These donations couldn’t have come at a better time: “Over the past two years, my focus has been on the mental health and wellness of our students. Financial support is such an integral part of well-being, and even more so during this ever-challenging public health crisis,” says Lennox Terrion. “We found an efficient and effective way to put money from generous donors into the hands of students who gravely needed it to achieve or pursue their academic goals.”
Lennox Terrion is grateful for the work of Kevin Kee, the Faculty dean, and Nicolas Mercier, director, stakeholder engagement, external relations, who led the initiative to boost these funds.
Kee shares Lennox Terrion’s passion for student well-being: “Caring for our students is my highest priority and I know that many of them have found the past two years challenging — emotionally, physically, academically and financially. Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we are able to offer this support.”
The Faculty has distributed the donations as follows:
Current students
Student Emergency Fund — $13,000
This non-application-based scholarship fund, the result of a significant anonymous donation, has allowed the Faculty to identify students in crisis who need immediate support.
Reaching the Finish Line Fund — $20,000
This non-application-based, flexible scholarship fund offers a lifeline. Some students haven’t been able to complete their studies due to financial constraints. The fund has allowed the Faculty to identify students in need and keep them afloat until they graduate.
Greatest Needs Fund — $95,000 (undergraduate) and $45,000 (graduate students)
This scholarship supports students with the greatest financial needs. A flexible, non-application-based structure has allowed the Faculty and the Financial Aid and Awards Service to identify them. This year, over 100 students have received financial aid through this initiative.
Student Experience Fund – $25,000
This scholarship has supported many student-run initiatives, such as theatre productions, equipment purchases, conferences and guest speakers, vernissages and exchanges abroad. It remains an application-based fund and continues to support many exciting student activities.
New students
Inclusive Admission Scholarship – $22,000
This scholarship is given to students who may not have the required admission average due to extenuating circumstances. They’re admitted to an arts program based on an essay in which they explain the challenges they’ve faced and what they’ve done and will do to overcome them and pursue their academic career.
Kee explains that these scholarships are part of the broader student support in the Faculty. “I am very proud of how these scholarships contribute to the expanded student health and well-being services we’re offering, which include emergency financial aid, an embedded student support coordinator, new mental health and wellness scholarships, virtual academic services, expanded mentoring services for graduate students and a mobile advising and mentoring team for undergraduates.”
Generous donors and a nimble faculty
The immediate distribution of $220,000 was achievable because kind donors have given the Faculty funds and in turn, the Faculty has been nimble enough to come up with new ways to put money in the hands of students with the greatest needs.
These funds are over and above the $40,000 distributed annually by the Faculty of Arts and the $350,000 distributed annually by the Faculty’s academic units to undergraduate and graduate students in application-based and non-application-based scholarships.
The Faculty extends its heartfelt thanks to its annual donors for their financial support and the opportunities they create for its students.
If you have any questions about these scholarships or how to finance your studies at the Faculty of Arts, please contact [email protected].