Four years ago, Lakehead University established the Lakehead Leader Recognition Program to acknowledge exceptional student contributions made within the university and beyond.
Lakehead Leaders and Lakehead Luminaries are a group of students who inspire the entire community with their passion and dedication.
“We know and are proud of the fact that Lakehead Leaders … are engaged contributors both on-campus and within your communities,” said Moira McPherson, president and vice-chancellor of Lakehead.
Students who demonstrate a passion for learning and dedication to supporting others are nominated as Lakehead Leaders by fellow members of the Lakehead community.
A review committee of students, staff, faculty and the Lakehead University Student Union (LUSU) representatives carefully select students as Lakehead Leaders through their outstanding contributions, exemplified through one of the following five qualities of a Lakehead Leader:
- Innovation;
- Academic excellence;
- Diversity and inclusion;
- Citizenship: and
- Community engagement and sustainability.
Students are additionally recognized as Lakehead Luminaries if they have demonstrated exceptional leadership in two or more of these qualities.
This year, Lakehead recognized 28 students as recipients of one of these outstanding awards. Each of these students will be recognized, presented with a Certificate of Achievement and receive credit on their co-curricular record.
Here are profiles of the winners from Lakehead’s Orillia campus.
LUBNA KHANJI
Lubna Khanji, a social work student in Orillia, earned the diversity and inclusion award.
Khanji demonstrates leadership through her consistent support of other international students in Orillia. She is dedicated to easing student life on campus and making sure international students, immigrants and refugees feel connected with their community away from their home country.
She supports these student groups through her role with the Lakehead University Multicultural Association where she is currently acting as president, and by establishing informal mentoring relationships.
Khanji works as an International Student Ambassador and promotes multiculturalism and supports diversity on campus. She facilitates cultural gatherings including events that celebrate Holi, Diwali, Chinese New Year and Mexican Independence day.
She also supports Cultural Days on campus, multicultural potlucks and cultural movie nights that create awareness and appreciation for different cultures and traditions.
Additionally, in her steadfast aim to promote equality and equity, Khanji participates in the #ITSTARTS campaign and various other community-based meetings and seminars. She was recently elected to the board of LUSU, where she is recognized and appreciated for her excellent communication skills and efforts to foster inclusive environments.
RUDY GREWAL
Rudy Grewal, an interdisciplinary studies student in Orillia also earned the diversity and inclusion award.
Through his involvement with the Office of Human Rights and Equity (OHRE), Grewal promoted awareness of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination to the Orillia campus for the first time. His time spent hosting a resource table in the Learning Commons educated and informed students to become allies in taking a stand against racism and discrimination.
Throughout this school year, Grewal sat as co-chair of the #ITSTARTS Campaign at Lakehead where he led others in celebrating diversity, inclusion and acceptance across our communities. Grewal attended Ambassador training, promoted events through his networks on campus, participated in diversity-themed events, connected with OHRE to explore opportunities to represent their office throughout the campaign, and hosted an OHRE table as part of the Multicultural Campus Tour.
Within his wider community in the Barrie area, Grewal has regularly volunteered with and donated to local shelters.
Along with his family, Grewal was a leader in assisting with installing a new kitchen at the Barrier Women and Children's Shelter where he donated his speciality carpentry skills, along with his time.
GIA SPIROPOULOS
Georgia (Gia) Spiropoulos, a master of education student at the Orillia campus, won the citizenship and community engagement award.
Since beginning her master of education program, Spiropoulos has taken on a leadership role with the women's extramural basketball program. In her willingness to serve others, Spiropoulos stepped up to fill the vacant coaching position as a player-coach, a significant time commitment requiring exquisite interpersonal and organizational skills.
She actively supports her teammates in their academic endeavours beyond the court, showing interest in their research and encouraging their educational ambitions. Despite being competitive on the court, Spiropoulos always maintains her composure and professionalism and seeks out player input. Under her leadership, the team went undefeated this season with a 12-0 record winning three tournament championship banners. She worked collaboratively with her co-coach, teammates, referees and the athletic department to showcase her excellent communication skills and dedication to her team.
Spiropoulos is a genuine, caring and empathetic person. Admirably, she volunteers as a basketball coach with a girls team in Barrie where she inspires the future generation of athletes.
LEAH CADIEUX
Leah Cadieux, a criminology student at the Orillia campus, won the citizenship and community engagement award.
Cadieux has been a part of the Lakehead University Student Alumni Association (LUSAA) for the past three years. She’s held an executive position for the last two of those years and has been a significant mentor for new students joining the committee by emphasizing the importance of listening to the student body perspective.
She shares key event management strategies with her team, for example encouraging student engagement and ensuring student safety.
She has been recognized for coordinating LUSAA Socials out of her home to build a student community.
With her exceptional creative skills and knack for community-building activities, Cadieuxhas been a lead contributor to the annual Orillia campus Festivus by initiating creative events, for example, a hot chocolate pong game. She is also recognized for her role in developing an engaging homecoming event in Orillia.
Cadieux is an excellent ambassador to the local community and has assisted in hosting the Chamber Business After 5 event on campus.
She also collaborated with a team to organize a successful fundraiser event at the Orillia Terriers that supported the local food bank. She and her team hosted a Big Brothers Big Sisters event for children, connecting with this organization to try and match their needs and goals as they planned.
Prior to this, Cadieux had helped to collect hats and mitts on campus for the Orillia Youth Centre.
TAYLOR SMITH
Taylor Smith, a social work student at the Orillia campus, also earned the community engagement award.
Smith has been an active leader in supporting her fellow students through unconventional thinking and excellent collaboration skills. She is a director on the LUSAA board where she naturally inspires student participation in events.
She has assisted in preparing and implementing creative aspects of many successful campus community events including Student Appreciation Day, Festivus, and various Athletics initiatives.
Smith spearheaded a fall Lakehead-Georgian event where she developed and advertised a scavenger hunt, water pong, and a prize wheel, motivating students to ask questions and learn about opportunities and services available at Lakehead.
Smith dedicates her time to Student Central, working in a team to resolve student inquiries and support students in their success. She has been recognized for her ability to quickly and appropriately connect students with department advisors and student services based on a comprehensive understanding of their needs.
Smith’s sincere heart is strengthened by her eye for efficiency, and she is able to improvise with limited resources in the work she does. From creating a secure, temporary home for rescued kittens by using simple and accessible materials to leading LUSAA members for many hours to help cut, dip, label and bag 350 candy apples for Student Appreciation, Smith is always looking for ways to give back to her community.
JACOB KEAREY-MORELAND
Jacob Kearey-Moreland, a master of education student at the Orillia campus, earned a sustainability award.
Kearey-Moreland is a leader who creates and supports opportunities to assist and uplift others, especially those facing food insecurity. His work and support with Farm Club and its activities is an expression of how his drive leads to the development of innovative solutions to tackle complex problems.
Through his work with the club he reinforces initiatives that dedicate farm land to the development of a research farm. Kearey-Moreland both appreciates and utilizes the varying strengths of the students he works with and has been remarkable in connecting the student body in Orillia across diverse programs.
In his dedication to food security, Kearey-Moreland recently wrote a piece for the Argus illustrating a collective food commons that sparked initiative toward creative and collective solutions in his readers.
Furthermore, he has produced local organic CSA food boxes for a number of years and provides his community with an abundance of fresh food weekly. He has hosted numerous events and tours at his farm to advocate for food sustainability through community supported agriculture.
Two Orillia campus students were also recognized as Lakehead Luminaries.
JESSICA DINNER
Jessica Dinner, a social work student, received a Luminary award in the categories of Innovation and Citizenship and Community Engagement.
Dinner demonstrates exceptional leadership skills through her efforts to create supportive and inclusive environments on and beyond campus. While remaining focused on her academic priorities, Dinner co-founded the World University Service of Canada (WUSC) club through LUSU.
WUSC is a global development organization that improves education, employment, and empowerment opportunities for youth, women, and refugees. Dinner actively recruited student members and attended the national conference on behalf of LUSU where she networked and obtained support and resources for the club.
Dinner has utilized her HBSW placements for similar objectives. Her first placement with Simcoe Country’s Local Immigration Partnership involved assisting with their annual #ITSTARTS diversity awareness campaign where she participated in committee meetings with community stakeholders, facilitated campaign ambassador training, and created promotional materials for social media.
For her following HBSW placements, she successfully sourced out and secured opportunities with new community partners who were not previously Lakehead placement participants.
She worked with the YMCA Immigrant Services of Simcoe Muskoka to ensure that eligible newcomers to Canada received appropriate English language training and settlement services.
Dinner has managed to volunteer additional time in the community as a Crisis Responder with the Kids Help Phone and Crisis Textline and with Big Brothers Big Sisters as a Go Girls Facilitator and mentor.
LUCAS CHIAROT
Lucas Chiarot, an Orillia criminology student, is receiving a Luminary Award in the categories of Diversity and Inclusion, Citizenship and Community Engagement and Academic Excellence.
Chiarot is exemplary in his commitment and ability to fulfill academic, athletic, work-study, and student body representative responsibilities.
Maintaining a great academic standing, Chiarot received an Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) All-Academic Award at the athletic banquet.
Chiarot has excelled in his role as treasurer for the Lakehead University Student Alumni Association (LUSAA) where he maximized a limited budget to effectively fund over a dozen student engagement events this year.
He also maintains essential communication with External Relations as he regularly builds connections with local businesses.
He is a visible mentor for newcomers to LUSAA and very sincerely shares knowledge and experience with fellow students, including how to combine education and recreation.
He recently coordinated events with Athletics, Student Financial Aid, and LUSU to provide important information through quiz prizes, water pong, a prize wheel, and a drawing for a ticket to a Barrie Colts event, as well as a carnival event for Big Brother Big Sisters.
Chiarot exemplifies leadership through his role as the Campus Recreation Team Lead where he plans and executes campus recreation opportunities that are coordinated, advertised, attended, refereed and accessible for all students.
He is a superb role model and always willing to assist, even when that means dressing up as Wolfie or scrubbing yoga mats.
