Jen is a 4th generation Ukrainian Canadian, whose great-grandparents settled in Manitoba and Alberta between 1900 and 1910. She was born in Saskatoon but grew up in Australia and Alberta, and she has been working in the cultural sector for more than 25 years. As someone who moved between countries many times both as a child and as an adult, nearly always arriving to new places as a stranger, Jen has a deep appreciation for the importance of the feeling of belonging.

An art school graduate with a Master’s in Anthropology and a PhD in Public Policy, Jen has a deep interest in museum management and improving the service museums can offer to the public. She took on the role of Executive Director of the Ukrainian Museum of Canada in May 2022. Her team at the museum is small but mighty – creative, dedicated, and committed.