Teaching and Mentorship Overview

Dr. Shidmehr is an instructor at SFU’s Liberal Arts and 55+ Program, where she teaches creative writing and courses in history, culture, literature, and cinema of modern Iran.

She has also taught creative and academic writing at Douglas College and LaSalle College.

She has also served three times as a Writer-in-Residence at Regina Public Library, City of Richmond, and McMaster University’s Department of English and Cultural Studies.

Writer-in-Residence Positions

  • At McMaster University’s Department of English and Cultural Studies and Hamilton Public Library (September 2019 – April 2020).
  • At the City of Richmond (October 2017 – November 2017).
  • At Regina Public Library (September 2015-May 2016).

Literary Contest Judge / Jury / Reader Positions

  • Judge for the 2016 West End Writers Group Contest.
  • Judge for the 2015 Saskatchewan Poetry Society Open Theme Contest.
  • Reader for the 2015 CBC Poetry Prize.
  • Juror for the 2015 RBC Bronwen Wallace Award for Emerging Writers.

Current Courses (Fall 2024)

  • Autofiction: Blurring Life and Fiction in Autobiographical Writing.
  • Women of Impact: Shaping Iranian Society Behind the Scenes.

Past Courses

  • Fundamentals of Writing Personal Narrative.
  • Autobiographical Verses: Crafting a Poetic Voice through Life Writing.
  • Introduction to Poetry.
  • Poetry of Immigration.
  • Three Renowned Poetesses of Modern Iran: Their Lives and Poetry.
  • Life Writing: The Fundamentals of Autobiographical Writing.
  • Life Stories Tapestry: A Collective Writing Experience.
  • Writing Our Lives as Stories.
  • Life Writing: Creating a Self for Our Life Story.
  • Life Writing: Exploring and Recreating the Self. 
  • Collective Life Writing: Literary Metissage as an Ethos for Our Times.
  • Rhetoric and Composition. 
  • Academic Writing. 
  • Writing Fundamentals Workshop.  
  • The Iranian Women’s Movement: A Historical Perspective.
  • The Iranian Revolution: Origins, Impact, and Perspectives.
  • Iran’s Modern History: From the Qajars to the Aftermath of the Revolution.
  • Asghar Farhadi and His Cinema: Positive Critiques and Controversies.
  • Iranian Women and Their Struggles Portrayed in Film.
  • Iranian Women and Their Struggles Portrayed in Film.
  • Iranian Women and Their Demands for Change Portrayed in Film.
  • Modern Iran through Cinema.