Dr. Elaine Ply and David Henry’s gift will support student and research diversity in Dalhousie’s Clinical Psychology PhD program. 

By Kenneth Conrad | For Giving Power

The chance to live close to the ocean tends to be a big draw for students coming to Dalhousie University from outside the Maritimes, and Bianca Matthews is no exception. 

Born and raised in Mississauga, Ontario, Matthews completed her undergraduate degree at McGill University. She says she is looking forward to experiencing everything Atlantic Canada has to offer as she begins a doctoral program in clinical psychology at Dalhousie. 

“I’m so excited to be living in a coastal city and to experience real beaches,” she says. “And to eat all the amazing seafood. I’ve yet to try a lobster roll.” 

Culinary delights aside, Matthews was also drawn to Halifax and Dalhousie for the opportunity to be supervised by Dr. Christine Chambers (BSc’96), Professor, Canada Research Chair in Children’s Pain, and the Scientific Director of Solutions for Kids in Pain (SKIP). 

Including diverse perspectives in research

Matthews’ research interests centre around the contribution of unique minority stressors to chronic pain coping experiences, as well as chronic pain knowledge translation pertaining to diverse experiences. This interest in chronic pain intervention was inspired by working with a former graduate student of Dr. Chambers’ a few years ago at BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver. 

“I knew from then on that I wanted to focus my research and clinical efforts in chronic pain and knowledge translation,” says Matthews. “Not only is Dr. Chambers an absolute powerhouse, but her lab is one of the few in Canada that supports these unique research goals.” 

While being accepted into a PhD program and finding a supervisor were important steps in her journey to Dalhousie, for Matthews, being a graduate student also includes challenges like finding grants and scholarships, and moving to a new province. 

In June 2023, she received the welcome news that she had been named the inaugural recipient of Dalhousie’s Building Diversity in Clinical Psychology Bursary. Awarded annually to a student in the Department of Psychology & Neuroscience’s Clinical Psychology PhD program, the $10,000 bursary aims to increase diversity in the clinical psychology field by providing financial support to trainees from under-represented and equity-deserving groups. 

“I was over the moon upon hearing the news,” says Matthews. “It definitely eased some stress.” 

Leaving a legacy

Before moving from Texas to make Nova Scotia their home in 2009, Dr. Elaine Ply and her husband, David Henry, enjoyed careers interacting with diverse populations – Ply as a psychologist and director of a non-profit counselling centre and Henry through his work at a community college. Following a decade with Dalhousie’s Department of Psychology & Neuroscience as a faculty member and field placement coordinator for the Clinical Psychology PhD program, Ply retired in 2020. She decided she wanted to do something to give back. 

“From my time in the program, I became aware that recruiting students from diverse backgrounds was sometimes difficult,” she says. “They may have had to work their way through school and may not have had the luxury of volunteering in research labs or hospitals that would put their applications at the top of the list. Creating a bursary aimed at supporting diverse students seemed a good way to help the clinical psychology program in their efforts to increase the number of diverse applicants.” 

Ply and Henry subsequently made a gift that helped create the Building Diversity in Clinical Psychology Bursary to support student and research diversity.  

“My hope is that the bursary not only helps the program support these students, but over time, helps the field of psychology as a whole by increasing the number of culturally diverse psychologists, especially in Nova Scotia,” says Ply. 

Diversifying clinical psychology

“We are so grateful to Dr. Elaine Ply and David Henry for establishing this bursary for our students,” says Dr. Natalie Rosen, Professor and Associate Director of Clinical Training in the Department of Psychology & Neuroscience. “Their generosity will undoubtedly help under-represented students thrive in our program by reducing their financial stress and will ultimately promote diversity in the larger field of clinical psychology.” 

Both Ply and Henry say they hope the fund associated with the bursary will continue to grow, so that in future years additional students will be supported. For now, their generosity has had a tremendous impact on Matthews, who is looking forward to completing her doctoral program and one day working directly with the racialized populations she is researching. 

“It’s been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember,” says Matthews. “It’s great to see this dream actualized.”