Her research includes work on sustainable communities and a study on the impacts of globalization on northern British Columbia. Dr. Summerville loves to be in the classroom and she believes deeply in empowering students to take ownership of their learning. She was the recipient of the UNBC Teaching Award in 2000 and she was short listed for the Canadian Political Science Prize for Teaching Excellence in 2010.. In 2013 she was the recipient of the UNBC Advancement of Literacy Award and the UNBC Excellence in Teaching Award.