Bow Valley College reaches major fundraising milestone as campaign enters public phase
Open Doors - Open Minds intends to remove barriers for accessing post-secondary education — financial or otherwise
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Bow Valley College officials celebrated a major milestone Wednesday, announcing they have surpassed $25 million in fundraising as part of the college’s Open Doors – Open Minds campaign.
During a ceremony that doubled as the formal launch of the campaign’s public phase, officials from the college revealed the “quiet” phase of Open Doors – Open Minds generated $26.5 million in donations and philanthropic support.
With that phase now complete, the campaign will continue for the next three years in a more public fashion, with an overall goal of raising $35 million.
Dr. Misheck Mwaba, president and CEO of Bow Valley College, said the campaign intends to remove barriers for accessing post-secondary education — financial or otherwise.
“At Bow Valley College, we always talk about (how) we’re bold, resilient and committed to making education affordable, obtainable and a reality for all students, no matter their age, background or financial situation,” he said, calling education an “equalizer.”
“Our goal is to ensure our students have all the tools to become work-ready graduates.”
Open Doors – Open Minds will support student awards and bursaries, including the establishment of a $27-million endowment fund that will disperse at least $2 million in annual scholarships and bursaries in perpetuity. The fund will mean more than 2,000 Bow Valley College students can receive yearly awards — double the number available today.
The campaign will also fund economic ignition programs, student learning materials and more.
Mwaba noted that a bulk of Bow Valley College students are women or part of a marginalized group. The college’s website highlights that 70 per cent of students are women, 597 students identify as Indigenous and more than 110 languages are spoken by members of the student body.
“We aim to shape the future of college education by continually offering new and innovative programming to expand access to upscaling, rescaling and work-integrated learning opportunities,” he said.
Other speakers on Wednesday included Alberta Lt.-Gov. Salma Lakhani, Mayor Jyoti Gondek, Open Doors – Open Minds campaign chair Mike Shaikh and Bow Valley College board chair Shannon Bowen-Smed.
“Today is a good day for the students of Bow Valley College, for the board, faculty and administration that support them, for the donors who have been believers for all this time, for future generations of Bow Valley Collegers and for our city,” Gondek said.
“When the pursuit of a quality education allows students to prosper, it impacts their family, it impacts their community and it absolutely impacts our city.”
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