General News

Donors Dwight and Christine Powless create scholarship for Indigenous learners

Dwight Powless donor appreciation event

(L-R) Kerry Potts, Full-Time Professor, Indigenous Pedagogy Curriculum Consultant; Eric Johnston, Manager, Mamidosewin Centre; Dwight Powless; Mark Savenkoff, Vice President, Advancement and Strategy

A new scholarship for high-performing Indigenous learners will be presented for the first time at the Algonquin College Convocation Ceremony June 21 thanks to a generous community donation.

This scholarship, made possible by a $20,000 donation from Dwight and Christine Powless, will be awarded annually at convocations to the graduating Indigenous learner with the highest GPA. According to Dwight Powless, this donation will serve as both a reward for academic excellence and as an aid for the unique financial issues often faced by Indigenous learners.

“Regardless of what situation you’re in, whether you’re going there with a million dollars or [nothing], your performance should be recognized,” he said.

A former Algonquin College employee, Powless’ work saw him develop initiatives to improve the lives and experiences of Indigenous learners. His efforts gave him both an insight into and a concern for the challenges faced by learners who rely on funding from an Indigenous band or other Indigenous entity.

Powless has written several books — including the recently published A Path Forward, which discusses continuous improvement through an Indigenous lens. He plans to have any royalties received for his new book, titled Your Creativity Sprint:The Five-Week Challenge to Better Insights, to be added to the scholarship fund. An expected additional bequest will see the overall value of the scholarship come to around $100,000, a strong legacy for both Dwight and the late Christine, who passed away in December 2022.

“[Christine] was supportive of the work at Algonquin and she would get involved where she could…. She was always interested in how Indigenous students were doing and performing,” he said, adding that she was concerned that students did not have enough of a safety net during the transition between graduation and employment.

Powless said that he is looking forward to seeing the scholarship awarded, placing special emphasis on the importance of the successful learner receiving recognition in front of an audience at convocation.

“We need successful awareness, and this is a way of showing that Indigenous people are capable, they’re achievers, they’re the ones who will say ‘I want to do really well this year and get good marks because I might get that reward.’”

While the scholarship is currently only slated for the individual Indigenous learner with the highest overall GPA, Powless has hope that it could be awarded to more learners in the future, suggesting that he might like to see the top learner from Métis, First Nations and Inuit backgrounds each be rewarded, or perhaps the top Indigenous learner in each of the College’s different schools.

Dwight and Christine chose to make their donation because they saw Algonquin College as an institution that would honour their gift and use it to improve the experiences of Indigenous learners, giving the College a chance to reaffirm its commitment to Truth and Reconciliation.

“[The scholarship] is a good example, I think, for the College to show that they’re demonstrating their belief in wanting Indigenous students to be successful within their organization.”

Donate to the Dwight and Christine Powless Indigenous Achievement Scholarship

Ten Algonquin students awarded $2,000 PCL Constructors Dare6 Bursary

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.”

Ottawa Women’s Canadian Club starts ‘long relationship’ with Algonquin

Ottawa Women's Canadian Club

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.”

The Schulich Foundation launches Canada’s largest skilled trades scholarship program

News Release

Algonquin College among 10 Ontario colleges awarding annual scholarships of up to $40,000 per student

(OTTAWA – February 9, 2023) – The Schulich Foundation today announced a game-changing program, Schulich Builders, a scholarship program dedicated to students pursuing a career in the skilled trades at 10 Ontario Colleges, including Algonquin College. In its first year of operation, more than $3 million is committed to combat labour shortages and highlight the importance of skilled trades in Canada through this initiative.

Schulich Builders will cover tuition, tools and living expenses for students enrolling in a skilled trade program. Priority will be given to students nominated by their high school. Students may also apply directly through participating colleges: Algonquin, Centennial, Fanshawe, George Brown, Mohawk, Sheridan, Conestoga, Durham, Humber and Loyalist.

“We are proud to promote the skilled trades and support students pursuing this rewarding career path,” said Judy Schulich, Director Schulich Foundation. “Canadians rely heavily on the trades to build and maintain infrastructure critical for prosperous communities. Our challenge today is not having enough of these talented people to meet the demand.”

In addition to financial support, Schulich Builders also provides leadership training and mentorship to set up graduates for success.

“Skilled tradespeople are essential for our workforce and recognizing their importance with these scholarships only strengthens our commitment to their success,” said Algonquin College President and CEO Claude Brulé. “Algonquin College has diverse and varied skilled trades programs available to learners that can lead to not only successful career opportunities, but life-long learning. The Schulich Builders scholarship program will be a gamechanger for students interested in pursuing a career in the skilled trades.”

Program Details:

Each college will award 10 scholarships per year:

  • five $20,000 scholarships for one-year certificate programs, and
  • five $40,000 scholarships for two-year diploma programs.

Additional supportive quotes:

“The Schulich Builders scholarship will be a gamechanger for so many students, and supports our government’s ongoing work with business, labour, colleges and universities to attract more young people into the skilled trades. We’re bolstering our skilled workforce to build the roads, highways, schools and hospitals our growing population needs.”
– The Honourable Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario

“Post-secondary education plays an instrumental role in preparing graduates for in-demand jobs. This investment in Ontario’s students is an investment in their future, and in turn will help build the skilled trades workforce that Ontario needs to thrive.”
– The Honourable Jill Dunlop, Minister of Colleges and Universities

“Ontario is facing the largest labour shortage in a generation, which means when you have a career in the skilled trades, you have a career for life. With Schulich Foundation’s skilled trade scholarship program, they are helping to attract and prepare a new generation of skilled trades workers here in Ontario for better jobs and bigger paycheques.”
– The Honourable Monte McNaughton, Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development

For more information, visit: schulichbuilders.com or Algonquin College’s Schulich Builders webpage

Taliban takeover propels local group to shift educational support to refugee women at Algonquin College

Women’s photojournalism course in Farah City, Afghanistan

“Women’s photojournalism course in Farah City, Afghanistan” by HMC Josh Ives, U.S. Navy/released is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

A $25,000 gift from the Ottawa Club of the Canadian Federation of University Women (CFUW-Ottawa) has established an endowed bursary to help Afghan refugee women at Algonquin College.

Since 2010, the club’s University Women Helping Afghan Women interest group and its 50 members have supported women students at Gawharshad University in Kabul. The Taliban take-over of Afghanistan in August 2021 and subsequent restrictions on women’s movements and activities now prevents that help from being delivered. The group looked to Algonquin College as an alternative primarily because of the College’s range of diploma and degree programs that may be appealing to women who are refugees from Afghanistan.

These are often women whose lives have been interrupted, said Lorna Bickerton, the fundraising chair of University Women Helping Afghan Women, and who have to return to school to study English or redo their qualifications once in Canada.

“Many of the Afghan diaspora that we have met here in Ottawa originally came to Canada for education to take back to their country,” said Bickerton. “I hope that this bursary will be an opportunity for our refugee recipient to continue or even to start her education then pass it on to other women and families in her community. As Dr. Sima Samar, founder of Gawharshad University has said, ‘If you educate a woman, you educate the family.’”

This bursary is the fourth scholarship or bursary the club has established at Algonquin College and brings their total giving to almost $60,000. In October, the group established the HOPE Bursary for Refugee Women in partnership with the Heads of Mission Spouses Association (HOMSA); previously, they established the Susan Davies Scholarship in Nursing and the Sherrylyn Sarazin Scholarship, for Indigenous students.

The group raises funds for their scholarships and bursaries in various ways, including through events, like garden parties, musical lunches and silent auctions, and well as by direct donation. The women who belong to the University Women Helping Afghan Women interest group are also committed to educating themselves about the issues facing women and girls in Afghanistan and raising awareness and advocating around the issues locally, nationally and internationally.

Patricia Duffey is chair of the CFUW-Ottawa’s Scholarship Trust, the CFUW-Ottawa committee that oversees all the club’s scholarships and bursaries.

“The bursaries will assist refugee women who have escaped war and very adverse conditions to pursue studies in an area of interest,” said Duffey. “Our hope is that the recipients of the awards will encourage others by becoming leaders and role models for women and children within their communities here in Canada.”

The $1,000 University Women Helping Afghan Women Legacy Bursary will be awarded annually to a second, third- or fourth-year female Afghan student enrolled in any diploma or degree program who demonstrates financial need and is in good academic standing. Preference will first be given to a convention refugee from Afghanistan. The bursary may also be distributed to a protected person or a permanent resident or Canadian citizen who was a refugee/protected person from Afghanistan.

Beginning next year, once the first bursary is awarded in the fall, the recipient and their families and friends will also be invited to a presentation event held by the Canadian Federation of University Women-Ottawa Scholarship Trust. This year’s event, scheduled for March, will take place at the Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre in Ottawa.