Acknowledging and dismantling the systemic barriers that impede access to – and success within – the McGill community can be difficult and uncomfortable work. McGill’s leaders, faculty, students and staff have shown their commitment to doing this work and taking urgent action to promote equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI).
By partnering with donors who share these values, McGill has been able to expand and accelerate EDI initiatives throughout the University.
Partnering with HBCUs
Launched in June 2021, the Charles R. Drew Graduate Fellowships are an important part of McGill’s Action Plan to Address Anti-Black Racism. The Fellowships were developed in partnership with Howard University and provide funding for students from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to pursue graduate work at McGill. With the help of philanthropy, Drew Fellowships can be awarded to more and more students each year.
Howard graduate Asia Blackman was selected as the inaugural recipient of the Drew Fellowships and began a master’s in Epidemiology at McGill in fall 2021. Speaking to the McGill Reporter, she said this initiative “is a crucial step in creating more avenues for graduate students of colour.”
Asia Blackman
Named after a medical pioneer who is known as the “father of blood banking,” the Drew Fellowships are also part of a larger project to celebrate exceptional McGill graduates of colour like Dr. Drew, MDCM’33, whose stories deserve more attention.
Supporting Indigenous initiatives and cultures
In the Faculty of Arts, a 2019 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation continues to bear fruit. The Foundation provided vital funding for the Indigenous Studies and Community Engagement Initiative (ISCEI), which was designed to increase resources for Indigenous students, faculty and staff, and support the growth of the Indigenous Studies Program, while responding to some of the Calls to Action from the Provost's Task Force on Indigenous Studies and Indigenous Education.
With newly established artist-, writer- and elder-in-residence programs, ISCEI is increasing exposure to Indigenous art, culture and expertise within the McGill community and among the general public. ISCEI also organized Indigenous programming for the University’s Bicentennial celebrations, which featured a performance by Inuk and Mohawk singer Beatrice Deer.
In November 2021, McGill announced plans to establish an Institute for Indigenous Research and Knowledges, thanks in part to a gift from the family of alumnus Gerald Rimer, BCom’56. The Institute will include an Indigenous Language Reclamation and Revitalization Lab that will help preserve and grow Indigenous languages and cultures.
Creating pathways to success for underrepresented groups
Many donors have embraced McGill’s efforts to recruit and retain students from historically underrepresented groups, but two Law graduates recently raised the bar in this area.
David Binet, LLB’85, partnered with his home Faculty to launch a comprehensive EDI Fund that will help Law students from underrepresented groups thrive throughout their educational journeys. This includes expanding outreach to Montreal youth who may not think of McGill as a place where they can flourish.
On a mission to make higher education more accessible, Martine Turcotte, BCL’82, LLB’83, has established a University-wide program for individuals who have spent time in the Youth in Care system, which includes a full-ride bursary and funding for recruitment and experiential learning.
Dr. Yolande E. Chan
It is a shared responsibility among us all to stand up against unacceptable behaviour and contribute to a culture that respectfully encourages continuous growth for all. Our power to change lies in us all working together.”
Dr. Yolande E. Chan, Dean of the Desautels Faculty of Management
Mobilizing collective giving for EDI
The McGill Muslim Alumni Society (MMAS) is one of many groups using crowdfunding to raise money for initiatives that are advancing EDI at the University and in the wider community.
Thanks in large part to the MMAS’s fundraising efforts in 2021 – and all the donors who supported the project through the McGill Crowdfunding platform – the Centre culturel islamique de Québec (CCIQ) Memorial Award is now endowed to exist in perpetuity. Established in memory of the six men who were murdered in the 2017 Quebec City mosque shooting, this award is given annually to a McGill student who shows a commitment to fostering the inclusion of Muslims in Quebec and Canada.
Anti-Islamophobia advocate Sarah Abou-Bakr was selected as the 2021-22 recipient of the CCIQ Memorial Award. The McGill master’s student has been involved in many community efforts to promote a better understanding of Muslim experiences.
Another crowdfunding success story is the Melville Undergraduate Research Bursary in Pharmacology and Therapeutics, which recently reached its ambitious $100,000 goal.
The Bursary is named in honour of Dr. Kenneth Melville, BSc’26, MDCM’26, MSc’31, a trailblazing pharmacologist and civil rights advocate who is remembered as the second Black Chair of McGill’s Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics.
Melville’s grandson Dr. Chris Wright worked with the Department to launch the initiative, which provides funding for a student from a historically underrepresented group to complete a research internship in the Pharmacology and Therapeutics lab and participate in a mentorship program.
“Everyone wants to make a difference but sometimes it’s hard to know what to do and how to have an impact – and where do you even start? I think this bursary is a very direct and tangible way to improve opportunities for people of colour and for underrepresented groups,” says Wright, who worked closely with Associate Professor Bastien Castagner on the project.
In 2021, the inaugural Melville Bursary was awarded to Pharmacology student Arrani Thambimuthu, who spent her internship studying C. difficile antibodies in the Castagner Lab.
Speaking about the impact of the bursary, Thambimuthu says: “It’s helping me follow my dreams to become a pharmacologist one day. And it's going to help other students like me that are less likely to have a mentor encouraging them to achieve their goals, and break social and financial barriers to pursue higher studies.”
With gifts of all sizes, donors are extending the reach and impact of many other EDI-focused, and often student-run, projects at McGill – including Scientista (improving gender equality and diversity in science, technology engineering and mathematics), the Black Youth Outreach Program (stimulating interest in McGill programs among the Black youth of Montreal), and True Colours: Solidarity in Healthcare (creating safe spaces for gender and sexually diverse patients in clinical settings).