fasdNL Staff Announcement
Thursday, September 24, 2020 
fasdNL held its annual AGM and biannual Strategic Planning Day on September 14th and 15th, following the very successful FASD Awareness Week in Newfoundland and Labrador from September 7th to 11th.  It has been a very exciting year for our organization and we would like to share some updates on our growth.
In the spring of this year, fasdNL was fortunate to receive a one-year funding commitment from the Department of Health and Community Services that provided the resources to hire our first full-time staff person, in the position of Executive Director.  Katharine (Kate) Dunbar Winsor was appointed to this position after serving as the coordinator for fasdNL from 2015 to 2019.  Kate completed her Master’s in Sociology at Memorial University in 2018, producing a master’s thesis entitled, “If we get beyond the stereotype”: professionals' experiences attending to FASD, social supports and stigma in Newfoundland and Labrador, the results of which she presented widely and turned into a published paper.  Kate is currently a SSHRC-funded PhD candidate in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Concordia University in Montreal, QC, and her dissertation will explore the experiences of women, particularly mothers, formerly involved in the justice system, examining their substance use-related needs and challenges.  Kate’s fervent dedication to these themes and issues has been critical to the creation, development, and growth of fasdNL and our organization credits much of its success (and organization) to the ceaseless efforts of Kate.  To highlight some of her work, please check out our FASD in NL Landscape Paper, Shining a Light on FASD in Newfoundland and Labrador report, and our 2020 Annual Report.  fasdNL extends a very big official welcome to Kate as its first Executive Director!
 
fasdNL, in association with Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, also received a Canada Summer Jobs grant in 2020 to hire a full-time student in the position of research assistant to support the work of fasdNL.  Gillian Foley, who has a Certificate in Criminology and is currently finishing her Psychology Honours Major (Bachelor of Science) atMemorial University was hired in this position.  Gillian will continue to work part-time with fasdNL throughout the fall of 2020, thanks to a student career experience program through Memorial University.  Part of this position is running fasdNL Team’s account: @FASDNL_Team
 
We are very grateful for the immense work of both Gillian and Kate and look forward to continuing to grow fasdNL’s capacity and initiatives!