Ethel Tungohan, associate professor in the Departments of Politics and Social Science and Canada Research Chair in Canadian Migration Policy, has been awarded the 2024 Postdoctoral Supervisor of the Year Award by York University's Faculty of Graduate Studies (FGS).
The award, presented during the FGS Faculty Council meeting Dec. 5, recognizes individuals who provide exemplary support for postdoctoral scholars, far exceeding general supervisory expectations. Nominations must demonstrate a commitment to professional skill development, intellectual leadership, respect and collegiality, as well as long-term career development.
Professor Ethel Tungohan with her Postdoctoral Supervisor of the Year Award.
"I would like to acknowledge the exceptional contributions that all postdoctoral scholars and their supervisors bring to this university and its research culture," said Alice MacLachlan, vice-provost and dean, Graduate Studies. "Research excellence is central to York as an institution. What we discover and create, teach and share, shapes our identity as a scholarly community. Postdocs - and all who support them - are central to this vocation."
Banting Postdoctoral Fellow Ashlee Christoffersen, who nominated Tungohan, highlighted her unparalleled support and leadership as a role model within and beyond the discipline of politics. "Professor Tungohan provides a supportive environment for professional skill development, creates a climate of respect and care, and goes above and beyond expectations to offer advocacy and guidance," noted Christoffersen.
Tungohan's research examines migrant labour and activism. She has received the National Women's Studies Association's First Book Prize and has been featured in Ms. Magazine's 2023 Reads list for her book From the Politics of Everyday Resistance to the Politics from Below. Her book explores how deeply and distinctly migrant worker communities care for themselves and one another, and in so doing, demonstrate radical resistance and critical hope.
Her work has been published in academic journals such as the International Feminist Journal of Politics, Groups, and Identities and Canadian Ethnic Studies. She is a co-editor of Filipinos in Canada: Disturbing Invisibility (University of Toronto Press).
"I would like to thank my mentors, Dr. Yasmeen Abu-Laban, who was my postdoctoral supervisor, and Dr. Joseph Carens, who was my PhD supervisor. They paved the way in showing me what kindness looked like, and how important mentorship is in order to succeed in academia. I think about their examples often whenever I mentor and talk to graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. I would also like to thank Dr. Ashlee Christofferson for nominating me for this award. It is a career highlight to be able to work and collaborate with postdoctoral fellows like Dr. Christoffersen," said Tungohan.
"Postdoctoral scholars are at an exciting early juncture in their careers," said MacLachlan. "What these newly hooded doctors are now designing are their intellectual futures and new pursuits, emerging out of that foundational dissertation research. Crucial to this juncture is the ability to connect with an eminent colleague whose knowledge, research program, lab and team of students provide much-needed support, inspiration and collaboration."
For more information on the award visit the FGS website.
This story was originally featured in YFile, York University's community newsletter.
