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Sylva Sheridan

PhD Candidate (Legal Studies)

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Sylva’s research interest explores how Gladue writers manage trauma as part of their work. Gladue writers are exposed to secondary stress, which affects their allostatic load (physical and mental wellness). Sylva has been studying historical trauma theory for the past seven years to demonstrate the transgenerational effects of en masse trauma events (e.g., residential schools). Sylva is a Gladue writer with the Ottawa Pro Bono Gladue Pilot Project. Sylva is also a graduate of the MA in Legal Studies Program, where his thesis, , was accepted without revisions.

Supervisor: Dr. Jane Dickson
Committee Member: Dr. Shelley Brown
Committee Member: Dr. Zeina Bou-Zeid

Education

• MA Legal Studies (�Ӱ�ԭ�� University)
• BA (Hon) Major: Law; Minor, English (�Ӱ�ԭ�� University)
• Diploma, Applied Holistic Nutrition (The Institute of Holistic Nutrition)
• Certificate, Gladue Report Writer Training, Indigenous Perspectives Society/Royal Roads University

Teaching Experience

• Fall 2025: LAWS 2908 Methodological Approaches in Legal Studies I
• Fall 2025: LAWS 3908 Methodological Approaches to Legal Studies II
• Winter 2025: LAWS 4603 Transitional Justice
• Winter 2024: LAWS 2908 Methodological Approaches in Legal Studies I

Publications

• Sylva Sheridan, “R v Gladue: A Study of Historical Trauma Theory” (2025) 48:4 Manitoba Law Journal.
• Sylva Sheridan, “The Spectacle and Reification of Traumapower in Game of Thrones” (2023) 53:3 Canadian Review of American Studies 217.
• Sylva Sheridan, “Progression Through Regression: The Inferno of Daenerys Targaryen” (2019) 49:1 Canadian Review of American Studies 66.

Scholarships and Awards:

• Ontario Graduate Scholarship ($15,000) – 2025-2026
• Ontario Graduate Scholarship ($15,000) – 2024-2025
• �Ӱ�ԭ�� University Department Scholarship – 2022-2026

Op-Ed
Sylva Sheridan, “There can never be reconciliation without the entire truth” (June 28, 2021) online: The Hamilton Spectator ?.

Conference Presentations

• “Biological Approaches to Trauma”, University of Toronto Legal Studies Symposium, April 2023.
• “Analyzing Historical Trauma Theory in Application to the Intergenerational Effects of Indian Residential Schools”, Trent University Frosty Centre Graduate Student Association: Canada in Times of Crisis, October 2021.