2005 Harmony Scholarship Recipients – Harmony Movement

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2005 Harmony
Scholarship Recipients

		Ms. Farida Abu-Bakare Fort William Collegiate Institute Thunder Bay, Ontario / Carlton University Farida was a leader in promoting harmony and diversity in the Thunder Bay area. As vice-president of the Northwestern Ontario Regional Multicultural Youth Council, she was involved with their Safer Communities Campaign and Anti-Racism Working Group. Farida organized forums and presentations on youth crime and violence and hosted March 21st events to commemorate the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. She also organized Girl Power camps to empower young women to follow their passions and fulfill their dreams. Farida was a leader m RMYC’s Summer Camp Program where she organized workshops on First Nations’ reserves to advocate against violence. Last fall, she organized receptions to welcome Aboriginal students entering school in the Thunder Bay area. Farida was a recipient of the City of Thunder Bay’s Citizens of Exceptional Achievement Award in April.

		Ms. Brianna Brown St. Francis Xavier Secondary School, Ontario / York University Brianna graduated from Harmony Movement’s Diversity Leadership Certificate Program this past spring. As an enthusiastic participant in the program, she helped organize an assembly at St. Francis Xavier Secondary School to discuss issues including race, gender and disabilities. During the program, Brianna created a video for the school to teach the students about racism and stereotypes. She also played an active role in the school’s Black History month by helping to organize Blackology, an educational event. As part of the month, Brianna helped coordinate daily audio announcements about the history of blacks in Canada. She also created television segments on black history for the school’s X-Factor television program. Brianna has also made a film and video about racial issues facing young women and students in their interactions with teachers.

		Ms. Andrea Derbecker Ecole Secondaire Kelvin High School Winnipeg. Manitoba / University of Winnipeg For the last four years, Andrea was a member of Kelvin High School’s human rights and environmental group, Hopeful Aware Students Taking Action. As part of her work she helped organized educational events about human rights, including the Human Rights Symposium and Global Awareness Day. Andrea helped bring 50 presenters to Kelvin High School for the latter event. This past summer she ran a summer day camp program at The Mamawiwi-chi-itata Centre, which provides support to the aboriginal community. Andrea was a recipient of the YMCA International Peacekeeper’s Award and the Manitoba Teacher’s Society’s Young Humanitarian Award.

		Ms. Samantha Cooper Inuksuk High School Iqaluit, Nunavut / Carlton University After being bullied, Samantha became an advocate against violence in Nunavut. In September 2001, she and 17 other students formed the group, Iqaluit Kids Against Violence. The group promotes awareness of violence at Inuksuk High School and in the surrounding community. Samantha volunteered with the Kamatsiaqtut Nunavut Help Line where she answered the telephone to help people in distress. She was also involved with Inuksuk High School’s breakfast program and helped serve meals in Iqaluit’s soup kitchen. Samantha was a representative on the Minister’s Youth Action Team Against Tobacco for the last three years.

		Ms. Mani Kakkar Turner Fenton Secondary School Brampton, Ontario / McGill University Mani was a leader in promoting diversity at Turner Fenton Secondary School and in Brampton. She had a pivotal role in the school’s Spread the Word group, which promotes the acceptance and appreciation of all people. Mani gave tours of the temple, Hindu Sabha Mandir, at the Doors Open weekend in Brampton. This event helped provide insight into Indian culture and religion. Mani was the student leader of the South Asian Pavilion during Culturefest, a celebration of Turner Fenton Secondary School’s diversity. She also helped organize an assembly and ribbon campaign at her school to raise awareness of violence against women in Commemoration of the Montreal Massacre.

		Ms. Navtej Mudhar Dunbarton High School Pickering, Ontario / Carlton University Navtej has actively promoted diversity at Dunbarton High School and in the Durham region for the last four years. As a co-founder of The Students Stopping Violence program, she helped organize anti-Violence and anti-bullying programs for elementary school students. Navtej was also president of Students Together Opposing Prejudice. As president, she convinced other students to help her paint the school’s ceiling with flags of the countries represented by Dunbarton’s students. Navtej was also an active participant in the Students Together Against Racism camp and was most recently one of its student organizers. She volunteered with the Multicultural Council of Oshawa / Durham for four years and formed a youth group of the organization.

		Ms. Shivani Sharma St. Francis Xavier Secondary School, Mississauga, Ontario / York University Shivani was a driving force behind Avant Garde, the newspaper at St. Francs Xavier Secondary School. She published many articles in the newspaper to raise awareness about racism, sexism, ageism and discrimination against the disabled. Shivani was one of 12 students chosen at the school to participate in Harmony Movement’s Diversity Leadership Certificate Program. Shivani was also actively Involved in the Saints Against Injustice Now and Together Society club where she helped organize anti-racism campaigns and presentations on anti-Semitism. She was the recipient of St. Francis Xavier’s Oscar Romero Award, given to a graduating student who is the best example of someone seeking social justice.

		Ms. Caitlin Treadgold Anderson Collegiate Vocational Institute Whitby, Ontario / Queen’s University Caitlin promoted racial harmony through Anderson Collegiate Vocational Institute’s Culture of Peace committee. She was a leader and activist on the school’s, Black History Month and Multicultural Month celebrations. Caitlin was also actively involved in Anderson’s White Ribbon Campaign, a campaign against male violence towards women and Amnesty International. She gave a speech, Fostering Unity and Diversity in our Secondary Schools at a meeting of the Ajax Baha’i community. Caitlin has also given a presentation advocating for human rights at Queen’s Park.

		Ms. Ashley Thompson Ajax High School Ajax, Ontario / University of British Columbia After participating in a Second City workshop on anti-bullying, Ashley was inspired to start an anti-bullying committee in her school. She organized 35 students to create a Stop the Bullying presentation for staff and students at Ajax High School. The presentation discussed the problem of bullying, possible solutions to the problem and the impact of bullying on society. This committee explored issues including racism, sexism and homophobia in an attempt to create positive change at the school. Ashley also created a school outreach program to promote anti-bullying among elementary school students.

		Mr. Ankit Tiwari Parkdale Collegiate Institute Toronto, Ontario / University of Toronto As president of Parkdale Collegiate Institute’s Equity Club, Ankit helped organized a year long equity program at Parkdale Collegiate Institute. This program included five equity workshops to teach students about discrimination and how they could create change. The workshops subsequently inspired the school’s teachers to form an equity group amongst themselves. Ankit also coordinated Equity Week at Parkdale to raise awareness about issues including racism and human rights. He coordinated two fundraising drives in his last year at Parkdale to help victims of Hurricane Ivan and tsunami victims. Ankit was the recipient of the Diversity Award from Scadding Court Community Centre and the Mary A. Campbell Equity Award from Parkdale.