Dr. Donn Short

Dr. Donn Short, B.A. (Hons.); M.F.A.; J.D.; Ph.D., is the author of a trilogy of books dealing with bullying and safe schools — Making the Case; Am I Safe Here? and Don’t Be So Gay!, all published by UBC Press. He is a co-author of the text, The Every Teacher Project published by MTS. In addition to his scholarship dealing with bullying in schools, Dr. Short has written a number of dramatic works dealing with themes of youth and youth violence published by Arsenal Pulp Press, Push Pin Press and McGraw Hill Canada. He is committed to the rights of artists and is a member of PEN Canada, the Writers’ Union of Canada, the Playwrights Guild of Canada, the Manitoba Association of Playwrights and the Manitoba Writers Guild.

Dr. Short is the recipient of research grants from the Law Foundation of British Columbia, the Social Sciences Humanities Research Council, as well as other academic honours, awards and prizes.  Dr. Short was the winner of the Rh Institute Foundation Award for Outstanding Contributions to Scholarship and Research in the Social Sciences at the University of Manitoba. He was the winner of the inaugural Aaron Berg Award, presented by the Canadian Human Rights Commission, the Manitoba Human Rights Commission and the Manitoba Association for Rights and Liberties, awarded to a person involved in the legal profession who has contributed significantly to the advancement of human rights in Manitoba. Dr. Short has won the UM/UMFA Merit Award for research, service and teaching numerous times. 

Dr. Short was appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council to the Manitoba Human Rights Commission. At Robson Hall, Dr. Short founded the group Outlaws. He is the founding and current Editor-in-Chief of the Canadian Journal of Human Rights and is the Executive Director of the Legal Research Institute at the University of Manitoba.

• Making the Case: 2SLGBTQ+ Rights and Religion in Schools with Bruce MacDougall and Paul T. Clarke (Vancouver & Chicago: UBC Press & The University of Chicago Press, 2021).
• “The Express Trust” in M. Gillen and F. Woodman, eds., The Law of Trusts: A Contextual Approach, 4th ed. (Toronto:  Emond-Montgomery Publications, 2021).
• "Overcoming Barriers: Addressing Educators' Misconceptions and Fears About LGBTQ2+-Inclusive Education" with Christopher Campbell, Catherine Taylor, Elizabeth Meyer, Tracey Peter, Janice Ristock (2019) Education Canada.
• “Religious Beliefs and the Queer Classroom: Measuring the Impact of Religious Affiliation on LGBTQ-inclusive Education Practices” with Tracey Peter and Catherine Taylor. (2018) 185 Can J of Educ Admin & Policy 19.
• Am I Safe Here? (Vancouver: UBC Press, 2017).

• “Conflicting Beliefs, Perceptions and Behaviors” with Elizabeth Myer, Tracey Peter, Janice Ristock & Catherine Taylor in Joe Kosciw (GLSEN) & Oren Pizmony-Levy (Columbia), eds (2016) 13:1 & 2 J LGBT Youth “Special Issue on International Perspectives on Homophobic and Transphobic Bullying In Schools” 112-40.

• The Every Teacher Project on LGBTQ-Inclusive Education in Canada’s K-12 Schools with Catherine Taylor & Tracey Peter & Elizabeth Meyer. (Winnipeg: Manitoba Teachers’ Society, 2015).

• “Queering Schools, GSAs and the Law” in Gerald Walton, ed, The Gay Agenda: Claiming Space, Identity & Justice (New York: Peter Lang, 2014), 327-43.
• “The Equity Landscape for Sexual Minorities in Canada” with Gerald Hunt & David Rayside in Carol Agocs, ed, Employment Equity in Canada: The Legacy of the Abella Report (Toronto: UTP, 2014), 156-175.
• “AB v Bragg Communications: Law’s Next Steps … Should Bullying be a Tort … Or Even a Crime?” (2013) 37:1 Man LJ. 341.
• “Grounded in Moral Panic” UM Today, October 21, 2013.
• “Bound for Glory: Bill 18, The Public Schools Amendment Act (Safe and Inclusive Schools)” (2013) 36:2 Man LJ 115.
• Don’t Be So Gay! Queers, Bullying, and Making Schools Safe (Vancouver: UBC Press, 2013).
• “Human Rights and the Blank Page” (2012) Can J Hum Rts 21.
• “Highway 28” in Rattling the Stage (Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 2012).
• “The History of Juvenile Justice” and “The Rise of Children’s Rights” in The Social History of Crime and Punishment in America; Wilbur Miller & J Geoffrey Golson, eds, (Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, Inc, 2012).
• “Safe Schools: The Threat From Within?” (2011) 51:3 Education Canada 4.
• “Religion-Based Claims for Impinging On Queer Citizenship” with Bruce MacDougall (2010) 33:2 Dal LJ 133.
• “Conversations in Equity and Social Justice: Constructing Safe Schools for Queer Youth” (2010) 8:2 Journal for Critical Education Policy Studies 329.
• “Not Keeping A Straight Face: Matthew Shepard and The Laramie Project” in Laramie Project: Theatre Study Guide (Vancouver, UBC Dept. of Theatre & Film, 2009).
• “Am I Safe Here?” (2008) 19:3/4 Journal of Gay & Lesbian Social Services 31. Reprinted in Homophobic Bullying, James T. Sears, ed. (NY: Routledge, 2009).
• “Mapping Competing Normative Orders in Canadian High Schools” in Roderick C Flynn, ed, Students at the Centre (Vancouver: CAPSLE, 2008).
• “The Informal Regulation of Gender”, (2007) 16:2 Journal of Gender Studies 183.
• “Sexually Expressive Materials for Gay Men – Sex Discrimination or Subversive Potential?” (2005) 38 UBC Law Rev 111.
• “Playing With Angels” in Instant Applause (Playwrights Canada Press, Toronto, 2004).
• “Moral Rights of Authors and Théberge v Galerie d’Art du Petit Champlain Inc”, (2003) 8 Media & Arts Law Rev 153.
• “Tommy Nights” in Quickies 3, James C. Johnstone, ed.,  (Arsenal Pulp Press: Vancouver, 2003).

• University of Manitoba Rh Award (Social Sciences)
• University of Manitoba Merit Award: 2017
• University of Manitoba Merit Awards: 2014
• University of Manitoba Merit Award: 2013
• Aaron Berg Award for Human Rights: 2018