, Sandy Hughes, Victoria Kennedy, and Megan
Pickard
4. Leading Distance Learning in Canadian Higher Education: The Three Cs
Jennifer Lock, Patti Dyjur, and Michelle Mitchell
5. Leadership in Distance Education: Vision Is Vital
Kim Myrick and Denise Stockley
6. Building Alternative Futures: Co-Creating an Online Asynchronous Degree
Program for Early Childhood Educators
Sherry L. Rose and Kim Stewart
Section II: Communicating and Collaborating
7. Through a Glass Darkly: Middle-Level Leadership in an Era of Online
Education
Amy Burns
8. Leading In, Through, and Beyond a Crisis
Lynn Corcoran and Margaret Edwards
9. Interpersonal Communication: A Critical Reflection Tool
Sarah MacRae
10. First Year by Distance Education and Campus Manitoba: A Manitoba Women's
Story
Kathleen Matheos
11. A Strategic Response to the Demands of the Pandemic: A Black Woman's
Leadership Story
Sophia Palahicky
Section III: Reflecting on Experiences
12. Hurry Slowly: A Conversation about Leadership in Distance Education
through Multiple Roles
Michelle Harrison, Christina Hendricks, Tannis Morgan, Anne-Marie Scott, and
Elizabeth Childs
13.What's up, Doc? The Impacts of Graduate Study for Women
Jenni Hayman
14. (Re-)Envisioning Instructor Leadership Strengthened through a
Decolonizing and Culturally Responsive Lens
Erin Keith
15. Carving Out Spaces
Jasmine Pham
16. Breaking Barriers and Leading from the Middle: A Racialized Woman
Educator's Experiences
Afsaneh Sharif
17. The Leadership of Walking Alongside
Tammy Soanes-White
18. Leading at a Distance: Insights and Practical Advice for Early Career
Women in Higher Education Leadership
Connie (Levina) Yuen
19. Female Leadership in Online Education in Canada: Reflecting and Forging
the Future
Lorraine Carter, Diane Janes, and Katy Campbell
Conclusion
Contributors
Cindy Ives was a key player in teaching and learning innovation at several Canadian universities. She is professor emerita of distance education at Athabasca University after leadership roles in design and development, learning resources and the office of vice-president academic.
Pamela Walsh has worked in post-secondary for over 35 years, holding senior leadership positions at two Canadian colleges and serving in an executive leadership role at Athabasca University.
Rebecca E. Heiser is a researcher in adult and distance education and recipient of the Governor General Gold Medal at Athabasca University for her achievements in the Doctor of Education in Distance Education program.
With contributions by Amy Burns, Katy Campbell, Lorraine Carter, Elizabeth Childs, Lynn Corcoran, Kristine Dreaver-Charles, Patti Dyjur, Cynthia Eden, Margaret Edwards, Natalie Green, Michelle Harrison, Jenni Hayman, Christina Hendricks, Sandy Hughes, Diane Janes, Erin Keith, Victoria Kennedy, Jennifer Lock, Sarah MacRae, Kathleen Matheos, Michelle Mitchell, Tannis Morgan, Kimberly Myrick, Sophia Palahicky, Jasmine Pham, Megan Pickard, Sherry Rose, Anne-Marie Scott, Afsaneh Sharif, Tammy Soanes-White, Kimberly Stewart, Denise Stockley, Lori Wallace, and Connie (Levina) Yuen.
