Brandon University mourns recent passing of Dr. Cindy Clarke
(News From Brandon University Website - August 31, 2021)
(Dr. Cindy Clarke)
All of Brandon University, and especially the Faculty of Education, are deeply saddened by the death of Dr. Cynthia (Cindy) Clarke.
Dr. Clarke joined BU in 2017 as an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education, with PENT and as a member of the Curriculum and Pedagogy Department. Her husband Brian shares that “She enjoyed her short time at Brandon, that after many years working at a variety of jobs she finally found where she belonged. It was a perfect fit.”
Dr. Clarke graduated with a Ph.D. in Curriculum Studies from the University of Saskatchewan. Prior to joining BU, Cindy was a special education teacher and consultant with the Prairie Spirit School Division (SK) and served as president of the Prairie Spirit Teachers’ Association for seven years.
In addition to many academic publications, Cindy’s poetry has been published in several journals including The Antigonish Review, FreeFall, and The Nashwaak Review. Many of the poems from Dr. Clarke’s book, The Blue Dress, first appeared in her doctoral dissertation, Beyond the Muskeg, which won the University of Saskatchewan Outstanding Dissertation Award in Social Sciences in 2017. Cindy also received an “Outstanding Author Contribution Award” from Emerald Publishing’s 2020 Literati Awards in recognition of her chapter in Volume 33 of Advances in Research on Teaching, which explored the use of poetry and narrative inquiry as a tool of research.
“Cindy was a remarkable, talented, kind, and creative woman,” says BU Dean of Education Dr. Heather Duncan. “We will mourn her passing deeply but we will also celebrate the life and accomplishments of an amazing woman.”
The BU flag has been lowered to half-mast in her honour.