87 Aboriginal students receive over $259,000 in awards

VICTORIA, Dec. 7 /CNW/ - Eighty-seven BC Aboriginal students received awards totalling $259,000 for study in BC this year, announced Hugh Gordon, chair of the Irving K. Barber British Columbia Scholarship Society.

"These awards help open new doors for BC's Aboriginal people," said Gordon. "They are an investment in their skills and talent."

The B.C. Aboriginal Student Award is funded from the returns on a $10 million endowment fund established by the Province in 2007 as part of its strategy to improve Aboriginal access and achievement. To ensure that there are more opportunities for people to benefit from this award, the Province provided an additional one-time grant of $500,000 that was used to fund awards last year and this year.

"Post-secondary education and training is a high priority for our Government, and we have placed a strong focus on creating and supporting opportunities for Aboriginal peoples," said Minister of Science and Universities Ida Chong. "I'd like to congratulate all of the recipients of this award, and wish them the best of luck and success on their educational journey."

Awards of $1,000 - $3,500 are given annually to Aboriginal students pursuing post-secondary education in B.C. The number of awards granted depends on the type of programs students are enrolled in and the revenue generated by the endowment fund. Preference was given to students enrolled in the trades and certificate programs.

The Irving K. Barber BC Scholarship Society works in partnership with the Victoria Foundation to provide scholarships to students attending public post-secondary institutions throughout the province and internationally. To date, the Society has awarded almost $2.5 million in scholarships.

To find out more about this program call the Victoria Foundation at 250-381-5532 or visit www.bcscholarship.ca.

List of recipients attached

2010 BC Aboriginal Student Award Recipients

Institution	Student	Hometown / City
British Columbia Institute of Technology	Noel Barrientos	Vancouver
	Alexandre Duclos	Maple Ridge
	Marcia Roland	Vancouver
	Name Withheld	Ladysmith
Camosun College	Katherine Boucher	Sooke
	Kelsey Campbell	Victoria
	Laura McDonald	Saanichton
	Matthew Rosenthal	Victoria
	Clarissa Sawatsky	Victoria
Capilano University	Page King-Drake	Garibaldi Highlands
	Sage Laboucan	Vancouver
	Jamie Lawson	North Vancouver
	Raven Prince	Vancouver
	Dolly Reno	Vancouver
College of New Caledonia	Andrew Rutherford	Hudson's Hope
	Sharon Thomas	Vanderhoof
College of the Rockies	Richelle Bowe	Cranbrook
Douglas College	Stacey Francis	D'Arcy
	Cherisse Klassen	New Westminster
Emily Carr University of Art + Design	Mark Antony	Vancouver
	Ryan McKenna	Surrey
	Kirsten Whitney	Lillooet
Kwantlen Polytechnic University	Riley Brady-Springer	Surrey
	Tintin Lawrence	Langley
	Braxton Lawrence	Maple Ridge
	Talen Springer	Surrey
Langara College	Mavis Benson	Southbank
	Adrienne Charlie	West Vancouver
	Delilah Pierre	Sechelt
	Alice Stogan	Vancouver
Native Education Centre	Allison Scow	Vancouver
Nicola Valley Institute of Technology	Karen Johnson	Coquitlam
	Keely Weget-Whitney	Lillooet
North Island College	Willow Hunt-Scott	Denman Island
	Melissa Kubinec	Campbell River
	Ashley McColl	Courtenay
Northern Lights College	Pearl Widdicombe	Chetwynd
Northwest Community College	Stephanie Paige Anderson	Terrace
Okanagan College	Sean Carroll	Kelowna
	Lincoln McGowan	Kelowna
	Cheryl Mumford	Summerland
Royal Roads University	Brian Chromko	Vancouver
Simon Fraser University	Michael Bellegarde	Vancouver
	Rachel Linklater	Victoria
Thompson Rivers University	Alaina Holitzki	Chase
	Anne Marie Leonard Trump	Kamloops
	Amanda Robinson	Kelowna
	Bonnie Walsh	Kamloops
University of British Columbia	Cindy Allen	Victoria
	Daniel Barnes	Victoria
	JoAnne Barnum	Abbotsford
	Stephanie Gould	Salmo
	Annamarie Kamerbeek/Windels	Winfield
	Jennifer Leason	Vernon
	Tess Lodge	Summerland
	David Nault	Kelowna
	Amanda Neufeld	Lumby
	Kali Romano	Penticton
	Natasha Seymour	Vancouver
	Kelly Soros	Maple Ridge
University of Northern British Columbia	Priscilla Holmes	Vanderhoof
	Larissa Hunsbedt	Prince George
	Ainsley McGuire	Vailmount
	Joshua McLeod	Masset
	Beatrice Michell	Burns Lake
University of the Fraser Valley	Koby Byrne	Abbotsford
	Austin Ray Lawrence	Maple Ridge
	Heather Marion	Abbotsford
	Kristine Mason	Chilliwack
	Teagan Vallet	Mission
University of Victoria	Jessica Barton	Victoria
	Nicole Bresser	Victoria
	Roxy-Merl Nora Jones	Victoria
	Ellie Parton	Campbell River
	Josef Rosenthal	Delta
	Mathais Sarrazin	Victoria
	Rachelle Sarrazin	Victoria
	Colette Child	Port Hardy
Vancouver Community College	Name Withheld	Smithers
Vancouver Island University	Rhonda Harry	Duncan
	Tchadas Leo	Nanaimo
	Dwayne Manson	Nanaimo
	Laura Shade	Nanaimo
	Kimberly Viksush	Duncan
	Name Withheld	Ashcroft
Wilp Wilxo'oskwhl Nisga'a Institute	Teresa Azak	Gitwinksihlkw
	Valerie Doolan	Kincolith

For further information:

Media information contact:
Sharlene Smith, Victoria Foundation
Phone: [phone]   www.bcscholarship.ca