Experiential Education – Give the gift of opportunity
A letter from the co-chairs of Faculty, Staff and Retirees Campaign
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
On behalf of the entire university community, thank you! We are grateful for the outpouring of support for our students.
There is still time for you to make your contribution through the 2014 Faculty, Staff and Retirees Campaign and shape bright young minds here at the University of Manitoba. Experience beyond the classroom can be gained through co-op programs, undergraduate research and international student exchanges, and are an integral part of any student’s path to success. Service learning trips to places as far away as Tanzania or as close as Winnipeg’s inner city, create experiences that stick with students for a lifetime, opening their eyes to a world of possibility. When you support experiential education, you provide our students with the gift of opportunity.
We encourage you to make a difference in the lives of our students by making your annual gift through the 2014 Faculty, Staff and Retirees Campaign. Every contribution lets our students know how much we believe in them and their ability to shape the future for our community, our country, and our world.
Thank you for your consideration.
Brian Dobie
Head Coach, Bison Football
Kinesiology & Recreation Management
Co-Chair, Support Staff
Charlotte Enns
Department Head & Professor
Education
Co-Chair, Faculty
Douglas MacEwan
Former Head & Professor
Radiology
Co-Chair, Retirees
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‘Everybody benefits’
Supporting ways to learn beyond the conventional classroom creates a win-win scenario, explains science student Alireza Almaleki.
Science student Alireza Almaleki.
He works with Children Rising, a mentorship program that pairs University of Manitoba students with youth from Skownan First Nation, a community nearly 400 kilometres north-west of Winnipeg.
Almaleki helps to nurture an interest in post-secondary education and in exchange gains an understanding of Indigenous cultures and traditions.
“The (U of M) students themselves benefit. The community partners benefit….The children that you’re helping benefit,” says Almaleki.
“Everybody benefits. It’s a gift (for students) but it’s a gift for everybody.”
The university’s faculty, staff and retirees campaign runs throughout March. Every year, members of our community support our students by making a gift in an area of their choice.
Your donations to expand experiential education – which runs the gamut from internships to international exchange programs – means a lot to Almaleki.
He gained new perspective from taking part in Alternative Reading Week last year, volunteering at Main Street Project and Winnipeg Harvest during his February break from classes.
“It just makes you a lot more aware of your actions. You carry yourself in a different way as a result,” he says. “That is really valuable.”
He found a life lesson in something as simple as stopping to buy a coffee at Tim Horton’s immediately after leaving the downtown shelter. At the shelter, clients craving a cup of Joe have to go without if they’ve missed the scheduled coffee times.
“I was doing something that I took for granted,” Almaleki says. “It was a really profound cup of coffee. It really showed me what my actions mean and how much I shouldn’t take my actions for granted.”
Almaleki says volunteering is especially important to him because he used similar services when his family first came to Canada. Now, he wants to give back. “For me, it’s a way of repaying that debt in a way. But also kind of going above or beyond that or trying to anyway.”
Watch this video to see how your gift shapes our students.