Gordon Cressy

U of T graduate builds community at Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy through volunteer work

Christopher.Sorensen — Fri, 05 Jun 2020 14:41:19 +0000

U of T graduate builds community at Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy through volunteer work

Christopher.Sorensen Fri, 06/05/2020 - 10:41

Cutline

Giovanna Schver held various positions in the Pharmaceutical Sciences Graduate Student Association and has been active in U of T’s student chapter of the American Association of Pharmaceutical Sciences (photo courtesy of Giovanna Schver)

Eileen Hoftyzer

Topic

Global Lens

Student Leadership Award

Brazil

Global

Gordon Cressy

Graduate Students

Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy

Giovanna Schver says she spent more time at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy than at her home during the six years she spent working on her PhD in pharmaceutical sciences.

On top of her academic work, she volunteered and participated in student government activities, helping to build the graduate student community at the faculty. She was recently recognized for her efforts with the University of Toronto Student Leadership Award (formerly Gordon Cressy Award).

“The Faculty of Pharmacy was my home for six years, so receiving recognition from U of T was amazing,” she says. “It’s almost like being recognized by your family.”

Schver first visited U of T for a four-month research trip while was working on her master’s degree at the Federal University of Pernambuco in her hometown of Recife, Brazil. She later decided to come back to the faculty and work under supervision of Professor Ping Lee for her PhD, which focused on developing new strategies to enhance the delivery of poorly soluble drugs so they can be more effectively absorbed by the body.

While Schver took on small volunteer roles early in her PhD, she began getting more involved a few years into her degree when she was elected to student government. She held various positions in the Pharmaceutical Sciences Graduate Student Association (PSGSA), including social director and president, leading a team that organized many social, fundraising and education events. She also developed two successful new initiatives: a mentorship program that paired graduate students with mentors based on their career goals and a series of lunch-and-learn events that allowed students to learn more about professors’ careers in an informal environment. Both programs helped boost students’ interactions and created a greater sense of community in the faculty.

Most recently, Schver has been active in U of T’s student chapter of the American Association of Pharmaceutical Sciences. On the committee, she established a research collaboration between U of T, Université de Montréal and the University at Buffalo (The State University of New York), which led to joint research days and free workshops for U of T students.

Schver says that volunteering has many benefits. She says it helped her develop skills that she can use in her future career, including managing a large team of volunteers. “You can develop a lot of transferable skills while volunteering that you can’t just by working on your PhD project,” she says. “All the opportunities that I had to be involved helped me develop personally and made me more prepared to join the work force.”

In April, Schver successfully defended her thesis virtually and, only a week later, she found a position as a pharmacokinetic scientist at a research organization.

Seizing 'the opportunity to lead and to serve’: Hundreds of students receive Gordon Cressy Student Leadership Awards

perry.king — Wed, 24 Apr 2019 04:00:00 +0000

Seizing 'the opportunity to lead and to serve’: Hundreds of students receive Gordon Cressy Student Leadership Awards

perry.king Wed, 04/24/2019 - 00:00

Cutline

Gordon Cressy, a former vice-president of development and university relations at U of T, spoke to Cressy Award winners at Convocation Hall on April 22 (photo by Gustavo Toledo Photography)

Perry King

Topic

City & Culture

Awards

Division of University Advancement

Faculty of Arts & Science

Ontario Institute for Studies in Education

U of T Mississauga

U of T Scarborough

Undergraduate Students

After 25 years of recognizing outstanding student leaders with an award in his name, Gordon Cressy still insists on taking photos with each of the winners.

Since the Gordon Cressy Student Leadership Award was established by the University of Toronto Alumni Association and the Division of University Advancement in 1994, about 4,000 U of T students have been recognized for their outstanding extracurricular contributions – to their college, faculty, school or to the university as a whole.

A quarter century later, Cressy, a former vice-president of development and university relations at U of T, is still passionate about education and U of T’s exceptional alumni. He told the almost 200 winners who attended a ceremony on April 22 to speak to loved ones about what this award means.

“Tell them it’s not just a plaque hanging on a wall,” said Cressy, a former Toronto city councillor. “Tell them it’s a commitment to actually stop sitting on the sidelines. It’s about getting involved and making a difference.”

The Cressy winners have provided support to fellow students, raised funds for causes, organized arts and cultural events and encouraged diversity and inclusion at every opportunity.

For U of T President Meric Gertler, the accomplishments of the winners speak to the “dedication and excellence” of the graduating class at U of T.

“To those being honoured tonight, let me say that we are immensely proud of your achievements and we are especially impressed by your amazing ability to combine co-curricular distinction with such strong academic performance,” said President Gertler.

“As you’ll soon hear, tonight’s recipients have seized the opportunity to lead and to serve. They’ve contributed in countless ways.”

U of T News spoke to seven students about the honour.

Diane Hill, U of T Scarborough

(Photos of individual winners by Perry King)

A proud Oneida First Nation member, Hill was an Indigenous program developer at U of T Scarborough, which involved taking part in committees for the implementation of the calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.

Hill said she considers her 2016 TedX Talk, in which she discussed funding inequities in education for Indigenous communities, a highlight of her work. “It was a good opportunity to share my grandfather’s story and the story of my community and be an advocate for Indigenous Peoples.”

Going forward, she wants to continue to show leadership in spaces where groups like Indigenous Peoples are under-represented. ”Being able to advocate for your community and Indigenous Peoples is especially important because you’re able to give back but also be a leader for the next generation.”

Suleyman Demi, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education

A PhD candidate in OISE’s department of social justice education, Demi served as vice-president of the OISE Graduate Students’ Association (GSA) and vice-chair of the U of T Graduate Students' Union.

Demi said he appreciates the Cressy Award recognition. “It’s a wonderful experience. Your work and effort has been recognized so it’s a feeling of accomplishment.

“It encourages us to do more, because it’s about service, through sacrifice and giving back to community. We are privileged to be in this institution. When we are here, our responsibility is to go back to our community and make the changes that are needed.”

Sherice Robertson, U of T Mississauga

While completing her undergraduate degree, Robertson worked with the International Education Centre to help visiting foreign students find their place at U of T Mississauga. She said receiving the Cressy Award gave her the opportunity to look back and reflect on her contributions.

That was solidified during the awards ceremony, when her qualifications were announced. “When I heard it being read out, it felt good to see that I contributed so much to my community overall and I did something during my time here that was worthwhile.”

Solomon McKenzie, Faculty of Law

A Juris Doctor candidate, McKenzie has dedicated considerable time and energy to strengthening the voices of diverse student communities. He served as president of the Students’ Law Society, was on the executive of the Black Law Students’ Association and is formerly the president of Out in Law U of T, a group for LGBTQ people and their allies at the Faculty of Law.

For McKenzie, the key to strengthening those voices was through collaboration and support – from family, friends and the law school community.

“It’s really exciting to be recognized for all the work, for not just me but what a whole team has been doing,” he said. “I feel very lucky to be in this situation, but also very appreciative of everyone who helped out on the cool projects I’ve been doing for the last couple years.”

James Chapman, Innis College

Studying political science and urban studies motivated Chapman to get involved in media and politics. He was the editor-in-chief of the Innis Herald and co-chair of the U of T New Democrats.

Chapman said he is proud to receive the honour, and appreciated his time being an active Innis College community member. He added that he was in awe of his fellow Cressy recipients.

“It’s nice, being at U of T for four years, being involved at the school, to have a chance to have that recognized,” he said.

“I hear others going up who’ve done amazing things – resettling Syrian refugees, expanding blood donation drives – and I think, ‘Wow, people are doing some amazing things on campus.’”

Umme Juthi Jamila, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education

In OISE’s department of leadership, higher and adult education, Jamila was herself a leader. The Master of Education student was the vice-president of the department’s student association.

Jamila was grateful to be nominated, and thankful for the opportunity to volunteer and serve her peers at OISE.

“Listening to the speech that was given by the president, it was very encouraging,” she said.

The message she is taking away from this win was clear. “This is not the end. It’s basically, try to do more out there and don’t be afraid of being yourself and bring something different to the table.”

Nivetha Chandran, U of T Scarborough

Among her many achievements, Chandran served as co-president of the UTSC Biology Students’ Association. The human biology and health studies student feels honoured to be recognized with a Cressy, but she also sees the award as a show of support from the university – which made her feel welcome as a first-year student.

“It’s not just an accomplishment, per se. It’s more an accomplishment of the community, the inclusivity and the good qualities they’re fostering,” she explained. “It’s all about finding that right balance (between studies and extracurricular activity), and that balance couldn’t have been found without that support.”

Meet five U of T student leaders recognized with Cressy Awards

geoff.vendeville — Thu, 19 Apr 2018 04:00:00 +0000

Meet five U of T student leaders recognized with Cressy Awards

geoff.vendeville Thu, 04/19/2018 - 00:00

Cutline

Students who made outstanding extracurricular contributions to their college, faculty or school, or to the university as a whole, were recognized with the Gordon Cressy Student Leadership Award this week (photo by Gustavo Toledo Photography)

Geoffrey Vendeville

Topic

Our Community

Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering

Gordon Cressy

Graduate Students

Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy

Meric Gertler

Rotman School of Management

Undergraduate Students

They have promoted mental health awareness, raised funds for important causes and advocated for justice for Indigenous Peoples.

The accomplishments of this year's Gordon Cressy Student Leadership Award winners know no limits. Just over 200 award recipients met in Convocation Hall on Tuesday evening to receive their certificates from University of Toronto President Meric Gertler and Gordon Cressy, a former Toronto city councillor and former vice-president of development and university relations at U of T. Cressy was also president of the United Way of Greater Toronto.

President Gertler said the Cressy Award recipients have shown tremendous ability by balancing their commitment to community service with the demands of their degrees.

“They have contributed in countless, diverse ways to the advancement of the university and of society as a whole,” he said.

He also encouraged students to continue on the same track after graduation. “Volunteering is a lifelong mission, and you are off to an impressive start.”

The award was established in 1994 to recognize students who have made outstanding extracurricular contributions to their college, faculty or school, or to the university as a whole.

Cressy's son Joe is the current city councillor for Ward 20 Trinity-Spadina, which includes a large swath of the downtown Toronto campus. After 24 years of attending the awards ceremony, he told U of T News he is always impressed with the recipients' achievements. “When you hear the bios and what people have done, every year it lifts you up in a world that has far too much chaos these days,” he said.

“Every year you feel a little more hope for the future.”

U of T News spoke with five award winners at the ceremony, asking them how they will continue to make a difference in the world after graduation.

Read about last year's ceremony and recipients

Oluwatobi Edun, Chemical Engineering

Edun was the president of the Nigerian Students Association. He's known as an advocate for diversity in engineering and across the university, and was a mentor to students as a teaching assistant and residence don at New College.

“To be recognized as a student leader encapsulates everything I’ve done at U of T. It shows me that being involved and volunteering to make your space better is truly an honour, and that service is very important to society. Part of why I chose to be involved the way I was at U of T was to work towards a vision to help my country, Nigeria. By being involved I learned a lot of skills – leadership, communication, presentation, policy – and that will go a long way.”

Elizabeth White, Chemical Engineering

White was chair of the U of T student chapter of the Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering and she was on the student program committee for the 2018 Chemical Engineering Conference to be held in Toronto this fall.

“From a student perspective, we can see how valuable alumni engagement is. Once you're on the other side and you've graduated and have industry connections yourself, I think it's really easy to give back. Students already have really great ideas. They have the drive and a lot of stuff going for them, but sometimes what they're missing is a helping hand from the outside to bridge that gap. The most important role we can do as alumni is to boost those [student] voices.”

Felipe Branco, Master of Business Administration

Branco likes to bring people together over the dinner table. He was the president and founder of the Rotman Culinary Club, the president of the Rotman wine society and he was a star on the student Iron Chef culinary competition for two years in a row.

“The main thing I did at Rotman was I brought food to the program. I started a culinary club, which all students will be able to participate in and enjoy in the future. After my MBA, I want to bring better management practices to the restaurant industry.”

Oghosa Igbinakenzua, Industrial Engineering

As vice-president, academics for U of T's engineering society, Igbinakenzua worked hard to improve the student experience.

“In my understanding, making a difference is something you do in small ways. I realized that in school doing the small thing I do but in a very excellent way is how I will make a difference. For me right now, I want to improve education in Africa. Academics is big for me but I think for any economy to grow in any country or region there needs to be education. That's something I'm passionate about doing long-term. I'd like to be part of that at least in a small way.”

Sadaf Rai, Doctor of Pharmacy

Rai – who started her studies at U of T Scarborough – worked in recruitment for the IMAGINE Clinic, which provides health-care services to underpriviledged communities in Toronto. She helped recruit health professionals to volunteer their time to the clinic. She was also president of the Pharmacy Student Service Team and organized events encouraging pharmacy students to give back to their communities with annual food and toy drives.

“Being at U of T gave me opportunities to make a difference. I was part of an IMAGINE Clinic, where we ran a clinic that was student-based for people who didn't even have Ontario Health Insurance Plan coverage. Opportunities like this encourage me to go out now and continue to be involved in the future. I do plan to continue being a mentor to the IMAGINE Clinic and helping run the clinic as a pharmacist rather than a student. I'm not at all surprised by who got this award. They are the people you see making a difference every single day.”

Bringing solar light to developing countries, fighting Islamophobia: Cressy Awards recognize student leaders

geoff.vendeville — Wed, 10 May 2017 10:52:52 +0000

Bringing solar light to developing countries, fighting Islamophobia: Cressy Awards recognize student leaders

geoff.vendeville Wed, 05/10/2017 - 06:52

Cutline

More than 200 students who contributed to their community through extracurricular activities received Gordon Cressy Student Leadership Awards at Convocation Hall (photo by Gustavo Toledo Photography)

Geoffrey Vendeville

Author legacy

Geoffrey Vendeville

Topic

Subheadline

Peer mentor, president of Muslim Students' Association and others honoured for contributions on and off campus

One undergraduate student mentored some of her peers, who were the first in their family to go to university. Another student helped combat Islamophobia.

And another student founded a not-for-profit organization working to replace kerosene with solar lights in developing countries.

They were among more than 200 University of Toronto students who received Gordon Cressy Student Leadership Awards earlier this month for their outstanding leadership.

U of T President Meric Gertler and Cressy, a former city councillor and former vice-president of development and university relations, presented the awards to students at Convocation Hall.

U of T President Meric Gertler addresses students at a ceremony for the Gordon Cressy award winners (photo by Gustavo Toledo Photography)

The award winners represented a wide array of disciplines, from undergraduate to grad students.

Dalia Hashim, a master of public policy student and president of the Muslim Student Association, was recognized for her efforts to fight Islamophobia. She organized more than 50 events this year and raised more than $80,000 for charity. After the Quebec City mosque shooting in January, Hashim helped organize a vigil to remember the six victims and offer support to the Muslim community.

"Our hope is that this was the beginning of a conversation and served as a healing space for those who were [at the vigil]," she said.

Receiving the award meant a lot to her, she added – as did the fact that she was nominated by Richard Chambers, director of U of T's Multi-Faith Centre.

See the full list of winners

Learn more about the award

Zoha Anjum, in physiology and health and disease, was a life sciences mentor with U of T's first-in-the-family peer mentor program, helping students who are the first in their family to pursue higher education. Anjum has said that she was the first in her own family to attend university, and signed up for the program when she came to U of T.

“My mentor played a significant part in my life, perspective, and university experience, which was what motivated me to join mentorship programs and help other first-generation students,” she said. “My time as a mentor has made me realize the value of developing relationships that go beyond just sharing class notes.”

Another Cressy Award winner, Kourosh Houshmand, founded Solar for Life, a non-profit aiming to provide clean and affordable energy to developing communities. The organization's partners in South Africa make solar lights to supply off-the-grid areas with an alternative to kerosene.

Gordon Cressy (left) with Kourosh Houshmand (photo by Gustavo Toledo Photography)

Houshmand was previously named one of Canada's Top 20 Under 20 for establishing the Toronto Star Student Hub (now called Learning Curve), a community of aspiring student journalists, and Education Rediscovered, a student organization devoted to global education reform.

"At U of T I’ve learned to independently explore my curiosities," he said later.

"I genuinely believe that student leaders are not created out of bullet points on a CV," he added, "but out of a distinct ability to maintain a sense of composure.

“It’s very easy to show leadership when all the conditions are right – what’s more difficult is being a leader even when everything’s going wrong."

#UofTGrad16: 217 reasons to celebrate leadership in U of T's Class of 2016

lanthierj — Fri, 10 Jun 2016 15:34:11 +0000

#UofTGrad16: 217 reasons to celebrate leadership in U of T's Class of 2016

lanthierj Fri, 06/10/2016 - 11:34

Eric Geringas

Author legacy

Eric Geringas

Topic

Subheadline

Gordon Cressy Awards recognize students who made a difference in the lives of others

Among the 18,000 members of the University of Toronto's Class of 2016 are 217 students who received special recognition for their contributions to student life and education, service to the community and volunteering hundreds of hours of their time – while maintaining excellent grades.

Many winners of the Gordon Cressy Student Leadership Award made a permanent contribution to the university community, while some created something entirely new: they saw an opportunity, and built a bridge.

See the complete list of 2016 winners

Faculty of Medicine grad Meghna Rajaprakash was instrumental in creating an extracurricular elective course for med students – a program that brings in guest lecturers to teach knowledge translation.

“I came from a research background,” says Rajaprakash, who earned a Master of Science degree before starting medical school. “What inspired me to initiate the course was seeing the large gap between scientific findings and their manifestation in tangible, usable clinical practice and policy.”

The course helps students translate the latest medical research into evidence-based clinical practice – a skill that’s only briefly covered in the packed med-school curriculum.

“When I see a gap,” she says, “I see it as an opportunity for change, rather than something negative. It fuels my passion, and inspires me to find other like-minded individuals to work on making that change.”

The course has been running for two years, and student feedback is overwhelmingly positive: more than 80 per cent of the class said they intend to apply the knowledge and skills they picked up in their future work.

Ming-Yi Bian also saw an opportunity. When she was a first-year engineering student, she joined a group that was starting a new student club at her faculty, the You’re Next Career Network. Four years later, she is graduating as its president.

The network was the result of efforts by engineering students looking to learn more about career and other opportunities for engineers. In particular, she says, first- and second-year students wanted more internships, which they felt would give them better access to summer jobs in subsequent years.

The career network drew dozens of new companies to campus career fairs, and also organized a Resume Hackathon – 300 students working on their resumes at the same time, with more than 50 mentors.

“We present our personal experiences to first-years on how to get help, and what not to be afraid of,” she says. “I can see the difference from year to year of how aware students are of how to find opportunities.”

For Satoko Nakamoto, an international student at Victoria College in Victoria University, her own experiences showed her the way to make a difference.

“When I came to U of T, my first reaction was, it’s overwhelming,” she says. “I wasn’t used to North American party culture. I did go to some frosh events, but I was really shy, and I didn’t know how to interact with people.”

Nakamoto joined VISA, the Victoria International Students’ Association, got a mentor, and saw her comfort with university life and her confidence flourish.

“VISA really helped me learn to overcome these struggles,” she says. “And then, I wanted to help other international students who may be feeling the way I did.”

Nakamoto threw herself into the work, ending up as VISA president in her final year. Under her leadership, the organization not only grew in size and profile, attracting many more international students and volunteer mentors, but got financial support from the college, which has given it stability.

And, at U of T Mississauga, business student Daniel Jayasinghe was inspired by a talk he heard as a frosh about “lollipop moments” – actions taken to improve the lives of people around you. He decided then and there that “whatever I did on campus would be something that would try to make people’s life better in some way.”

Jayasinghe was one of the student co-founders of I-CUBE, an entrepreneurial hub where students can create a business plan, learn to deliver a pitch, and get funding and mentors.

I-CUBE is now a full-scale business accelerator housed at the Institute for Management and Innovation, with partner funding, a range of programming and even an Entrepreneur-in-Residence.

“The thing I like is creating something out of nothing,” Jayasinghe says. “In any business, the key is finding a need and addressing it. Entrepreneurship forces you to be creative, to find creative solutions to problems, and to think outside the box.”

For their service to their fellow students, these four new graduates were honoured with the Cressy Award, joining a community of more than 3,400 graduates who have received the prize over the past 22 years.

At the award ceremony on April 20, the recipients were celebrated by Gordon Cressy himself, university representatives, the alumni association, their fellow students and family members.

“There were more than 200 of us,” says Bian, “and everyone did something different. It made me feel hopeful. I was much happier getting an award with 200 people than with four or five people. It means U of T has a strong community, and everyone is willing to serve.”