Surprised and shocked are the two words Victoria Lacey uses to describe her feelings upon learning she was the 2019 recipient of the AMI Robert Pearson Memorial Scholarship.
Following a review of over 160 applicants, Victoria was awarded $5,000 on behalf of the program. Established in 2012, the AMI Robert Pearson Memorial Scholarship is available to Canadian students enrolled in a diploma or degree program at a Canadian post-secondary school; it is awarded annually to one English- and one French-speaking student with a permanent disability.
The recipients of this year’s AMI Robert Pearson Memorial Scholarship are Victoria Lacey of Toronto, ON, and Léonie Côté from Quebec City. Victoria is in Year 5 of a Masters program in Creative Industry at Ryerson University while Léonie is completing her graduate studies in Clinical Kinesiology at Laval University in Quebec City.
“This is a really big relief,” Victoria says. “This will really, really help me with my education this year.” Victoria is enrolled in extra courses associated with her minor classes in Disability Studies. The scholarship with help offset those costs as well as going towards tuition. Victoria is no stranger to AMI. An internship in the Toronto office introduced her to the company and what it provides to Canadians of all abilities.
"I learned so much about accessibility and making documents and media accessible, and the different ways of being inclusive in the workplace," she says. "It was a really valuable experience and I learned a lot that will help me in my future career."
AMI partnered with the National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS) to administer the scholarship. Since its founding in 1986, NEADS supports full access to education and employment for post-secondary students and graduates with disabilities across Canada.
The 2020 AMI Scholarship Program kicks off in February. Interested applicants can find more information on the AMI Scholarship Program page.