Fair inspires Black students to pursue academic excellence

Students speak with ambassadors, mentors and academic experts during the Black Brilliance Pathways to Post-Secondary Fair on Oct. 18, 2024. (Ashley Bacon/CTV News)

Hundreds of students from around Waterloo Region took part in the inaugural “Black Brilliance Pathways to Post-Secondary Fair” on Friday.

The event aimed to encourage students to chase their dreams and combat a trend of lower post-secondary education enrolment among Black students.

Grade 12 student Liya Korbu has dreams of becoming a criminal lawyer. She said she was shocked to learn how many pathways were available to her.

“I did not know that there’s this amount of support for Black students and it’s made me feel more comfortable and more excited to apply for university and to explore what I want to do in the future,” Korbu said.

The fair was designed to highlight options in academia.

“Very often people were more eager to talk about their athletic abilities than their academic promise. An event like this really empowers a youth to become aware of the opportunities that there are and to take advantage of them,” Maedith Radlein, Waterloo Region District School Board vice chair said.

Students from both the public and Catholic school boards took part throughout the day.

“The data shows that this is a population that we need to target and focus on so that they can receive information in a cultural, responsive and relevant way. It doesn’t mean that we aren’t supporting other communities, but these communities are priority at this time,” Equity and Inclusion Officers with the Waterloo Region District School Board Teneile Warren said.

Grade 11 student Caleb Haile is looking to the future.

“A lot of black alumni from every university, they show through their experience how good they were and what they went through,” Haile said.

Black professionals from local universities, colleges and municipalities were on hand to give advice and offer insight into life after high school. Brenda Kurorwaho is a Wilfrid Laurier University ambassador. She said it’s important that potential students know they’re culturally welcomed on campus.

“[We want ] to show them that, hey, I’m here and a couple of students are here. We’ve been there, and we’re also advocating for you because you are our future and it’s also an option for you that you could be successful through this pathway,” she said.

With around 500 hundred students taking part in the inaugural event, organizers hope to make the fair an annual event.