Empower the next generation
Donors boost student when she needed it most
As ever-changing pandemic restrictions made her job with the Western Student Recreation Centre uncertain, Sydney Joao, BA’21, was nervous about paying her bills. She was also anxious about finishing strong as she completed the final year of her degree. And the thought of sacrificing extracurricular activities, including her fierce advocacy for Black students, to work a second job was heart-breaking.
Then, in her last semester, she received a donor-funded award. “The financial award took away the stress and allowed me to focus on school and to graduate with honours,” Sydney said. She added that it was also gratifying to receive recognition for her efforts to make Western a more inclusive campus.
As a member of the Black Students’ Association executive, Sydney pushed for a clear pathway for reporting racist incidents at Western. “Students were reliving their trauma each time they were told to share their story with another person,” she said. In response to the BSA’s advocacy and a report by the university’s Anti-Racism Working Group, Western launched a new online reporting tool earlier this year.
Sydney was also a member of the University Students’ Council’s accessibility committee and taught students, faculty and staff about equity, diversity and inclusion.
Donor-funded awards give students like Sydney the opportunity for a fulfilling university experience while lessening financial worries. The award positioned Sydney to pursue a master’s degree at Western and to continue being an agent of change.
“The award meant I no longer needed to worry so much about paying the rent and other bills. It gave me the time to volunteer, to contribute and to learn through my extracurricular activities,” she said.
Remove financial barriers to studying at Western and uplift students during their learning journey. Give to Western University.
