A new Faculty of Graduate Studies (FGS) award will help underrepresented scholars balance research with caregiving and community responsibilities, providing financial relief and supporting equity, inclusion and access.
Students who identify as Black, Indigenous and people of colour (BIPOC) often face inequities in access to funding – particularly those with caregiving responsibilities, community obligations or who pursue graduate studies later in life, notes Alice MacLachlan, vice-provost and dean of FGS. These barriers can limit scholars’ ability to participate fully in research and pursue advanced study at the highest level.
FGS introduced a special prize to supports students managing these complex realities, with its launch also marking a milestone anniversary for the Faculty.
The FGS 60th Anniversary Award, given to six part-time graduate researchers in the Black, Indigenous and people of colour community who nagivate academics with family care commitments or meaningful community engagement, provides funds to cover the equivalent of one semester of tuition.
“It’s clear that many of our most remarkable scholars are also those who shoulder significant responsibilities beyond their research,” says MacLachlan. “This award was created because we wanted our anniversary to mean something real for them. These recipients represent FGS’ commitment to both decolonizing, equity, diversity and inclusion, as well as access for all.”
The six inaugural recipients are: Diana Ines De La Cruz Alfaro, master’s student in interdisciplinary studies; Sreyphea Chheang, doctoral student in economics; Tracy Jacko, master’s student in education; Genevieve Odoom, doctoral student in health; Bibisomaia Rezaee, master’s student in chemistry; and Krystle Skeete, doctoral student in social work.
Among the recipients are scholars caring for newborns, raising school-aged children, supporting partners and tending to elderly family members living with Alzheimer’s or cancer.
Recipients expressed that the award provides crucial financial relief, enabling them to concentrate on their academic work while managing personal and family responsibilities. De La Cruz Alfaro described it as a source of balance and restoration, while Odoom emphasized the importance of easing costs to focus on research and family.
Others, including Jacko and Chheang, highlighted the award’s role in recognizing contributions beyond academics and honouring the perseverance required to navigate graduate studies alongside caregiving, while Rezaee noted the encouragement and hope it offers, and Skeete underscored its broader significance in validating the often unseen labour of racialized students and reinforcing York University’s commitment to equity and inclusion.
“It validates the invisible labour of racialized students bridging scholarship with service and reflects York University’s commitment to investing in Black students balancing academia, caregiving and community leadership,” Skeete says.
Although created for FGS’s 60th anniversary, the award will continue to be disbursed annually through an endowed fund. “The award stands as a testament to the University’s ongoing dedication to empower every student to thrive on their own terms, in their own time and with the support of a community that sees and values them,” says MacLachlan.
More information about the award is available online.
With files from Anesa Albert