Burke, Dr. Susan

Susan Burke
PhD, Health Sciences, MSW (UNBC), BA (TWU), RSW Associate Professor
Email:
susan.burke@unbc.ca
Phone:
250-960-6620
Cell:
250-961-7202
Office:
10-2562
Campus:
  • Prince George

Biography

Susan was born and raised in Prince George. She was a front-line child welfare social worker in northern B.C. from 1994 to 2014, working in Prince George as well as rural and remote communities in north and northwest B.C. In 2015, she joined UNBC as a faculty member. She has served in the roles of MSW Coordinator, Research Ethics Board member, and A/Vice-Chair of the Research Ethics Board. Since 2009, Susan has supervised/co-supervised 26 graduate students and hired/trained/supervised 6 undergraduate and graduate research assistants.

Research and Expertise

Susan's research is focused on Indigenous kinship care, Indigenous child welfare, and Indigenous social work practice and education. She also holds a particular interest in research with, by, and for Indigenous peoples and wrote her dissertation using an Indigenous research methodology.

Research Fields:
  • Education
  • First Nations
  • Health and Wellbeing
  • Social Work
Areas of Expertise:

Indigenous social work practice, child welfare practice, kinship care, social work health and wellness, indigenous social work education

Languages Spoken:
  • English
Currently accepting graduate students
Supervises in:
  • Social Work
  • Health Sciences
  • First Nations Studies
Available to be contacted by the media as a subject matter expert

Selected Publications

Burke, S., Bouey, J., Madsen, C., Costello, L., Schmidt, G., Barkaskas, P., White, N., Alder, C. (2022). Kinship care: Evaluating policy and practice. Journal of Public Child Welfare. DOI: 10.1080/15548732.2022.2091721

Buchner, K., Pearson, T., Burke, S. (2022). Indigenous women’s experiences with child protection at their child’s birth. Practice. DOI: 10.1080/09503153.2022.2054973

Burke, S., MacDonald, N. (2020). Indigenous post-secondary mentorship: Our journey. Social Work & Policy Studies: Social Justice, Practice and Theory, 3(2). Retrieved March 10, 2022 from https://openjournals.library.sydney.edu.au/index.php/SWPS/article/view/14447/13164

Burke, S. (2019). Teaching the history of colonization in the post-secondary classroom. Journal of Social Work Education. DOI: 10.1080/10437797.2019.1611510

Burke, S., Robinson, R. (2019). Reflections on Métissage as an Indigenous research praxis. AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples, https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1177180119837755.

Burke, S. (2018). Supporting Indigenous social workers in front line practice. Canadian Social Work Review, 35(1), 5 – 25.