Grant helps resource centre support immigrant women
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
We need your support!
Local journalism needs your support!
As we navigate through unprecedented times, our journalists are working harder than ever to bring you the latest local updates to keep you safe and informed.
Now, more than ever, we need your support.
Starting at $15.99 plus taxes every four weeks you can access your Brandon Sun online and full access to all content as it appears on our website.
Subscribe Nowor call circulation directly at (204) 727-0527.
Your pledge helps to ensure we provide the news that matters most to your community!
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Brandon Sun access to your Free Press subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on brandonsun.com
- Read the Brandon Sun E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
*Your next Free Press subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $20.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 14/05/2016 (3687 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
A grant from the gender and women’s studies program at Brandon University will help the Women’s Resource Centre support immigrant women in Brandon.
The $4,000 grant, made possible by the Margaret Laurence Endowment Fund, has helped the resource centre extend the employment of Faith John-Praise, who will be putting on newcomers’ skills workshops and information sessions through the summer.
John-Praise, a former gender and women’s studies student who graduated from BU with a bachelor of arts in 2014, says that being an immigrant woman herself helps her understand the importance of community support.
“When I first moved here, I did not know half of what I know now, and I only know most of that because I’m active in the community,” John-Praise said.
Originally from Nigeria, she moved to Brandon to attend BU in 2011 after coming to Canada a year earlier.
“I remember my first year, I was the only black girl in a lot of my classes,” John-Praise said. “Now there’s a lot more different cultures in Brandon, and we have to help them with the settling-in process.”
She said her workshops will run into August, helping newcomers to Brandon learn about everything from career preparation and job searching to immigration, well-being and first aid.
Day-to-day, John-Praise also does administrative work with the resource centre and works as a community resource advocate, meaning she’s available to help women in the community access resources like housing, legal assistance and food hampers.
“Faith is an incredible resource who brings an important perspective to the Women’s Resource Centre,” said Brandy Robertson, the centre’s executive director. “She’s a breath of fresh air, and she helps us enormously getting in touch with people from different backgrounds in Brandon’s growing immigrant population.”
That’s a perfect fit for
the Margaret Laurence Endowment Fund, said Corinne Mason, co-ordinator of the gender and women’s studies program. The fund is specifically designed to foster links between community-based organizations and the program.
“The Margaret Laurence Endowment Fund allows gender and women’s studies to really break out of the ivory tower,” Mason said. “I teach students about theories of intersectionality, and here, Faith is working at the intersections of gender, race, immigration and rural life in our community.
“As a gender studies professor, I couldn’t be more happy to be able to support this project and Faith’s work at the WRC.”
<t-5>Along with the annual Margaret Laurence Endowment Fund, gender and women’s studies also regularly considers applications for sponsorship (or
co-sponsorship) of one-time <t-4.5>events, speakers, or workshops. <z8.5f”Helvetica-Condensed-Bold”>
» Submitted