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mehru-ali

Mehrunnisa Ahmad Ali

Professor
EducationPhD
OfficeKHS 363-J , Kerr Hall South
Phone416-979-5000, ext. 556330
Areas of ExpertiseColonialism and migration; immigrant and refugee children, youth and families; integration of immigrant families; ethics of research with refugees; north-south research collaboration.

I arrived in Canada at the turn of the century with an EdM in Learning and Teaching from Harvard University, and a PhD in Teaching, Curriculum, and Social Policy, with a concentration in Teacher Education from Michigan State University. At Toronto Metropolitan University, the focus of my research shifted from international development and girls’ education to immigration and settlement. I joined the SSHRC funded CERIS – The Ontario Metropolis Centre as the domain leader for Education and then for Children, Youth and Families, and finally served as a co-director. My work in these positions included developing and maintaining a network of researchers, conducting and facilitating pan-Canadian studies, adjudicating research proposals, organizing conferences, editing a series of working papers and co-leading the research centre. I also helped to set up the master’s program in Immigration and Settlement (ISS) at Toronto Metropolitan University, and the Toronto Metropolitan University Centre for Immigration and Settlement (RCIS).

I currently teach and supervise students in three graduate programs: Early Childhood Studies, Immigration and Settlement, and Policy Studies. Moments when students realize that they, too, can ‘create knowledge’ bring me joy. I try to encourage respect for learners and teachers, whether they are young children and their families, or university students and their instructors.

  • Research Approaches and Design – Policy Studies (Ph.D.)
  • Research Design – Early Childhood Studies (M.A.)
  • Research Methods – Immigration & Settlement Studies (M.A.)
  • The Settlement Experience in Canada – Immigration & Settlement Studies (M.A)
  • Field Education IV – Early Childhood Studies (B.A.)

Research interests:

  • International migration (focus on children, youth and families)
  • Research ethics
  • International research collaborations

Research projects:

Books in progress:

  • Ethical issues in research with refugee children, youth and families
  • Colonization of immigrant families

Selected articles/chapters/briefs:

  • Ali, M. (Accepted) Family migration and migrant integration. In A. Triandafyllidou (Ed.) Routledge Handbook on Immigration and Refugee Studies. Routledge.
  • Ali, M. A. (2022) Towards a Unified Model of Refugee Resettlement.  (PDF file) https://www.torontomu.ca/cerc-migration/Policy/CERC_PolicyBrief04_Sept2021.pdf
  • Ali, M. Ali, M. A., Zendo, S., & Somers, S. (2021). Structures and strategies for social integration: Privately sponsored and government assisted refugees. Journal of Immigrant & Refugee Studies, 1-13.
  • Ali, M. A., & Gibran, G. (2020). Documenting Syrian refugee children’s memories: Methodological insights and further questions. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 19, 1609406920938958.
  • Ali, M. (2019) Teen lives in Canada. In K. Wells (Ed.) Encyclopedia of teen lives around the world: ABC-CLIO
  • Ali, M., Valade, M. and Dargy, T. (2019) Families’ roles in immigrants’ settlement trajectories. In H. Bauder (Ed.) Putting family first: Migration and integration in Canada. Vancouver: UBC Press
  • Ali, M. and Baitubayeva, A. (2019) Immigrant women’s roles in family settlement. In H. Bauder (Ed.) Putting family first: Migration and integration in Canada. Vancouver: UBC Press

  • Outstanding contribution to interdisciplinary graduate education. Toronto Metropolitan University
  • Senior Fellow, Massey College, University of Toronto
  • Aga Khan Foundation International Scholarship