Bursaries

PCL’s partnership with Algonquin College benefits the local construction company on many fronts.

Paul Knowles, vice-president and district manager of PCL Constructors’ Ottawa office, says it means a lot to him to also be able to give back and connect with today’s students. He points to the growing association with Indigenous learners as just one of those special relationships.

“Beginning with our team’s building of the DARE District, which supports the education experience of Indigenous students in extensive ways, and then having become part of the fabric of the college as the first DARE6 partner, has been enriching and impactful to our organization and its employees. We are honoured to be able to positively affect the lives of Indigenous learners as they develop their skills and experience through the advanced education offered at Algonquin College.”

In 2021, PCL pledged $216,000 over six years to the DARE6 initiative, which supports indigenization efforts at Algonquin – such as the expansion of the Three Sisters Garden at the Ottawa campus.  

DARE6 is a collaborative partnership Algonquin has entered with select corporate stakeholders to help further the College’s commitment to Truth and Reconciliation.

The concept is based on an Indigenous governance model derived from the Iroquois, or Haudenosaunee, Confederacy dating back a thousand years. The Confederacy, sometimes described as one of the world’s oldest participatory democracies, included the Seneca, Cayuga, Oneida, Onondaga, Mohawk, and Tuscarora.

Occupying what is now Upper New York State and southeastern Quebec and Ontario, these six tribes united under the Great Law of Peace. The Great Law, with its emphasis on living in peace, harmony, and respect is considered both a political constitution and a cultural description of Haudenosaunee society.

Algonquin College drew on the history of the Iroquois Confederacy in wanting to establish special partnerships between the College and six corporate stakeholders – hence, the DARE6 moniker.

A $2,000 PCL Constructors Dare6 Bursary was recently awarded to each of 10 lucky Algonquin students.

The bursary is awarded to students demonstrating financial need enrolled in four programs at the Ottawa, Perth, Pembroke and on-line campuses, including Early Childhood Education, Office Administration (General), Office Administration (Executive) and Business.

“We welcome and appreciate the generosity of PCL in joining us in transforming the hopes and dreams of Algonquin students into lifelong success and together empowering globally minded learners through this generous gift,” said Mark Savenkoff, Vice-President of Advancement and Strategy at Algonquin.

Crystal Lafond was one of this year’s lucky recipients of PCL’s ongoing generosity.

“I greatly appreciate the bursary I was awarded since I am currently living alone in Ottawa to attend school,” said Lafond, who comes from a Cree community 18 hours from Ottawa in northern Quebec.

“I had to move away from my family and support system in order to pursue my education,” Lafond added. “I had to learn how to budget and make do with what I have, and this bursary will help me a lot to get by since I don’t have anyone else to help me with expenses.”

She recently attained her goal to graduate from Algonquin’s Office Administration program.

Lafond chose to attend Algonquin “because I knew it had a lot of Indigenous resources and the Indigenous Studies program sparked my interest to start my post-secondary education.”

She hopes to be accepted into Biomedical Laboratory Technology at Dawson College this fall.

A second Indigenous student (who asked to remain anonymous) is able to continue her studies at Algonquin thanks to a PCL bursary.

“This bursary will be put towards my future tuition fees and textbooks to help make my dream job come true and ensure I do the best I possibly can at helping children and have an impact on their lives,” said the student, who is currently enrolled in the Early Childhood Educator program. “I really enjoy working with young children and it is my dream job to assist in preparing them for their future academics and help develop essential skills.”

From left to right: Jennifer Lorimer, Mark Savenkoff, Carol MacKay

For the first time in more than a century, the Ottawa Women’s Canadian Club (OWCC) is creating a bursary in the name of the social club for a college student.

Algonquin is the lucky inaugural recipient of the club’s longstanding generosity.

Traditionally a donation has been gifted to a student enrolled in university.

Club President Carol MacKay and vice-president Jennifer Lorimer presented a $15,000 cheque recently to Mark Savenkoff, vice-president Advancement & Strategy at Algonquin.

The Ottawa Women’s Canadian Club Bursary will be awarded annually to a second, third, or fourth-year female student at Algonquin enrolled in any diploma or degree program at any campus and who demonstrates financial need.

MacKay has been advocating to support college students and feels strongly that women who choose college over university can too be leaders.

She is promising this year’s donation is not a one-off.

“It will be a long relationship. We’re so happy to be on board,” MacKay said during a recent visit to the Ottawa campus. “We all felt it was time that some of the other (post-secondary) schools were recognized. We thought it was time to expand and reach out. Not everyone goes to university.”

“There are so many more practicalities and life skills taught at Algonquin,” added Lorimer, a graduate of the College’s nursing school. “The goal is to help whoever it needs to help so that they can get the education that they want and help them in some small way.”

The club was formed in 1910 with a mission to foster an interest in all matters of public concern to strengthen Canadian unity and to preserve and promote the country’s heritage and history.

Over the past 113 years, it has been contributing to society through war efforts and a student scholarship program. The club believes higher education plays an important role in leading happy, successful lives and this serves as an impetus for maintaining scholarship programs for those in need.

Members, some who have been with OWCC for more than 40 and 50 years, have always understood that education gives young people the ability to control their lives by teaching skills required for employment.

The club believes a good education helps make the world a better place by exploring what is right, wrong, fair, and unfair.
“We hope we are helping to create better global citizens,” its mission statement reads.

Lorimer says of the club’s origin, it was a way for women “to come together and to do good, whatever that decade was, and whatever that good was.”

The club has evolved over the decades, branching out from a simple social gathering to offering members a chance at networking, fellowship, and to introduce them to people they may not know.

“It’s important, I think, for these women to have the club,” said Lorimer. “A lot of them are involved in their churches or some other community groups. The club provides an engaging and informative, relevant, speaker over lunch and that’s what keeps bringing people back.”

Over the life of the club, countless students have benefitted from members’ generosity.

“I think where our volunteerism, our philanthropy, lies is our ability to support women,” said Lorimer. “I knew when I was in school there was so many people, myself included, that needed financial aid and if there had been a bursary like this could have taken advantage of it to maybe pay for textbooks one year, or something like that, that would have been a big help. I worked part-time and was in nursing school. It was really tough. So, I’m hoping that we can give other people that leg up or that opportunity. It will just make the community better for everyone.”

The key for the club is in its name says MacKay.

“It’s really reflecting on Canadian values. The things that Canadians hold dear. Respecting one another, listening to one another, helping our neighbours and that is exactly what we are doing by giving these bursaries, is helping our neighbours and ultimately helping raise everybody up.”

Lorimer adds that, at its core, members are looking to get involved, meet other people and be part of a history of giving.
“The legacy is incredible,” she said. “There are a lot of organizations out there that host luncheons. But what makes ours different? It’s the members. Our ladies are amazing. I learn something from them all the time. The stories and their lives are so interesting. We try to celebrate these ladies because they’re worth it and they deserve it.”

Pictured from left to right: Patricia Duffey, CFUW-Ottawa, Chair, Scholarship Trust Fund; Kyle Jorgensen-Lane, Manager of Financial Aid and Student Awards; Ola Asekun, HOMSA, Nigeria; Lorna Bickerton, CFUW-Ottawa; Sarah Harvey, HOMSA, New Zealand, HOPE Committee Chair. Photo by Nancy Druick

Algonquin College is pleased to announce the creation of a new bursary for refugee women. The HOPE Bursary for Refugee Women was made possible through a partnership between the CFUW-Ottawa and the Heads of Mission Spouses Association (HOMSA).

HOMSA and CFUW-Ottawa raised the $10,000 gift to support this bursary by hosting the HOPE Gala for Refugee Women in May 2022.

The $2,000 HOPE Bursary for Refugee Women will be awarded annually for the next five years to a woman in the second or third year of a diploma program who is a convention refugee, a protected person, or a permanent resident who was a refugee/protected person.

Algonquin College is pleased to announce a $400,000 gift from the Canerector Foundation that will support as many as 125 first-year students in 13 skilled trades programs over the next four years. This gift will also help promote skilled trades as an excellent career choice.

“We are pleased to announce the Canerector Foundation’s donation to Algonquin College to support skilled trades, which played a pivotal role in Canerector Inc.’s history and development. It is a special honour to support a field that is critical not just at Canerector, but in our overall economy. We hope that these scholarships and the mentorship provided by Algonquin College will attract and encourage students to join these rewarding and in-demand careers across our country.” – Amanda Hawkins, Director, Canerector Foundation

The Canerector Foundation Scholarship in the Skilled Trades will be offered to students based on their leadership qualities, ambassadorial potential, volunteerism and aptitude. Students in eligible Algonquin College certificate and diploma programs at all three campuses are eligible for the scholarship.

“This scholarship encourages student success from start to finish, giving learners additional support in their skilled trades career journey,” said Chris Hahn, Dean of the Algonquin Centre for Construction Excellence and Perth Campus. “Canada is facing a critical shortfall of skilled trades workers and this generous gift will also help raise the profile of skilled trades and increase the overall number and diversity of certified tradespeople in our community.”

Each of the scholars, numbering 110 to 125 over four years, will receive an initial scholarship of $1,000 and become a Canerector Foundation Scholar. Canerector Foundation Scholars will receive ongoing social and career support, including mentorship and increased access to employers and alumni.

Scholars who mentor current and prospective students in skilled trades, participate in co-curricular activities and maintain a minimum of 3.0 grade point average will be awarded an additional $1,000 per term, up to a maximum of $4,000.

“We are grateful to the Canerector Foundation for their support and dedication to our learners and to promoting skilled trades,” said Ian Lewer, Algonquin College Director of Philanthropy. “Canerector Foundation Scholars will become leaders and champions in and of the skilled trades, encouraging and inspiring others to follow in their career footsteps.”

The application period for the Canerector Scholarship in the Skilled Trades is from Aug. 17 to Sept. 19.

Canerector Foundation Scholarship in the Skilled Trades applicants must be Canadian citizens, permanent residents or protected persons/refugees entering the first year of an eligible skilled trade program of study. They must demonstrate a willingness to mentor current and prospective students in skilled trades training programs at the College and commit to participating in co-curricular events.

A full list of eligible programs and requirements is available on the College website.