2021 Award Recipients
This award was established in 2008 to recognize exceptional students who have a record of academic achievement, consistently demonstrate leadership, and make significant contributions to our community.
Amanda Cha
As well as achieving academic excellence in two majors, Amanda Cha has been leading positive change in her student community since arriving at UCalgary. In her first year, Amanda restored the UCalgary Philosophy Club, recruiting members, gaining departmental support and hosting biweekly discussions. She served as the club’s president throughout her degree.
Manpreet Sahota
Manpreet’s family left India and resettled in Canada shortly after the 1984 Sikh Genocide. Not only has she thrived despite adversity, she has helped others to connect and support each other. To create community among students who share a similar cultural background, she co-founded the Punjabi Students’ Association, which aims to reduce student isolation and promote a sense of Punjabi pride at UCalgary.
Joel Wong
Joel Wong showed a commitment to improving quality of life for others and inspiring youth. He oversaw a solar energy project in rural Peru, helped solve challenges for people living with disabilities through an event, raised awareness about how STEM can create positive change, and he taught high schoolers how to code.
Cassandra Chisholm
A trained Emergency Medical Responder, Cassandra Chisholm has logged over 1,000 volunteer hours with UCalgary’s Student Medical Response Team – and has served as the team’s Director of Operations. She is also a harm reduction responder for UCalgary’s Post-Alcohol Support Space, where students can safely sleep off the effects of alcohol or cannabis.
Danielle Whittier
Danielle Whittier co-founded Innovation 4 Health, a multidisciplinary health challenge that pairs teams of students with clinicians to solve healthcare challenges. She advocated for improving the student experience through the Biomedical Engineering Graduate Students’ Association, was a student mentor and supervised eight undergraduate summer and co-op student projects.