The Hon. Jake, Epp, The Hon. Charles Mayer, Dr. Lloyd Axworthy, President and Vice-Chancellor, UWinnipeg, Mr. Taras Sokolyk. photo by Kelly Morton/March 7, 2011.
DOMINION CITY, MB – The University of Winnipeg today announces the creation of the Garnet Kyle Scholarship as a result of a very significant $500,000 donation which the University will match through the Manitoba Scholarship Bursary Initiative, for a total of $1 million. The Garnet Kyle Scholarship, worth $40,000, will be the largest offered to a Canadian student at UWinnipeg, administered as $10,000 per year of studies. It will cover tuition and books, and can cover accommodation in UWinnipeg’s new McFeetors Hall Student Residence, and a meal plan.
A truly unique aspect of the Garnet Kyle Scholarship is that it specifically supports a rural student from Dominion City and the surrounding area who wishes to pursue either undergraduate or graduate studies at UWinnipeg.
The late Garnet Kyle was a lifelong resident of Dominion City, longtime Councillor in the RM of Franklin, and school board trustee in the Boundary School Division. Kyle spent all of his life in local politics including holding many positions with a provincial party and ran as a candidate the 1973 provincial election. He was active in many community projects including construction, at his own expense, of a 9 hole golf course in Dominion City that is free to youth in the area. He also invented and patented a unique cultivator shovel.
“Garnet was visionary and entrepreneurial,” said Mr. Taras Sokolyk, a longtime friend of Mr. Kyle. “He was always ahead of his time.”
Priority will be given to a student currently attending Roseau Valley School in Dominion City, followed by a high school within the Border Land School Division, a high school within the Hanover School Division, or a student who has graduated from one of these high schools within the last three years. The Garnet Kyle Scholarship will be achievement based. The qualification for this award is a grade 12 average of 90% or higher, or for graduate students to qualify, they must have an undergraduate grade point average of 4.00 or higher.
“The Garnet Kyle scholarship recognizes that some or our best and brightest minds and some of our most entrepreneurial citizens come from small towns and close-knit communities, where imagination and resilience is fostered,” said Dr. Lloyd Axworthy, President and Vice-Chancellor, UWinnipeg. “UWinnipeg is delighted to be able to offer substantive financial support to a rural Manitoba student as a result of this generous donation.”
In addition, UWinnipeg will begin consultations with students and administrators at the Roseau Valley School, and with the Border Land School Division, to examine distance education options and course offerings of interest to Dominion City which could be offered at the Roseau Valley School – for example: Intro to University.
Manitoba Scholarship and Bursary Initiative (MSBI) – This program was introduced by the province in 1997/1998 with a $1 million budget. The budget was increased to $5 million per year in 1998/1999 and has remained constant. The MSBI provides one dollar in matching funds for each dollar in private donations made to Manitoba’s seven public universities and colleges, the University of Manitoba Students’ Union and the Business Council of Manitoba. The $5 million is allocated according to a formula based on enrollment. Grants under this initiative significantly enhance the bursaries and scholarships that public post-secondary institutions are able to provide to their students.
Dominion City is located 15 kilometers north of the United States border and is nestled on the banks of the Roseau River. It has a population of approximately 350. Dominion City was first settled in 1874 as an agriculture-based community. Currently the largest community in the RM of Franklin, Dominion City, proudly boasts having been the location in Canada for the largest fish ever to be caught in fresh water.
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MEDIA CONTACT
Diane Poulin, Communications Officer, The University of Winnipeg
P: 204.988.7135, E: d.poulin@uwinnipeg.ca
