By Lincoln DePradine
The diploma applications of the scholars are as numerous because the post-secondary establishments they’re attending. Every scholar was grateful for the receipt of monetary sponsorship via the Council of Caribbean Associations-Canada (CCAC), and so they have been admonished to worth their schooling.
“Schooling is the important thing to creating positive that outcomes are beneficial for you and your loved ones,’’ Afiya Hypolite, a Household Companies—Youngster Safety Employee, mentioned in delivering the keynote handle at CCAC’s 2023 awards of scholarship and bursaries.
The award recipients – whose profession pursuits embrace legislation, faculty educating, enterprise administration, pc science, style design, well being sciences, psychiatry, communications, social psychology and human useful resource administration – are attending Seneca Polytechnic, York College, McMaster College, Queen’s College, Toronto Metropolitan College, and Guelph-Humber College.
The bursary and scholarships, in accordance with CCAC, are distributed to college students for his or her “educational efforts, neighborhood involvement and contribution within the Caribbean neighborhood in Ontario’’.
CCAC, a registered non-profit umbrella group launched in 2009 and comprising Caribbean nationwide associations within the Higher Toronto Space, says the awards’ objective can also be “to encourage and help youth from Caribbean international locations which can be at the moment resident in Ontario to pursue their academic objectives at college or faculty degree’’.
This 12 months’s winners are Lenron Doyle; Amanda Sullivan; Kezia Harley; Azalee Lambert; Savannah Inexperienced; Gabrielle Forbes-Cultess; Noah Fergusson; Davisha Joseph; Sydney Telfer; and Kenya James.
The scholars’ tuition help packages have been a mixture of personal, particular person donations, in addition to company help from entities reminiscent of Grace Meals Canada Inc., Bedessee Imports Ltd., Arbor Memorial and Seneca Polytechnic.
Other than bursaries of $1,000 every, Lenron Doyle acquired a full tuition-paid scholarship from Seneca Polytechnic valued at $6,000 yearly for 4 years.
“We’re dedicated to making sure {that a} Seneca Polytechnic schooling is accessible for everybody who desires to check with us. It’s fantastic that our partnership with CCAC has grow to be a template for partnership with different neighborhood organizations,’’ mentioned Dean Hughes, Seneca’s govt director of development and alumni.
He informed Doyle and the opposite awardees that they’ve “unbelievable futures’’ forward of them, and likewise saying that Seneca Polytechnic combines “the very best of the school and college schooling and we provide a seamless transition into employment’’.
“Uplifting the Subsequent Era: Investing in Schooling’’ was the theme of this 12 months’s bursary and scholarship presentation.
Hypolite, in her keynote handle, famous that it as soon as was unlawful for Black folks to be taught to learn and write. Nonetheless, they by no means stopped making an attempt to teach themselves, she added.
“We should worth the chance at an schooling,’’ mentioned Hypolite, a former College of the West Indies and York College scholar. She’s additionally a Grasp’s diploma Osgoode Legislation College graduate, who’s pursuing licensing to grow to be a working towards household lawyer.
“I wish to encourage you to be an agent of change. Use this chance to be taught, develop and move in your information. What you do right this moment might encourage somebody tomorrow,’’ mentioned Hypolite. “Be taught your historical past, hone your craft, spend money on your schooling, uplift the following era.’’
Gideon Exeter, the CCAC president, inspired the involvement of further sponsors of scholar awards.
“You’ll be serving to a teenager in our neighborhood, of Caribbean descent, to attain their academic objectives,’’ he mentioned. “I stay up for CCAC persevering with this program for a few years, past the lifespan of Gideon Exeter.’’
