Fund opens doors for Aboriginal youth

The University of Winnipeg (U of W) is helping to open the door to post-secondary education for inner city children and youth through its newly launched Opportunity Fund.

The goal of the Opportunity Fund is to make attending the U of W an achievable goal for   young Aboriginal students and young people from war-affected nations and refugee populations.

The impact of the new fund is expected to be far-reaching, benefiting not only students looking to begin their post-secondary education, but also primary and secondary students and would-be entrepreneurs, explained Kelly Brown, executive director of student relations at the University of Winnipeg.

One aspect of the Opportunity Fund is the tuition credit account option, geared to encourage Aboriginal students from Grade 4 to Grade 9 to stay in school.

“Keeping kids in school is step number one. That’s absolutely critical,” said Brown.

To earn tuition credits, students in Grade 4 to Grade 8 must be involved in extracurricular programming such as the U of W’s Eco-Kids: Adventures in Environmental Science program, which explores the relationship between Aboriginal culture, science and the environment, and they must successfully complete the school year. Grade 4 to Grade 8 students involved in the tuition credit account program can earn up to $200 in tuition credits toward the cost of a post-secondary education at the U of W.

“So, if you’re in Eco-Kids, you could potentially earn about $1,000 credit,” said Brown.

Students in Grade 9 through Grade 12 have the potential of earning $500 to $750 in tuition credit for each year of school they complete, and can even earn bonus credit if they achieve an average of 80 per cent or higher or if they participate in extra-curricular activities such as the university’s Enviro Techs program.

“For the older kids in Enviro Techs, the emphasis is on math, science and environmental science, which keeps them engaged in school,” said Brown.

Students in the Enviro Techs program are trained in creative problem solving and other skills that will encourage academic and personal success. They also complete leadership training, which allows them to work with the youth in the Eco-Kids program, but to also give back to their community.

Of the $750 maximum tuition credit up for grabs for students in the higher grades, $500 is earned by completing the grade, $150 for earning a B or better, $50 for being in the Enviro Techs program and another $50 if the students participate in sports or other extra-curricular activities.

Participation in the tuition credit account program could add up. A student who gets involved in the program in Grade 4 could potentially earn up to $4,000 in tuition credits by the time they graduate from high school. Even students who don't get involved until Grade 9 still have the opportunity to acrue $3,000 in tuition credits by the time they're ready to enroll at the U of W.

Another aspect of the Opportunity Fund is the Opportunity Bursaries program, which will provide financial assistance to part-time and full-time students who show academic promise, who can demonstrate financial need and who come from a group that is under-represented at the university.

“Quite often we’re finding that someone’s financial need is not limited to books and tuition,” Brown said. “It might be they need money for a bus pass or they need money to supplement child care, so this bursary would help address all those different needs.”

The Opportunity Bursaries can be combined with other scholarships or bursaries awarded by the U of W.
Opportunity Bursary recipients can also benefit from an expanded transition year program that helps them make the transition to university life. The transition year program is already available to Aboriginal students at the U of W.

The third and final aspect of the Opportunity Fund focuses on community capacity building or micro finance.
“This is to provide low interest loans to people who might have difficulty getting loans from traditional financial institutions,” said Brown. “We’re looking for people in the community, visible minorities, immigrants, women entrepreneurs and just people who need that little assistance, whether it’s for a restaurant or a food stand.”

The university’s goal is to create a $10 million endowment to support the Opportunity Fund.
Fundraising efforts got off to a flying start on Feb. 19 when Winnipeg-born singer/songwriter Chantal Kreviazuk and her husband Raine Maida, lead singer of Our Lady Peace, helped launch the Opportunity Fund by performing at a benefit concert.

Brown expects the fundraising efforts will receive another boost this fall when the University of Winnipeg celebrates its 40th anniversary homecoming weekend from Sept. 13 to 16.

More information about the Opportunity Fund can be found at www.uwinnipeg.ca. To find out about how to make a donation to the Opportunity Fund, go to www.uwinnipegfoundation.ca/donate.