Lynsey Race

MA in Gender and Social Justice Studies (2017)


Capstone Project: Mother-Child Units in Prison: Disciplining the "Unworthy Mother"


Bio: Lynsey Race was part of the inaugural cohort of graduates from the Master of Arts in Gender and Social Justice Studies program in 2017. Prior to completing her first graduate degree, Lynsey completed Athabasca University’s Bachelor of Professional Arts in Governance, Law and Management from Athabasca University (2013), where she had her first opportunity to enroll in gender studies courses. Lynsey pursued her burgeoning passion for gender-based/intersectional analysis in the GSJ program where her research interests gravitated towards motherhood and the ways it is conceptualized and enforced. Her capstone paper interrogated the accelerating rates of incarceration of women, and the impact this has on maternal health and children. Lynsey presented her GSJ capstone paper in Banff, Alberta (2019) as part of a panel in the “Building Abolition” conference; organized and hosted by the University of Alberta’s Dr. Chloë Taylor. Lynsey’s capstone paper was expanded upon and published as a chapter in “Thriving Mothers/Depriving Mothers: Mothering and Welfare”, eds. Karine Levasseur, Stephanie Paterson and Lorna Turnbull, Bradford, ON: Demeter Press, 2020, with Dr. Lorna Stefanick.

Immediately after graduating from the Master of Arts in Gender and Social Justice Studies in 2017, Lynsey began the Master of Science in Occupational Therapy (MSc OT) at the University of Alberta. Within this program, Lynsey applied to and was accepted into  the scholar stream of the MSc OT program. As part of this small cohort, Lynsey was able to continue to pursue her research interests in marginalized motherhood. Lynsey’s final paper for the MSc OT program was an analysis of the interviews she conducted of community support workers  who were working with mothers with intellectual or developmental impairments experiencing domestic violence.

Lynsey graduated from the Master of Science in Occupational Therapy at the University of Alberta in 2019. Lynsey is currently employed by Correctional Service Canada as a registered Occupational Therapist, where she works with incarcerated persons who wish to receive mental health services.