There are nearly 19,000 students at AV俱乐部. And for many of them, student life is about so much more than just classes and filling the time in between.
For them, student life is a platform for pushing for change. It's a way to connect local concerns with global perspectives. It's a tool for shaping more inclusive communities. And it's a way to inspire others to build a better world.
AV俱乐部's Board of Governors' Awards celebrate the most exceptional of these students. It's the university's top award for student life, presented annually to recognize exceptional contributions or leadership in the extracurricular realm 鈥� building community on campus, service in the broader community, improving diversity and inclusion and so much more.
The recipients 鈥� nominated by their peers in the Dal community, and chosen by a committee consisting of the president, three Board members and the vice-provost student affairs 鈥� were honoured at Thursday night's Student Impact Awards.
Learn more about this year's Governors' Award winners:
Yaser Alkayale, Computer Science
Driven to make things better, one idea at a time
When Yaser Alkayale launched the Syrian Student Society in 2015, he hoped to showcase Syrian culture and heritage within Nova Scotia. But the country鈥檚 emerging refugee crisis demanded more.
鈥淚鈥檓 from Syria: I was born and raised there,鈥� says Yaser, a Computer Science undergrad. 鈥淎nd I realized the Canadian community is doing so much in trying to help, and it wouldn鈥檛 be right for me to be here in Canada and not provide as much help as I can.鈥�
Wanting to use the society as a platform for Syrian newcomers to have a positive impact at AV俱乐部, Yaser worked with colleagues in Computer Science and the College of Continuing Education to lead a free coding camp for Syrian refugees, giving them both computer skills and a window into the possibilities of higher education. It graduated 30 participants in its first year, and soon evolved into an organization called Maritime Labs that hosts camps annually.
It鈥檚 just one example of Yaser鈥檚 drive and determination to make a difference in people鈥檚 lives. He led a team of students to fill a 20-foot container with clothes to be sent to Jordan as part of the Clothes for Refugees program. He worked with the Somali Relief Network of North America to raise over $100,000 for drought victims. And with Shokran Canada, the Syrian Student Society鈥檚 marquee event, he helped generate extensive local media coverage and welcome hundreds of guests to explore what he calls 鈥渢he real Syrian culture,鈥� beyond the headlines.
鈥淲hatever cause I鈥檓 passionate about, I鈥檒l put as much time into it as I can,鈥� says Yaser, who received the Faculty of Computer Science Leadership Award last year. 鈥淚 try to work on things where I can have the greatest impact鈥� I like to see what鈥檚 been done, learn from it and then do something better.鈥�
That spirit is inspired by his family鈥檚 example. His parents immigrated to Canada in 2006, seeking a better education for Yaser and his four siblings. And it was his father, who ran a mail delivery and shipping company in Syria, who sparked Yaser鈥檚 fascination in entrepreneurship when he was just six years old.
That interest led Yaser to become a University Innovation Fellow, attending and leading workshops at Stanford University and helping improve innovation and entrepreneurship offerings at AV俱乐部. And while his immediate plans after graduation will take him to Washington State to work for Microsoft, his eventual goal is to use his Computer Science foundation to launch his own startup 鈥� though he hasn鈥檛 settled on what, exactly, it will be.
鈥淚鈥檓 still looking for that idea that is going to have the big impact that I can work on for the long term.鈥� (Ryan McNutt)
Leah Carrier, Nursing
Pushing for change where advocacy meets academics
As an Indigenous person and member of the LGBTQ+ community, fourth-year Nursing student Leah Carrier strongly advocates for diversity and inclusion on campus and within the health-care system.
鈥淢y education gives me a voice and I want to use my voice to speak against inequities in our society,鈥� she says, 鈥渆specially in terms of health-care access and the social conditions that influence health.鈥�
As vice-president of student support for the AV俱乐部 Nursing Society during her second year, Leah noticed gaps that needed to be addressed 鈥� in particular, someone who could represent marginalized communities, act on their needs and engage in political advocacy. After helping to create the role鈥檚 terms and conditions, Leah was elected the society鈥檚 first VP of inclusion and equity this past summer, helping the school and its students make events and activities more inclusive.
Leah has also drawn upon her own personal experiences to tackle mental health initiatives for Nursing students. She co-founded 鈥淪ecure Your Own Life Mask鈥� with Jaimie Carrier, which focuses on self-care and targeting the unrealistic expectations a lot of students face.
鈥淚 have been managing an anxiety disorder for a really long time,鈥� says Leah. 鈥淭he stress of nursing school caused me to completely re-evaluate how I was dealing with it and create new strategies. After discovering my classmates are also struggling to maintain good mental health, Jamie and I decided it was important to facilitate discussions around self-care skills and securing your own life mask, so you can better help others.鈥�
The initiative uses a nursing lens to assess one鈥檚 own health and encourages students to reflect on root causes and triggers to identify ways they can best address them. The initiative also breaks down the idea that health-care professionals have to be perfect in order to take care of their patients, which can often act as a barrier for students seeking help for mental and physical health concerns.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a myth among health professionals that we have to be invincible because we鈥檙e the ones taking care of patients,鈥� says Leah. 鈥淲e need to create a system where there鈥檚 a way to seek help that鈥檚 supportive and doesn鈥檛 attach stigma or interfere with our confidence in the ability to do our jobs.鈥�
As for her future, Leah hopes to maintain an active clinical practice while working in research and policy. Her placement this year working with a community health nurse in Sipekne鈥檏atik First Nation solidified her ambitions.
鈥淏eing able to work in an Indigenous community and have an Indigenous mentor was phenomenal for my personal growth, but it also blended all my clinical and academic interests as well,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t was kind of like the perfect storm that confirmed I was on the right path.鈥� (Delainey Wescott)
Jeremy Stroud, International Food Business
Sparking new ideas on the global stage
It is the women in Jeremy Stroud鈥檚 life that have had the most profound influence on who he has become 鈥� his grandmothers, in particular. 聽
鈥淥ne survived a Siberian labour camp during World War II to travel the world and eventually land in Canada to start a family,鈥� says Jeremy. 鈥淭he other narrowly evaded a Japanese detention camp where her parents were later killed. Each were strong voices while I was growing up鈥� Their stories have led me to better appreciate my life and be thoughtful of what others might be going through.鈥�
They鈥檝e also given him an international perspective. Born and raised in Toronto, he came to AV俱乐部鈥檚 Agricultural Campus to complete a dual degree in International Food Business (a partnership with Aeres University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands). He鈥檚 travelled to 39 countries and spent time volunteering in agriculture and various charities on four continents. 聽
This spring Jeremy is set to volunteer for a month in Uganda on a World Bank agricultural innovation initiative for college students. This will include stakeholder consultations with industry and faculty members as well as the development of an entrepreneurial learning commons in-country that targets the ag sector.
It鈥檚 an experience that will build on his involvement in the Agricultural Campus鈥檚 entrepreneurship sandbox, Cultiv8. Jeremy has been participating in Cultiv8 programming since its inception during his first year, and was a semi-finalist at Canada鈥檚 Business Model Competition.
鈥淚鈥檓 motivated by the notion that I could always be better than I am right now,鈥� says Jeremy. 鈥淚鈥檝e found that working on diversified projects, meeting new people and experiencing different situations is the best way for me to accomplish this.鈥�
It鈥檚 an attitude he鈥檚 brought to improving student life in Truro. He鈥檚 held multiple positions in student government, including VP finance and currently president of the AV俱乐部 Agricultural Students鈥� Association. He was a student chair of the Farm Credit Canada annual food drive, helping to facilitate the largest donation in the Faculty of Agriculture鈥檚 history.聽 A AV俱乐部 Spirit Award recipient, a Dean鈥檚 List student and Orientation leader, Jeremy has left his mark on campus.
鈥淭he amount of freedom I encountered on this campus taught me about prioritization and allowed me to grasp the fact that life is too short to worry about things that cannot be changed,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he many late night basketball sessions, group projects and Sunday coffee chats helped me learn that friendship is a collaboration not a transaction. In Toronto I was too distracted by other parts of my life to truly understand that.鈥�
After graduation this spring, Jeremy will be working for an agricultural investment management firm in Toronto and hopes to one day support agricultural investment initiatives in developing countries. (Stephanie Rogers)
Martha Paynter, Nursing (PhD)
Taking a hands-on approach to leadership in health care
Martha Paynter had spent nearly a decade working for the Department of Health in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick when two events set her life on a new path.
The first was the birth of her two children, and witnessing first-hand the health care provided to them by various nurses. The second was learning about the experiences of Julie Billotta, who was forced to give birth in a jail cell at the Ottawa Carleton Detention Centre in 2012.
鈥淚 felt after hearing that [Julia Bilotta story] 鈥� I couldn鈥檛 live my life the same way anymore,鈥� says Martha. 鈥淚 felt driven to devote myself professionally and through my volunteer work to support criminalized women.鈥�
She felt driven towards taking a more active, hands-on role in health care. She started a collaboration with Public Health Nurses鈥� in North End Halifax, offering peer breastfeeding and postpartum support. In 2017, she completed her fast-tracked Bachelor鈥檚 of Science in Nursing and, that same year, began the PhD program, with an eye towards bridging the gap between academia and clinical practice.
鈥淒octoral work is a way to be able to do many things 鈥� it鈥檚 a way to teach, to learn, to speak, to research, to practice, to volunteer and to advocate,鈥� says Martha.
And that鈥檚 exactly what she鈥檚 done. Martha currently works as a Family and Newborn Unit nurse at the IWK Health Centre. In 2012, she founded Women鈥檚 Wellness Within (WWW), a registered non-profit organization that supports criminalized women during their perinatal period through educational workshops, doula services and providing imprisoned women a voice from within.
She also volunteers regularly with the Chebucto Family Centre Doula Program, providing one-on-one support for newcomers to Canada, and is a director on the Board of the Atlantic Milk Banking Coalition, working to advance the donation and use of human donor milk in Nova Scotia. She鈥檚 also a member and former chair of the Women鈥檚 Legal Education and Action Fund Halifax Branch (LEAF), advocating for greater access to medical abortions in Nova Scotia and assisting on the LEAF-supported case that pushed for abortion access in PEI in 2016. 聽
鈥淢y approach to work is very political,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 have a very human-rights-based approach to nursing; I think the foundation of nursing is advocacy. My parents always demonstrated [growing up] a commitment to social justice work and true productivity and industriousness.鈥�
Martha pays homage to her many feminist, academic and clinical mentors and offers young activists the same encouragement. 聽
鈥淲hen I mentor people, I encourage them the same way I鈥檝e been: to just try. You have value in your voice and we always hear the same people. We need more diversity 鈥� we need it because it鈥檚 rich and imperative for change.鈥� (Emily Borgal)
Jad Sinno, Psychiatry Research (Master鈥檚)
Bridging the personal and political
Studying neuroscience as an undergraduate fed Jad Sinno鈥檚 curiosity about the brain. But it was the social disparities he encountered along the way that really deepened his fascination with how the mind works.
鈥淵ou hear a lot about individuals who have struggled or who have faced certain experiences, and a lot of those stories resonated with me,鈥� says Jad, now a student in Dal鈥檚 master鈥檚 program in Psychiatry Research.
Inspired by fellow students and keen to make a difference, Jad dove headlong into extracurricular activities during his Dal undergrad, despite having added a second major (Statistics) and minor (Philosophy). He served as an executive with the AV俱乐部 Arts and Social Sciences Society, a member at large for the AV俱乐部 Student Union council, and as treasurer, vice-president and president with the Rotaract Club of Halifax, a non-profit community service group for youth.
It was only after a fellow student broke down in tears at a Rotaract meeting in early 2016 that Jad felt compelled to share his own family鈥檚 struggle. The woman was upset that her father had been deported, something that had happened to Jad鈥檚 father the previous year. Jad organized and moderated a panel on immigration, bringing together experts, students and the deported man鈥檚 wife.
鈥淚 felt empowered to really help [the student] achieve what she wanted, which was to let people know about the struggle that it is to be an immigrant,鈥� says Jad, whose family first arrived in Halifax from Kuwait in 2004.
Jad鈥檚 own father鈥檚 deportation after years in legal limbo added an extra layer of difficulty to his own already busy life. While Jad attained nearly $60,000 in scholarships and funding as an undergrad, he had to spend the final year of his bachelor鈥檚 degree working nearly 40 hours a week (as a researcher, lab instructor and in the service industry) to assist his family financially.
Around this time, he took on a research assistant role in Amy Bombay鈥檚 Indigenous Mental Health and Social Awareness Lab at Dal, subsequently signing on to do his master鈥檚 with Dr. Bombay as supervisor. His current thesis research focuses on transcultural psychiatry, specifically the treatment preferences and experiences of various enthno-racial groups in Halifax.
鈥淥ne of my biggest passions is having a chance to understand an issue at the heart of some inequity in society and know that I have the capacity to help someone who doesn鈥檛 experience that inequity better understand it,鈥� he says.
And as Jad looks ahead to attending law school at the University of Toronto this fall, he鈥檒l be able to do so with some peace of mind now that his father has finally secured a return to Canada.
鈥淭he stars aligned, I guess you could say.鈥� (Matt Reeder)