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Scholarship Award.

2023

Newmarket African Caribbean Canadian Association
2023 Scholarship Application

The NACCA Scholarship is awarded to students who are entering their first year of full time post-secondary studies and demonstrate academic excellence and a commitment to community service in order to break down barriers and build inclusive spaces. 

NACCA will be awarding Scholarships of $1500 each to selected recipients in support of their post-secondary education. One student who has overcome significant setbacks while excelling in these areas will receive the Iris Malcolm Memorial Award* ($2500).  For example, if five students are selected, four will receive an award of $1500 each and one will receive $2500 (not both).  A total of ten students will be awarded for 2023.

The Wasim Jarrah Business Excellence Award is given to graduating students who are looking to pursue post-secondary education and who have demonstrated excellence in business and entrepreneurship studies. NACCA Scholarship Award recipients who are graduating from a secondary school in York Region and pursuing business will be eligible for this award. The value of the award is $500. A total of three students will be awarded. This means that a student entering business has the opportunity to earn $2000 in scholarship.

Committee Composition 
The Newmarket African Caribbean Canadian Association and its members,  volunteers and executive council, understand the importance of impartiality and the  consideration of any potential conflicts of interest in carrying out its scholarship  selection process.  The selection of recipients for the NACCA Scholarship is conducted in an impartial  manner through an independent selection committee. Candidate selection is based  on evidence obtained from the applicants and is not influenced by other interests or other parties. 

Terms and Conditions 
To be eligible for consideration for the NACCA scholarships, students must: 
  1. Self-identify as a person of African descent /Black / African Canadian / Afro  Caribbean or any other term denoting an African (racialized Black) ancestry.
  2. Be a York Region resident and graduating from a York Region secondary school  in June 2023. 
  3. Show proof of acceptance and enrolment in a post-secondary institution  (including apprenticeship and trade programs) as a full-time student beginning in September 2023. 
  4. Be currently enrolled full-time in a York Region secondary school (minimum of  four Ontario grade 12 courses within the 2022-2023 regular school year.
  5. Have been continuously enrolled full-time (no gaps in full-time attendance prior to  the 2022-2023 regular school year). 
  6. Must be pursuing post-secondary studies for the first-time.
  7. Demonstrate academic excellence (minimum average of 80% in 6 Ontario grade  12 credits). 
  8. Must demonstrate involvement in extracurricular activities at high school or  involvement in community or volunteer work. 
  9. Must attend the awards ceremony held in July 2023.
  10. Must participate in 1-2 NACCA activities in the first year of post-secondary  education. Newsletters/communications will be sent to inform scholarship recipients of volunteer opportunities.
  11. Consent to the publication of their name and image by NACCA, if selected as a  scholarship recipient. 

The NACCA application asks that students include the following: 
  1. A personal statement outlining the reasons you should be considered for a  NACCA Scholarship. The essay must reflect your capacity for original thought  and your leadership/community activities: you will indicate the leadership/community activities/positions that you have been involved in during  your final two years in secondary school (max 500 words). 
  2. Grade 11 Transcript & Grade 12, Semester 1 and Semester 2 transcripts.
  3. Two (2) letters of reference: 
  • Academic reference letter that confirms your scholastic/academic abilities.  This reference may also speak to your leadership within your school.
  • Community reference letter should address your leadership/community  endeavours. It should not verify academic achievement.

Submission Details: 
  1. Applicants must personally submit their application including their full address with postal code and contact number. 
  2. Only PDF’s of original transcripts/documents will be accepted. 
  3. All required documentation (application form, signed waiver, transcript, report  cards, personal statement, letters of reference) must be submitted together in  one email with documents in PDF format. 
  4. All email communications to NACCA must have your name (first, last name) and  the topic in the subject line. 
  5. Applicants must send their full application to:  ​naccascholarshipaward@gmail.com. 
​
How to Apply
Please carefully review and complete this scholarship application form in full. All responses are bound by NACCA’s privacy and confidentiality policy and all responses will remain private. Should you have any questions, please contact Karen Mell at naccascholarshipaward@gmail.com.
​
Timelines: All scholarship applications are due by March 31, 2023. Scholarship winners are announced at the end of June, 2023. 

How, when and where award is advertised 
  • NACCA Newsletter, social media outlets, and website, January - March
  • York Region District School Board and York Region Catholic District School Board guidance departments 
  • Black-serving organizations in York Region 
Award amount: $1500- $2500 per recipient; Rightsline Computer Science Scholarship $5000  
NACCA Scholarship Application - Fillable Form
File Size: 95 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

The Impact - since 2019

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Stories matter. Many stories matter. Stories have been used to dispossess and to malign, but stories can also be used to empower and to humanize. Stories can break the dignity of a people, but stories can also repair that broken dignity. (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie).

The Ten Dollar Story

When Iris Malcolm passed away at Southlake Regional Health Centre in September 2015, she left seven adult children behind (all scattered throughout the diaspora) and Ten Dollars in her purse. She did not graduate from high school and subsequently got no opportunity to pursue postsecondary education. She spent most of her life volunteering in the church and working diligently to take care of her children. She was peaceful, humble, and worked quietly. She had many gifts and talents but limited access to opportunities for higher education.

At first, the Ten Dollars in her purse felt like a badge of shame to her youngest daughter who was left to carry out her final arrangements as she felt that there was no inheritance, no grand story. Soon, she realized that there was an overarching narrative to her mother's life that would become the driving force for creating NACCA and the Scholarship Gala. The link that connected the past to the present was that Iris’ great-great grandmother would have likely worked on a plantation somewhere in Jamaica, cut-off from access to education and higher learning. Therefore, the significance of this legacy is the story that this award is rewriting. By overcoming significant setbacks, Iris was able to carve out a different narrative than the one prescribed by history.

The Ten Dollars from Iris’s purse was used to invest in NACCA in order to change the story of lack, to dismantle structures of Black exploitation and oppression, and to create narratives of opportunity and access for the people of African descent, regardless of origin. Retrieving and redignifying the stories of our ancestors is a rebuilding strategy. This award is the memory and hope for a more equitable future.
​
Preserving our Culture and History, One Story at a Time | naccacommunity.ca |
© 2022 Newmarket African Caribbean Canadian Association
  • Home
  • About
    • A message from our Chair
    • Strategic Plan 2022-2027
    • Membership
    • Job Opportunity
    • Volunteers
    • FAQs
  • EVENTS
    • Black History Month 2023
    • Black History Month 2022
    • Black History Month 2021
    • Black History Month 2020
    • Black History Month 2019
    • Annual General Meeting
  • Contact/Donate
  • Programs
    • Food Security
    • Mental Health
    • Scholarship Awards 2023
    • Financial Literacy
    • Youth Programs
    • Black Youth Leadership
  • Resources
    • School Resources
    • Resisting Anti-Black Racism
    • Iris Malcolm Library
    • Black-Owned Business
  • Shop
  • Media
  • Awards