Pride Scholarship first of its kind in Calgary
Mount Royal University unveils LGBTQ scholarship for academic performance and positive contributions to community
By Josie Lukey, Contributor
It’s a first for LGBTQ students in Calgary.
Mount Royal University has unveiled a Pride Scholarship, awarded to any full-time students enrolled in the second or third year of any program in the upcoming Fall semester.
The Scholarship will award $500 to two students who demonstrate academic achievement and have contributed positively in the LGBTQ community through extracurricular activities.
Dave Beninger funded the Scholarship through proceeds from an event hosted yearly and donations. He says he wanted to fill a gap for students in such a large LGBTQ community in the city.
“The scholarship was one of those moments where it’s like, ‘oh my gosh,’ the people who are waiting for it are ourselves. We’re the ones who are waiting for it. We’re the people that need to step up and fill this gap,” says Beninger.
So far Beninger has raised more than $2,000 to keep the scholarship going for the next two years. He adds he will be holding another event in September and will continue asking people to donate in order to keep it alive in the future.
The deadline for the scholarship is March 1, 2017.
Donations for the Pride Scholarship are accepted online.
