SFU stamps Graduates’ hard work of excellence at Spring Convocation

Of all the stories, that of Jodie Warren’s was the most courageous. Warren received SFU’s Terry Fox Gold Medal to acknowledge her courage in the face of having survived a severe stroke in 1997 at the age of 23, during her undergraduate studies.

Left with extensive damage, including the loss of her right arm, Warren persevered through an extended recovery period to complete her B.Sc in biology in 1999 and an MA in criminology in 2007.

Today, the Métis alumnus received her PhD in criminology after completing an exceptional thesis that required no changes — a circumstance that her graduate supervisor, Professor Gail Anderson says “is rare and very cool.”

Warren’s interest in biology led her to volunteer in Anderson’s forensics entomology lab. The lab conducts research on how insects colonize dead bodies — information that is then applied in police investigations. She next completed a BCIT certificate program in forensic science and, after receiving encouragement from Anderson, pursued a master’s degree in criminology under Anderson’s supervision.

Her PhD thesis examined whether using a spectrometer to measure light reflecting off of insects could be used to better judge their age. She published her findings in several prestigious, peer-reviewed academic journals. And her examining committee unanimously agreed her work has excellent potential for making a major impact in the forensics entomology field.

Warren took the full eight years to earn this final degree, taking time out for surgeries she hoped would improve the mobility of her hand and leg. Warren says she would probably have become a school teacher if she hadn’t been sidelined by the stroke. Instead, she discovered a passion for forensics and hopes to now pursue a career as a professor.

She says working at SFU among some of North America’s best experts in forensics has given her excellent career options.