WINNIPEG, MB – The University of Winnipeg with the support of the Simkin family is offering Aboriginal students from the North the chance of a lifetime to go to university and to do an internship during the summer in their own communities. The Saul and Claribel Simkin Bursary is valued at $14,000 and includes a possible summer internship in a Northern community that is worth up to $32,000.
Established with the generous support from Saul (L.L.D., 1974) and Claribel Simkin and is designed to enable new and existing Aboriginal students to start and/or continue a degree program at The University of Winnipeg, and will allow them to further their studies with research and work in the North, that will benefit communities such as the Town of Churchill.
“We are deeply grateful to the Simkin Bursary for this generous bursary,” said Dr. Lloyd Axworthy, UWinnipeg President and Vice-Chancellor today at a media conference in Churchill. “This bursary covers tuition, books, bus passes and housing for a deserving Aboriginal student from the North. It will also support research on various aspects of climate change in northern Manitoba and Canada, and encourages University of Winnipeg graduates to live and work in the North. This is designed to keep bright minds in northern communities, such as Churchill, to ensure the sharing of knowledge and community growth.”
Axworthy added the priority of this bursary is to help Aboriginal students pursue and complete a degree program; facilitate research on various aspects of climate change in northern Manitoba and Canada; enable more education and training on aspects of climate change to occur in the North; and encourage University of Winnipeg graduates to live and work in the North to ensure the sharing of knowledge and the building of capacity in northern communities.To be eligible for the Simkin Bursary, the recipient must:
- be Aboriginal;
- be from a Northern community;
- demonstrate financial need;
- demonstrate leadership qualities and commitment in their home community;
- be pursuing a degree program at The University of Winnipeg in one of the following areas: Aboriginal Governance, Administrative Studies, Environmental Studies, Education, specializing in ‘environmental education’,Geography, with a concentration in climate studies courses.
- register for full-time studies (18 credit hours);
- agree to a three-month to one-year internship in a northern community upon graduation to provide support in developing adaptation plans and capacity building to address the impacts the community is facing from environmental change, and to share the education, skills, and knowledge acquired in their degree programs; and
- demonstrate an alignment with the donors’ interest in providing support for communities that recognize the need for adaptation plans and capacity building to address the impacts they are facing from environmental changes.
A possible summer internship in a Northern community is also available for students who receive this bursary. Additional costs to support the summer internship with both wages and living expenses for three to six months could range from $11,000 to $32,000 per student.
For more information please contact Jennifer Rattray, Director of Strategic Initiatives at 204.786.9931 or j.rattray@uwinnipeg.ca, or visit http://blog.uwinnipeg.ca/research/2008/04/saul_and_claribel_simkin_bursa.html.
