What is the Equity Action Planning Taskforce?
The Equity Action Planning Taskforce (EAPT) shall provide strategic direction and support for the process of conducting an Equity Audit at Nipissing University.
What is the Equity Audit?
Nipissing University strives to foster an inclusive community for all. The EDIA audit will provide valuable insights to help shape policies, programs, and practices that benefit the entire community. Participation in the audit ensures that all voices are heard and represented.
The audit process is confidential, objective, and conducted by an external expert organization, ParriagGroup. Regular updates will be provided to maintain transparency and keep the community informed.
Who is ParriagGroup?
ParriagGroup is the firm that has been selected by the EAPT to conduct an Equity Audit of Nipissing University.
How to Get Involved
Your input is essential in shaping meaningful change at Nipissing. This audit is an opportunity to ensure all voices are heard, and there are several ways to participate:
- Attend Community Forums – Engage in open discussions about inclusivity at Nipissing.
- Provide Feedback – Share your thoughts through surveys and consultations.
- Stay Informed – Follow updates via our EAPT webpage, social media, and newsletters.
Introducing ParriagGroup
Here at ParriagGroup, we know Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (EDIA) very well. We also know that EDIA audits can be daunting for organizations committing to making positive change.
Our team wants to work together with Nipissing to make this EDIA audit meaningful.
Here’s why we're excited to be doing this work:
- We have experience addressing institutional EDIA gaps in universities and take great care to attend to the unique and complex intersectionalities that make up the faces at your university.
- We specialize in EDIA and our approach is authentic. We have a dedicated team who lead with heart, and we value diverse perspectives because we believe they can change the world for the better.
- We’re serious about research. The recommendations that will come out of this EDIA audit are important, so we always use the highest level of analytical rigor with data.
- Our team shares a genuine commitment to ensuring Nipissing is creating an equitable, diverse, inclusive and accessible place of learning, work, and community. We are grateful to do this work alongside you.
If you have any questions or concerns, we’d love to chat with you. Our team can be reached at parriaggroup@gmail.com.
Project Scope: About the Audit Process
The EDIA audit will include three stages:
Environmental Scan
- Systems review & gap analysis
- Assessment of current state
- Review & summary of best practices within EDIA work at universities
Consultations and Engagements
- Survey (staff, students, alumni, and community members)
- Focus groups and interviews with staff and students
- Ensure that diverse voices are included in our data collection
Final Report
- Compile all data collected to inform recommendations for change and action within the university
- Knowledge transfer for Nipissing staff to engage in future audits
Events
March 12 - 21, 2025
Student and Faculty Online Engagement Sessions
Please visit the link below to sign up:
Frequently Asked Questions
Meet the ParriagGroup Team
Amanda Parriag
(she/her)
EDIA Audit Project Lead
Dr. Amanda Parriag holds a PhD in Applied Psychology and has extensive experience in EDIA work, quantitative, and qualitative data gathering, and communications.
Amanda has spent the last 25 years cementing herself as an advocate for a more equitable future for all.
A Trini-Canadian woman herself, Amanda allows her lived experience as a racialized woman in Canada to guide her work.
In this audit, Amanda will be the Project Lead, support on-campus engagement, liaise with the EAPT, and support data analysis and reporting.
Susan Underhill
(she/her)
Data & Policy Researcher
Susan holds a Master of Science in Psychology from Memorial University in Newfoundland. She has devoted her career to working toward improved outcomes for equity-seeking groups.
She regularly reviews policy and supports good data gathering with equity-seeking groups to further community-directed goals.
Susan has worked on the University of Alberta’s Services Excellence Transformation.
In this audit, Susan will lead the environmental scan, review data and policies, and support excellent data analysis.
Erin Bull
(she/her)
Research & Engagement
Erin Bull holds a Bachelor of Arts - Honours (Global Studies and Women and Gender Studies). She specializes in qualitative analysis, and loves listening to the diverse perspectives of those she gets to meet during engagements.
Employing an intersectional approach, Erin pays unique attention to the challenges and needs of those who experience marginalization through systemic violence. She considers it a tremendous privilege to collaboratively work toward a safer future for all.
In this audit, Erin will support the survey, as well as staff, faculty, and student engagement, and will bring her lens to the data analysis. Erin will help write the final report with recommendations to help Nipissing move forward in a good way.
Arlene Laliberté
(she/her)
Indigenous Engagement and Research Lead
Arlene Laliberté, PhD. is an Anishenabekwe from Timiskaming First Nation. Arlene has worked extensively leading Indigenous community-based action research projects to support empowerment, health equity, social justice and wellbeing, and to prevent suicide.
Arlene uses innovative and empowerment research methodologies and is an expert in program evaluation, suicide prevention, and trauma-informed mental healthcare.
Arlene will lead the research and engagement within this audit in the spirit and respect of Indigenous ways of knowing, being and doing.
Ren McFadyen
(they/them)
2SLGBTQIA+, Accessibility and Indigenous Engagement
Born in Quebec of Mohawk and Scottish settler influences, Ren identifies as Two Spirit, disabled, gender queer, and surviving roots of generational poverty.
Conducting trauma-informed qualitative research and gender based-analysis for over 20 years, Ren brings excellent facilitation skills and effectively engages diverse participant cohorts with gentle humour and empathy.
Ren will support the engagements for this audit with an intersectional lens that centers the experiences of Indigenous, 2SLGBTQIA+, racialized, disabled, and other equity-seeking communities.