Student Awards

If you would like more information about the fellowship, you can find that at https://www.stlhe.ca/awards/3m-national-student-fellowship/ 

Student Awards

3M National Student Fellowship

The 3M National Student Fellowship is offered by the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education in partnership with 3M Canada. The prestigious fellowship honours up to ten full-time college and university students at Canadian institutions who have demonstrated outstanding leadership in their lives and at their college or university. These students embrace a vision of quality education that enhances their academic experience and the experience of those around them. 

Each year the fellowship cohort is publicly announced in mid-March. More information about the fellowship can be found at https://www.stlhe.ca/awards/3m-national-student-fellowship/

The process for selecting Trent University’s nominee for the fellowship includes nominations being received from individuals and departments at Trent, and an in-depth interview process with short-listed candidates. The Centre for Teaching and Learning supports the 3M National Student Fellowship candidate throughout the nomination process. Questions regarding nominations for the 3M National Student Fellowship can be directed to teaching@trentu.ca. 

Fellowship Recipients

Tonya-Leah Watts (2019)

Tonya-Leah Watts is from Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve on Manitoulin Island, and at the time of the nomination was completing her Honours BSc in Biomedical Science at Trent with a minor in Indigenous Studies. She has received several scholarships and awards recognizing her exemplary academic achievements and exceptional community leadership and involvements, and has been involved in research and mentorship programs at McMaster University, the SickKids Research Institute, and the University of Toronto.

Tonya-Leah is a gifted and dedicated leader, advocate, scientist, musician, and mentor who believes that cultural revitalization and the sharing of Indigenous voices is an act of resurgence and strength, and that reconciliation comes when others are ready to listen to these voices. She is working towards building a medical career in which she can combine western and Indigenous knowledge to deliver better quality care to Indigenous peoples in Canada. “Where Tonya-Leah rises above the crowd is her tenacity, ability and desire to engage with community,” said Ms. Watts’s nominator. “I think her commitment to serve Indigenous communities is important… She has the ability to inspire those around her, to encourage, to teach, to comfort, to mentor, to speak for her culture, to build bridges, to make the world a better place.”

Debbie Jenkins (2018)

At the time of the nomination, Debbie Jenkins was a Ph.D. candidate in Environmental and Life Sciences at Trent. Having completed her M.Sc. at Trent University in Watershed Ecosystems in 2005 with a thesis entitled “Habitat Selection of Reintroduced Elk & Sympatric White-tailed Deer Across Multiple Spatial Scales,” Debbie returned to Trent to pursue her Ph.D. in 2014. She is currently nearing completion of her doctoral dissertation on “Islands, Ungulates & Ice: The Response of Caribou and Muskoxen to a Changing Environment.”

For Debbie, part of the motivation for her scientific research and community work is a vision of building better bridges between academic communities and the broader public at local and national levels. Speaking of her experience, Ms. Jenkins said: “My personal inspiration has been global. Around the world in classrooms, field camps, remote villages and wild places, I have become connected and inspired. Rich and diverse experiences have highlighted the values of inclusiveness, different knowledge systems, and unique talents and perspectives.”

Erin Hayward (2017)

Erin Hayward is Kanien’keha:ka, turtle clan, born and raised in Scarborough, Ontario. Her family is traditionally from Six Nations of the Grand River Territory, Germany, Ireland, and Britain. At the time of the nomination, Erin was completing her M.Sc in Environmental and Life Sciences. Through her community based research project in two Anishinaabek communities, Erin was working on identifying if ozonation pre-treatment would decrease adverse impacts on Freshwater mussel species living downstream of wastewater treatment facilities.

In her nomination Erin was described as “a skilled community-builder and inspired youth leader,” and as a “passionate scientist, cultural knowledge holder and educator who weaves her Haudenosaunee teachings and knowledge with her rigorous scientific skills.” Erin has been a ceremonial helper, hand drummer, and youth mentor, as well as the youth director of the Nogojiwanong Friendship Centre (NFC), the Chair of the NFC youth council, the graduate student representative on the Trent University Native Association, a senior program facilitator for the Trent University Aboriginal Cultural Knowledge and Science (TRACKS) Youth Program, and a member of the Peterborough youth constituency council.

Fellowship Nominees 

Rhode Thomas (2019)

Rhode Thomas is a Cayuga Nation (Haudenosaunee) member from Six Nations of the Grand River territory. At the time of the nomination, he was working towards a Bachelor of Business Administration at Trent with a specialization in Niigaaniiwin: The Art of Leading and an Emphasis in Law & Policy. Rhode was in his second term as Co-President of the Trent University Native Association and his second term as the Indigenous Students Commissioner for the Trent Central Student Association. He was also the Project Manager responsible for building the nascent Indigenous Student Alliance of Ontario, a membership organization that has a goal of providing a collective voice for Indigenous Student Associations located at Ontario’s universities, colleges, and Indigenous institutes.

Rhode is a dedicated advocate for Indigenous students at Trent University and beyond, whose approach to academic and community involvements is authentic, collaborative, and holistic. He sees meaningful consultation and engagement as vitally important to the success of community building ventures, as well as to reconciliation efforts across Canada. Rhode is committed to ongoing learning and personal growth, and believes that leadership, rather than being an individualistic endeavour, is always rooted in interpersonal and community relationships.

Erin Clancy (2018)

At the time of the nomination, Erin Clancy was a Master of Arts student in Canadian Studies and Indigenous Studies at Trent. Passionate about decolonization and social and environmental justice, Erin’s graduate work focuses on researching the challenges that teachers face in incorporating Indigenous content into their classrooms. Erin notes that as a non-Indigenous settler to Turtle Island (North America), she feels that it is her responsibility to decolonize educational spaces, incorporate Indigenous histories and knowledges into her teaching, create awareness about the legacies of settler-colonialism, and inspire change.

Erin holds a Bachelor of Arts, Honours in History from Trent University and a Bachelor of Education from Queen’s University. Her academic work has been complemented by leadership roles with Seeds for Justice and the TEACH Outside the Box Program, as well as athletic involvement as a varsity volleyball player. Erin has been the recipient of numerous scholarships and awards, including an Ontario Colleges Athletic Association Academic All-Canadian Award; she was also a Torchbearer for the 2015 Toronto Pan Am Games.

Dawn Martin (2016)

At the time of the nomination, Dawn Martin was a third-year Indigenous Studies student at Trent. In the nomination, Dawn Martin was described as “a truly magnificent student leader who is devoted to improving education for Indigenous and non-Indigenous learners” with a “passion for Indigenous education and use of traditional language in the academy.” Her understanding of the profound impacts of “small everyday acts of leadership” was noted as particularly inspiring, as was her artistic practice as a writer who writes “to change perceptions, challenge stereotypes, and create dynamic spaces for new understandings to be reached.”

Dawn Martin served as the Co-President of the Trent University Native Association, Co-Chair of the First Peoples House of Learning Orientation Week, and as one of the organizers of the Annual Elder’s and Traditional Peoples Gathering. Ms. Martin also taught as a volunteer in her home community at Hagersville Secondary School throughout the year, including teaching and tutoring community members in Mohawk.

Boykin Smith (2015)

​At the time of the nomination, Boykin Smith was a third-year Political Studies student at Trent. In the nomination, Boykin Smith was described as “a true agent of social change,” a student leader who not only organizes a variety of activities and events at Trent, but also “values empowering students” and ensures that they have “a voice on campus.” His compelling vision was recognized as challenging systemic oppression in post-secondary education contexts.

Boykin Smith served as the Vice-President, Campaigns and Equity of the Trent Central Student Association, and represented Trent University at the Canadian Federation of Students. Prior to coming to Trent, Mr. Smith was also heavily involved in a variety of leadership roles in the Bahamas, including serving as the Junior Minister of Tourism and moderating the 2012 National Youth Rally, a gathering of thousands of students from across the Bahamas.