Sally Jones: Harmonizing Academia and Art
Wednesday, April 12th, 2023
NWP Instructor Sally Jones
Dr. Sally Jones, born and raised in the Peace Country, grew up on her family farm on the north banks of the Peace River. She has always felt a connection to the river, which ran through her veins like an invisible thread that always connected her back home.
As her father is a pioneer of the Peace Country, her connections to this area run deep. As an English Instructor at Northwestern Polytechnic (NWP) for the past 18 years, Sally pursues her passions in the place she has always called home.
Growing up, she had always loved music and literature, but it wasn't until she attended Trinity Western University when she truly started to realize how to make her dream career come to life.
At Trinity Western University, Sally majored in English and Music, two passions which captivated her since childhood. “As a little girl, I remember thinking, ‘how can I make a career out of both’’’, Sally said.
She met her husband in university and they eventually moved from Canada to Nashville, Tennessee where Sally found herself quickly immersed in the local music scene. Sally joined a band, signed a record deal, and spent the next six years performing and touring full-time. During this time, Sally pursued her Master in English at Middle Tennessee State University. Later, Sally completed her PhD at the University of Aberdeen.
After deciding to start a family, Sally realized she wanted her daughter to know Canada, the Peace Country, her family, and the farm.
After spending some time browsing job boards online, Sally stumbled across an advertisement for an English instructor with NWP. Without a moment's hesitation, she threw together her resume as the job listing was closing that night.
When Sally got the phone call for an interview and was asked why someone would want to come to Northern Alberta all the way from Nashville, she told them, “This is me coming home.”
It didn’t take long for Sally to learn she loved connecting with students; often finding herself watching her students become entranced by stories they never knew existed before.
“I really enjoy helping people learn to love reading,” Sally said. “When people can finally get excited about literature and reading, that moment is really important. Literature is so important because it exposes you to other people’s lives, not just the one you are in.”
Although her career journey was unconventional and took her all over the world, Sally never gave up on pursuing what she loved.
See where the arts can take you! Visit NWP.me/Arts to learn more.
