Newmarket student leaders receive NACCA scholarships

Two Newmarket students are among 11 recipients to receive the Newmarket African Caribbean Canadian Association (NACCA) annual scholarship.

Natalie Tutu is an honour roll student who founded the Caribbean African Respect and Equity Association when she discovered a lack of inclusion and representation in her community.

She plans to pursue a joint honours bachelor of arts in psychology and linguistics at the University of Ottawa.

Honour roll student Kaylah Christie has a passion for history related to the Black diaspora and plans to pursue a bachelor of arts degree in history at York University.

Gabrielle Dumé is the recipient of the Iris Malcolm Memorial Award, Frank Oshodi and Crystal Ali are the recipients of the Wassim Jarrah Business Award, and Prevail Awoleye is the recipient of the Rightsline Computer Science Scholarship. 

Also awarded scholarships this year are Jordan Buchanan, Geena Melbourne, Alexis Agyei-Gyamera, Lireesa Gokhool-Jefferson and Lauren Hew.

The scholarships are awarded annually to students across York Region who self-identify as Black/of African descent. They provide up to $5,000 for tuition to students entering their first year of post-secondary school.

This year's recipients are pursuing education in fields such as psychology, the arts, health sciences, computer science, commerce, finance, social policy development and engineering.

Recipients are high achievers who inspire their peers, demonstrate leadership and who exemplify pride in their self-identity and commitment to service in the broader community.

“We know that 2020-2021 has be an unprecedented year for all, and especially for Black families, Black men and women, children and teens with the sustained violence of anti-Black racism in all its forms.... but we want to take time to recognize the excellence, embrace the joy and notice the resistance of our young student leaders,” NACCA chairperson Jerisha Grant-Hall said in a news release.

NACCA stated, "We are extremely proud of (our) scholarship program which demonstrates our commitment to supporting young people and creating opportunities for the community to flourish. Our congratulations to this year’s recipients of NACCA Scholarships."

The Newmarket African Caribbean Canadian Association works in collaboration with school boards, communities, businesses, local and provincial governments to create limitless pathways for youth leadership, empowerment and advancement.