Robyn Schwarz

Robyn is a PhD Candidate in the Department of History at Western University, where she researches and teaches Canadian history. Her areas of expertise include Canadian women's history and post-war Canada. Her dissertation examines single mothers in Ontario from 1945 to 1980, focusing on how different government institutions and social programs viewed single mothers as "problem women." She is currently completing archival research in local, provincial, and federal archives for this project. Some of the sources she examines include divorce case files, government records in the areas of health and social welfare, records from children's aid societies, maternity homes, and different religious groups. Robyn's research seeks to provide historical context for the inadequacies single mothers continue to face today in Canadian society.

Outside of her own research, she works as a feminist historian to promote greater understanding of a variety of women's issues. She organizes a monthly session for female graduate students and professors to get together and discuss different challenges facing women in higher education. She regularly speaks out on reproductive rights issues in Canada and the United States, particularly around abortion access. She is a member of the Reproductive Activism and Abortion Research Network.