Dalhousie’s vice president people and culture, Grace Jefferies-Aldridge.
Grace Jefferies-Aldridge
Grace Jefferies-Aldridge is the first African Nova Scotian vice president in Dal’s history; a long overdue milestone and a significant one for the university community. Grace was born and raised in Nova Scotia with direct family roots from Halifax and Cherry Brook Black communities as well as from Barbados.
In her newly created role, Grace is excited to lead Dal’s commitment to reshape human resources with an intentional approach to integrate equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility (EDIA) and prioritize workplace culture for faculty and staff.
Grace is a proud Dalhousie alum (Bachelor of Arts in Sociology) who also holds an Advanced Diploma in Human Resource Management from Nova Scotia Community College and a Harassment Investigations Diploma from the University of Calgary. She is currently undertaking a Certificate in Advanced Labour Relations & Human Resources with Queen’s University and has a long list of professional development related to EDIA, labour relations, recruitment, and change management.
Grace says in the past four years there has been an undeniable shift in many areas of our lives and within the HR profession. As an HR professional and leader, Grace wants to ensure the Dal work environment creates conditions for people to thrive, feel safe and healthy and contribute in a way that is engaging. She believes that it starts with everyday interactions and decisions.
“Dalhousie University has had a formative impact on my personal growth, and my experience here set the stage for a career rooted in a passion for people and human resources. I am incredibly inspired by Dalhousie’s vision for people- and culture-related work, especially the intentional connection between HR and the important, ongoing work of EDIA; the opportunity to contribute to and influence this vision is a privilege. I am excited to learn from and collaborate with the HR team and with teams across the Dalhousie community.”
Grace brings a wealth of experience working in municipal, provincial and federal governments, both here and in Alberta. In her more than 18 years working in human resources, she has led numerous employment equity, wellness and employee engagement initiatives, labour relations and workplace culture projects across complex, unionized organizations.
She is intentional about opportunities to make an impact in the community and currently serves on the board of the Black Business Initiative through the Business is Jammin' Board, which focuses on motivating and empowering Black and racially visible youth. Grace also served as a volunteer in the Dalhousie University Professional Mentor Program.