Meet Dr. Delon Omrow

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Dr. Delon Omrow. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Dr. Delon, thank you so much for opening up with us about some important, but sometimes personal topics. One that really matters to us is overcoming Imposter Syndrome because we’ve seen how so many people are held back in life because of this and so we’d really appreciate hearing about how you overcame Imposter Syndrome.

As the only Associate Dean in the Faculty of Integrated Health and Community Care at Centennial College who is both male and a racialized minority, I’ve had occasional bouts of self-doubt and fear that I did not belong in certain spaces. My journey is one replete with examples of systemic bias, microaggressions, and underrepresentation in certain professional circles. I am reminded of Paul Gilroy’s statement that “it’s not about returning to one’s roots but coming to terms with one’s routes.” This has served as a reminder that I do, in fact, belong and that my perspective as a racialized person adds value—it brings insight others may lack, articulating truths so unassailable that to dispute them would be folly. Sometimes the best antidote to imposter feelings is agency — working to make spaces better for those who come after me; I feel I have done this for my students and faculty in the department of Public Safety and Community Care.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I’m currently the Associate Dean of Public Safety and Community Care in the Faculty of Integrated Health and Community Care at Centennial College, where I oversee programs like Police Foundations, Community and Justice Services, Addictions and Mental Health, Social Service Work, Pre-Service Fire – to name a few. Perhaps it was destiny: 221B Baker Street is the fictional London address of, unequivocally, the greatest criminologist and detective: Sherlock Holmes, famously created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. My birthday is February 21st (2.21). I’m not sure if this led me to the field of criminology: both my undergraduate and graduate degrees are rooted in this discipline, followed by a Post-doctoral Fellowship in the Faculty of Social Science and Humanities at Ontario Tech University (Oshawa, Ontario). I have served as a lecturer at Ontario Tech University, and a professor at Centennial College (also in Ontario). My academic work revolves around several inter-connected themes: Green criminology, especially as it relates to environmental crime and justice – the transnational trafficking of humans, wildlife, plants, hazardous waste, for example. The concept of “ecoviolence” was also the subject of my latest publication, “Ecoviolence Studies: Human Exploitation and Environmental Crime”, exploring violence directed at the environment, and how it often coincides with human exploitation.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

My advice would be to not (necessarily) return to one’s roots but to come to terms with one’s routes – the many routes that have brought you to this very moment in time. The trauma of colonialism, imperialism and Eurocentrism has changed so many aspects of where my parents once claimed their roots (Guyana). Today, I reflect on the routes that have brought me to where I am, and how I can navigate these complex systems to exercise agency, reclaiming my story and recognizing my earned strengths. 3 qualities would be humility, self-compassion and patience, as these have all helped during my journey, especially when I very close to giving up.

What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?

The most impactful thing my parents did for me was love one another, even during the most impossible of times. They have taught me that perhaps life is not about finding the perfect partner, but about loving another person imperfectly. My mother and father may not have been the perfect couple but through them I learned many valuable lessons about resilience, compassion and forgiveness.

Contact Info:

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• Linkedin: Delon Omrow
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