UPEI’s Elyse Cottrell named a 3M National Student Fellow
UPEI is proud to announce Elyse Cottrell has been awarded a 3M National Student Fellowship. The fellowship honours up to ten full-time college or undergraduate students across Canada who have demonstrated outstanding leadership in their lives or at their school. Elyse certainly fits the bill.
Elyse is pursuing a double major at UPEI in diversity and social justice studies and psychology. In her nomination letter, Dr. Ann Braithwaite wrote that Elyse “embodies all the best attributes of student leadership—compassion and care for individuals while always questioning their larger social contexts, a dedication to changing the world around her and to doing the hard and time-consuming work of making that change happen, a passion for bringing people together and creating community, and an easy-going attitude which leads by modelling a way of being in the world that invites others to join her. I am excited to show you how her vision of leadership, her clear commitment to being a leader among her peers, and her ability to be a team player all make her an ideal candidate for this honour.”
In her profile on the 3M National Student Fellowship website, Elyse explains that at UPEI, she “found a way to express my passion for social justice.” Elyse helped create and run the Campus Life program. She is co-chair of the UPEI Rainbow Alliance. She started the Community Kitchen, to reduce food insecurity on campus. “Currently I am working on my honours research project looking at opinions on reproductive rights across Canada. I plan to pursue a PhD in Social Psychology where I will continue my work examining the effects that stereotypes, discrimination, and prejudice have on society.”
“We are delighted that Elyse has been awarded a 3M National Student Fellowship,” said Dr. Robert Gilmour, Vice-President Academic and Research. “This award is a very well-deserved recognition of her academic excellence, as well as her outstanding community outreach and organizing activities and her leadership abilities. As a 3M Student Fellow, Elyse joins an impressive roster of 3M Teaching Fellows at the university, providing yet another point of pride for our academic programs.”
Each cohort member of the 2016 3M Student Fellowship will receive an award of $5,000 to be spent at their discretion. Each cohort member will be invited to join the others at the annual conference of the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (STLHE) in June, where they will also participate in a 3M National Student Fellowship Program retreat. Awardees will receive a contribution towards their cost of travel to and accommodation during the conference. While at the conference, they will have the opportunity to develop a cross-Canadian collaborative project with other cohort members with the goal of enhancing teaching and learning at the post-secondary level.
Congratulations, Elyse!
