Media

Announcing Masuma Khan as the new Nova Scotia Director of the National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS)

(Ottawa, April 18, 2019)

The board and staff of the National Educational Association of Disabled Students are thrilled to welcome Masuma Khan to the NEADS’ Board of Directors as our new Nova Scotia Director!  Masuma brings a wealth of experience and a passion for advocacy to the NEADS team. She has served as Vice President Academic and External of Dalhousie University Student Union (DSU) for the past two years. Before this position, she was the Campaigns and Outreach Coordinator for the DSU's Equity and Accessibility Office. Masuma has also worked at Reachability, a non-governmental organization that focuses on helping people with disabilities find work placements that fit their needs.

Masuma says of her new role with NEADS: “I am very excited to be the Nova Scotia NEADS director. I look forward to working with disabled students across the province and their respective student unions. I wholeheartedly promise to do everything in my capacity to make post-secondary education more accessible for students in Nova Scotia and throughout the country! ”

Tayler Glaspey, NEADS British Columbia Director and Treasurer, says she is very impressed with Masuma: "Masuma is fundamentally a very kind person and a professional in her approach to advocacy. When you are with her, you truly get a sense of her passion and enthusiasm to help and inspire others."

Masuma Khan takes a progressive, intersectional approach to her work for students in the community: “An intersectional framework allows me to critically analyze issues,” says Masuma. “I have worked extensively with student issues relating to the following:  Indigenous and racialized student issues, sexualized violence, 2SLGBTQ+, international, youth, environmental, labour and housing. I believe that disabled students hold a variety of intersections, and for the Nova Scotia Director to be able to make post-secondary institutions accessible there is a need for the representative to have this knowledge. Being born and raised in Mi'kmaq Territory (N.S), I have had the honor of building relationships with the Mi'kmaq community as well as the African Nova Scotian community. Through these relationships I believe I will be able to center those from historically marginalized communities in Nova Scotia.”

We look forward to engaging with Masuma Khan, NEADS Nova Scotia Director going forward in our project work, research and collaborations with other non-governmental organizations and governments in the province and across Canada. Masuma’s contact information will be available on the NEADS Board and Staff page on our website very soon. In the meantime, for further information please contact our national office.

National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS)
Rm. 514 Unicentre, Carleton University
Ottawa, Ontario, K1S 5B6, tel. (613) 380-8065, ext. 201
www.neads.ca
https://www.disabilityawards.ca/
http://breakingitdown.neads.ca/
https://www.facebook.com/myNEADS/
https://www.canadahelps.org/dn/344