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The Faculty of Education is delighted to announce that Dr. Michelle Nilson has received the . Recipients of this award are guided by the 2026 CSSHE Award Selection Committee鈥檚 criteria of substantial contribution to the activities of the Society. The committee applauded Dr. Nilson鈥檚 continuous contributions to the CSSHE, spanning over 15 years of dedicated work that included seven years in various leadership roles, most notably as CSSHE president. Dr. Nilson received her award on June 1 at the CSSHE AGM.

When asked what it means to receive the Distinguished Member Service Award, Dr. Nilson expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to serve CSSHE and to work for 15-plus years with dedicated colleagues and friends. 鈥淭his award is a huge honour, and when I look at who has received it previously, it is so humbling to see my name among them.鈥� By far the most meaningful personal aspect of this service, she added, has been the development of friendships with colleagues across Canada, 鈥済etting to know their work, and learning from and with them.鈥� Dr. Nilson also described the 鈥減rofessionally meaningful鈥� experience of working with colleagues to develop a 5-year strategic plan, which guides decision-making to support higher education scholars and students and connect Canadian and international scholars of higher education.

Expanding on her role and relationship with CSSHE鈥檚 Board of Directors, Dr. Nilson acknowledged how much she learned from two presidents who influenced her the most: Kathleen Matheos and Anne Charles, who had a deep understanding of CSSHE鈥檚 role in the formation of scholars and the field more broadly. The Board also provided feedback and input to the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences, notably lobbying the (now former) President and CEO of Congress for graduate student and community member funding and participation, which, Dr. Nilson stressed, has increased over the past 10 years.

Dr. Nilson also emphasized CSSHE鈥檚 ongoing commitment to accessibility. Even before 2020, she noted, CSSHE urged Congress to increase accessibility through remote participation, enabling those who cannot travel to Congress an opportunity to participate. The CSSHE is also committed to offering reduced fee registrations, regardless of the reason for needing support. 鈥淚 also continued to serve in a representative capacity to the Federation in the revisioning of Congress 2026 and emphasized the importance of foregrounding equity and accessibility in planning,鈥� she added.

With the Board of Directors, Dr. Nilson facilitated forming and maintaining relationships with peer professional and academic associations such as the , , and , as well as professional associations like the and internationally, the . She notes, 鈥淭his offers the CSSHE members greater opportunities for sharing their works, accessing networks of professionals to interact with and learn from, and a wider range of potential collaborators.鈥� As well, CSSHE owns the ; since disseminating higher education research is a core goal of CSSHE, Dr. Nilson noted that the Board ensures the journal is well run鈥� administratively, respectfully, and financially. Summing up her work with the CSSHE Board, Dr. Nilson said, 鈥淎cross each of the domains that the Board is responsible for, my observation is that professionalism, transparency, and an ethic of care were central to their functioning.鈥�

For Dr. Nilson, 鈥渙ne of the most valuable threads of ongoing conversations鈥� in CSSHE started in 2015, with the release of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action during that June鈥檚 Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences. As conference program chair, Dr. Nilson co-hosted two public panels in partnership with CSSE that anticipated the TRC report and its recommendations. 鈥淕iven the role of education and higher education in residential schools,鈥� she added, 鈥渨e felt it was imperative to host these discussions, with aspirations towards building understanding and deepening our commitment to and practices of reconciliation.鈥� Since that time, CSSHE has devoted at least one plenary session to addressing the principles of Truth and Reconciliation, with several concurrent sessions also addressing the research in this area.

Dr. Nilson acknowledges that, like many other academic societies, CSSHE faces ongoing challenges. The Canadian government鈥檚 significant reduction in the number of study visas for international students has had a large negative impact on college and university funding. 鈥淚n many ways,鈥� she notes, 鈥渉igher education is still working through ways to manage this reduction in students and commensurate revenues.鈥� CSSHE鈥檚 work is deeply influenced by and reflects national and international policy discussions and decisions, and this policy change is manifesting in presentations and publications of colleagues. This also, she added, raised 鈥渁wareness of the prestige hierarchy and our colleagues who were struggling. We changed our registration fee structure to include reduced rates for those who need it.鈥� A different but equally urgent challenge emerging during Dr. Nilson鈥檚 time as president is the increased use of AI and LLMs. She notes, though, that CSSHE is in a good position to tap into expert research and insights around this issue.

Reflecting on her contributions to CSSHE and what lies ahead, Dr. Nilson sees that society is undergoing significant change 鈥渨hile the poly-crisis (environmental, economic, and increased militarization and war) is upon us.鈥� At the same time, she believes this is 鈥渁n exciting time to be a scholar of higher education and to see what is emerging in response to the various internal and external forces. Dum spiro spero.鈥�

In addition to her contributions to CSSHE, Dr. Nilson has an impressive publication record in the field of higher education. Her supervision and committee membership have also been instrumental for the success of emerging scholars in Canadian post-secondary education.