Queen’s Rector Cam Yung, Artsci’17, feels this year’s recipients of the Agnes Benidickson Tricolour Award are among the best in Queen’s history.
Mike Blair, Sc’17, Claire Gummo, Artsci’17, Tara McDonald, Artsci’17, Lauren Winkler, Artsci’17, and Mike Young, Artsci’16, are being inducted into the Tricolour Society, which is one of the oldest and highest honours a student can receive from the university.
“The people who were nominated were a very spectacular group of individuals. They have done exceptional work for the Queen’s community,” says Mr. Yung. “What made this year so special is that each person brought a different aspect in terms of leadership and character. They didn’t serve in a similar way to each other. They each had a different agenda.”
The award goes to Queen’s students for distinguished service to Queen’s in non-athletic, extra-curricular activities.
Here is a quick look at this year’s recipients:
- Mr. Blair served on the Alma Mater Society Board of Directors and volunteered with Queen’s First Aid and was a Queen’s 175th Anniversary Coordinator.
- Ms. Gummo championed conversations, wrote policy, created educational programs to address sexual violence at Queen’s, and has been selected as a 2017 Rhodes Scholar.
- Ms. McDonald created the Queen’s Elephant in the Room Anti-Stigma Campaign for mental health. She is a leader who empowers others and never gives up when advocating for equity and social change.
- Ms. Winkler worked to bring together the Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities at Queen’s by collaborating on the very first Queen’s Native Students Association Indigenous Conference.
- Mr. Young, Queen’s former rector, worked tirelessly to create an inclusive community by addressing issues surrounding mental health, sexual violence, and gender/sexual diversity.
A selection committee made up of students from various faculties chose the five recipients from a group of 18 nominees. There is no set number of recipients that have to be selected. In the past 10 years, anywhere from one to eight students have received the honour.
The Tricolour Award has a long history at Queen’s as it was first awarded in 1940. Past recipients include Dragons’ Den TV star Michele Romanow, Sc’07, MBA’08; the father of the Canadian flag John Matheson, BA’40, DSA’77, LLD’84; and former Bank of Canada Governor and Queen’s Chancellor Emeritus David Dodge, Arts'65, LLD'02.
This year’s recipients will be honoured on April 8 during a ceremony at the Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts.
