How can Victoria College best support students who are BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour) at the University of Toronto? To the Victoria University Student Administrative Council (VUSAC), one way is to raise funds to establish a new award for students: the VUSAC BIPOC Award.
The award is currently raising funds with the goal of reaching $25,000 by the end of the Winter semester. The intent of the award is to lower the “financial barriers to leadership for students who identify as… BIPOC,” which will broaden the diversity of representation among student leaders.
“Through conversations with several students this summer, we identified a lack of BIPOC students in leadership roles at Vic,” wrote VUSAC President Michelle Zhao to The Strand. “This was seen in conversations that I had with students, at meetings of the Dean’s Advisory Committee, and further cemented by the open letter written by student leaders of the Victoria Black Student Network.”
The open letter by network executives Amara Phillips, Cindy Njoki Kamau, Maryam Jamilla, Lashae Watson, and Theresa Jones, published in The Strand, highlighted that a “lack of opportunity is evident from the faces [they] see in the leadership positions on campus.” They underscored the positive impact felt by BIPOC students who see “stories of success” and representation of people from their community in leadership positions.
Speaking on the motivation for the award, Zhao added: “student leader positions are often uncompensated and come with heavy workloads, which can detract students from becoming involved.”
She highlighted that the award intends to achieve “two goals: 1) recognizing and celebrating the impactful contributions that BIPOC students make for our student body, and 2) incentivizing and encouraging more BIPOC students to get involved in leadership roles!”
Asked by The Strand when she expects the award to be available to support students, she wrote that VUSAC hopes the award will be active “Starting in the 2021-2022 academic year.” On eligibility, she noted that “All Victoria College students who define themselves as BIPOC and who have been involved in a leadership role on campus (at Vic, or UofT) or in their personal communities,” would be eligible to apply.
Zhao encourages UofT students to become involved in fundraising for the award. “Firstly, donate if you can! All contributions, big or small, are welcome and extremely appreciated,” she wrote. She highlighted that students can donate directly on a webpage for the Vic Alumni Community hosted by UofT.
“Secondly, share the news!” she continued. “Share our infographics on your social media, tell your friends and family, and help us spread the word! Lastly, we have a super exciting fundraiser coming up, so stay tuned!”
Looking forward, Zhao noted that VUSAC is running a “collaboration with a certain university merchandise brand” that it will reveal soon. “All proceeds will be donated to the award, and there will be various ways for students to contribute. Stock is limited, and more information will be revealed over the course of reading week,” she wrote. She encourages students to follow VUSAC’s social media channels to learn more, and highlighted the Council’s mailing list.
“The establishment of this award has sparked a growing interest in supporting the BIPOC community at Vic, with several donors expressing their own interest in establishing similar awards!” wrote Zhao, reflecting on the impact of the fundraiser so far. “We are so happy to see this award come to fruition and are hoping that this marks the beginning of tangible improvements for BIPOC students at our college.”
