Students rewarded for hard work, aspirations

March 7, 2016. Eight post-secondary students have been rewarded for their achievements. The AltaLink Aboriginal scholarship program is designed to recognize leaders in the Aboriginal community by offering scholarships to Aboriginal students attending post-secondary institutions. Two eligible students from each of Treaty 6, 7, 8 and the Métis community in Alberta received a $1,000 scholarship cheque, based on a set of four criteria – scholastic achievement, community involvement, career goals and financial need. The recipients for the 2015 scholarship are April Price and Sasha Platz, with the Metis Nation of Alberta; Sandra Belrose (Ermineskin) and Samantha Cardinal (Saddle Lake), with Treaty 6; Martin Iron Shirt (Piikani) and Dwight Farahat (Siksika), with Treaty 7; and, Samantha Tomkins (Sucker Creek) and Kayla Houle (Bigstone Cree), with Treaty 8. “It’s very encouraging to see the diligence and passion for their career aspirations being applied in many ways for the betterment of their local Aboriginal community,” said Kris Gladue, manager of Aboriginal relations at AltaLink. AltaLink has been supporting higher education in the community through its Aboriginal scholarship program since 2007.