Melanee
Thomas took an early interest in politics after watching her mother
walk on an illegal picket line during the wildcat nurses’ strike in
1988. This early interest in politics evolved into a more scholarly
interest in political science and mass political behaviour. As an
undergraduate, Melanee worked as a research assistant, served as
Students’ Union President, and was the 2003 YWCA Young Woman of
Distinction for the Lethbridge area. During her MA, Melanee served as
the political science representative to the Graduate Students’
Association (GSA), as a member of the GSA’s collective bargaining team,
and as a representative on the board of Equal Voice Alberta South. She
has won numerous academic awards, including Canada Graduate
Scholarships at both the Masters and doctoral levels.
Melanee’s doctoral research examines why women in post-industrial
democracies consistently report lower levels of political
self-confidence and political interest than their male peers, despite
the tremendous changes in women’s lives since the mid-20th century. She
argues that the gains made by women in education, income, and the
workforce are significant and certainly have a positive effect on
women’s political behaviour. However, she contends that women
remain less interested in politics and less confident of their
political abilities compared to their male peers because of
countervailing factors such as the double day, pink-collar ghettoes and
the enduring gender gap in income, and the retrenchment of the welfare
state. This project ambitiously examines these gender differences
across countries to an extent that has not been done before, as well as
across time and qualitatively in selected cases.
In addition to her academic pursuits, Melanee currently serves as the
graduate student representative on the National Executive of the
Canadian Federation of Students (CFS). In this role, Melanee’s duties
include liaising with and supporting the 60 000+ graduate student
members of the CFS, advocating for graduate students to Members of
Parliament, and preparing government briefs, press releases and reports
on critical issues for graduate students.
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