New opportunity for students to make social change

By: Jessyka Maliksi  

BELLEVILLE – Loyalist College is looking to improve health equity in the community through their new social innovation research project with Mitacs, which includes funded internships for students.  

Mitacs is a non-profit organization that partners with both the private and public sector to fund social innovations projects. 

In this instance, the college’s new research centre — the Centre for Healthy Communities — and Mitacs will partner with not-for-profit organizations. It’s the first time that’s happened.  

Loyalist College’s Centre for Healthy Communities is tasked with working with not-for-profits and local municipalities to address and improve challenges associated with social factors influencing health outcomes in the community.  

This research project will include 10 paid internships for current or very recent students, funded by the college, Mitacs and the not-for-profit organization.  

Kurstin Salisbury, the manager of operations for the Centre for Healthy Communities, says Mitacs will be contributing $75,000 to the ten internships, while the college and the not-for-profit will be providing $37,500 each.  

Since this new research project works with not-for-profit organizations that may not have the funds to pay for half of the internship, the payments are going to be split by the college, the not-for-profit, and Mitacs, said Salisbury.  

By splitting the costs, the not-for-profit organizations will have the ability to focus more on funding the paid internships, said Salisbury.  

The yet-to-be decided research projects will provide Loyalist students with opportunities to gain hands-on experience in social spaces while working with career professionals and faculty. 

During these internships, students will have the chance to engage more in research.  Salisbury says that’s something they don’t usually get to do during their college experience, and doing so on their internships will give them an advantage going into the work world.  

“It also helps develop your socially conscious skills and abilities,” said Salisbury, “So, working in kind of different sectors, working with people. Understanding social justice, and the idea of health…gives them a leg up and additional depth of knowledge,” added Salisbury. 

The research project integrates itself into the Centre for Healthy Communities practices, thus benefiting the college community.  

Throughout the years, the college has worked on small projects, but this social innovation research project is their biggest project.  

Salisbury said applications will be released soon with the plan being to begin the internships in the spring.