Whether you need help financially, physically, academically or mentally, IGNITE has your back. Always.

The 2020-2021 school year was unique, to say the least. However, when times got tough, we got tougher. As most of Humber College and the University of Guelph-Humber’s programs moved online, we pivoted to deliver our services digitally. Because, no matter what, we’re committed to you.

IGNITE’s 2020-2021 Impact Report details all the ways we improved your student life this year. As we gear up for the semesters ahead, we invite you to review it in full.

But, for now, here a few of this year’s highlights:

Student COVID-19 Relief & Bursaries

The COVID-19 pandemic caused financial hardships for students and we worked quickly to alleviate them. Through our newly established bursaries, we gave a total of $800,000 to students affected by the pandemic.

You also let us know about the unique challenges international students faced this school year. So, we dedicated $250,000 in financial aid to students from outside Canada.

Because we believe your bank account should be the least of your worries.

College Student Alliance (CSA) Membership

This year, your IGNITE Board of Directors unanimously chose to join the College Student Alliance (CSA). By joining this external college student advocacy organization, we’ll be able to further our efforts and positively impact students across Ontario.  

Black Excellence Scholarship

This year, we introduced the Black Excellence Scholarship, awarding $1000 to each of six Black students at Humber and UofGH. This scholarship allows us to recognize the amazing Black leaders within our community and is a small step in the right direction.

But, this scholarship is also part of a bigger initiative at IGNITE. We are working to eliminate anti-Black systemic racism at Humber and UofGH, to better support the Black community and to foster positive change on our campuses. So, we also launched our Black Excellence Conference, hosted Anti-Black Racism Roundtable Discussions and signed the BlackNorth Initiative.

We look forward to continuing this meaningful work.

Real Talks

We hosted four Real Talks events with seven expert guests this year and entertained hundreds of virtual attendees. Our conversations covered entrepreneurship, women in business, the importance of resilience, and everything in between. We love to create spaces for discussion and to have important conversations. But, most importantly, we want to give you the tools to help you succeed in your personal and professional life.

Free giveaways

Students deserve a little treat from time to time—so, this year, we regularly gifted you with free giveaways! We gave out 266 hoodies in support of Pink Shirt Day to show our solidarity against bullying. Plus, we provided 220 Winter Survival Kits and 16 winter jackets to our international students, gave out hundreds of wellness kits for some much-needed self-care and dished out IGNITE shoes, mystery boxes and contest opportunities.

We love to make you smile!

These are just a few highlights from this year—read through the full Impact Report to learn more about how IGNITE supported you in 2020!

And, remember, we’re always working to improve our services because we want your experience at Humber or UofGH to be the best it can be. So, stay tuned as we work to make next year even better!

We can’t wait to make countless more memories with you.

Keep the reflections going by checking out how this student survived a strike, the SCI, and the pandemic – all in 4 years.

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