Dr. Melissa Tremblay

Biography

Melissa Tremblay is a Métis scholar who was born and raised in rural Alberta. She joined the Faculty of Education at the University of Alberta in 2018, where she is an Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Psychology, focusing on clinical child psychology. Tremblay has a background in program evaluation and project management, particularly concerning children's mental health and working with Indigenous children and families through community-grounded methods. Her theoretical approach to clinical counseling practice is integrative and strengths-focused, guided by ecological systems theory, feminist theory, and holistic approaches to wellness that respect Indigenous worldviews and traditions. Her research adopts a relational and community-based participatory approach, emphasizing collaboration with Indigenous communities in Alberta. Tremblay aims to continue learning alongside community members to ethically co-create research that honors Indigenous perspectives while balancing the expectations of academic research. Her interests primarily focus on exploring strengths, resilience, and mental health among Indigenous children, youth, and families, utilizing arts-based methods across diverse populations. She co-leads several community-grounded research initiatives, including a CIHR-funded project aimed at developing community-led tools for understanding Indigenous children's early mental health and a national project to co-create an Indigenous Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder framework.

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