More awards in the cards for Loyalist students

By Renée Rodgers

BELLEVILLE, Ont. (02/06/11) Maureen Piercy, president of Loyalist College (left), and Stuart Wright, chair of the Loyalist College Board of Governors, presented a cheque to Beverley Townsend, chair of the Loyalist College Foundation (right) on June 2. Photo by Renee Rodgers.

The Loyalist College Foundation hopes to give out almost twice the amount in student awards next year as it did over the past year.

Beverley Townsend, foundation chair, announced June 2 at the Loyalist College Board of Governors meeting the foundation’s proposed budget for the upcoming year will allow for $150,000 to be given away in student awards.

Last year just over 200 awards were given to students, totalling around $80,000. That amount was down from the previous year, Townsend said, due to the market “going south”.

If this year’s budget is approved, it will mean more bursary money will be available for Loyalist students.

Dianne Spencer, a spokesperson for the college, said bursaries are given out throughout the academic year. Some are presented to students at the November awards presentation. Others are given out at a March awards presentation and still other awards are presented during convocation.

Spencer said award amounts vary.

“Typical bursary amounts would be at least $100 in value and they can go up to $1.000 or even $1500,” she said.

Townsend also announced the foundation received about $924,000 in revenues last year.

Part of the total, about $341,000, came from donations and event fundraising revenue over the past year.

The rest of the amount came from an additional $583,000 in matching and enhanced matching funds that was provided by the Ontario Trust for Student Support program.