FEATURES

Ajimal completed her undergraduate degree in sociology at Ryerson and is the student life and events co-ordinator with the Real Institute at Ryerson University. With her ESL students, Ajimal says, “I try to reflect as much as I can on the way Janice treated me. We want to know if there is anything personal going on, if there are any additional ways we can support them.”

Edwards sees the ripple effects of Spanning the Gaps programming, both at Ryerson and in the larger community. “We’re building a civil society. Spanning the Gaps is not just transforming the individual’s lives but the lives of their kids and maybe their friends,” he says.

AFTER A CHALLENGING TIME AT HIGH SCHOOL, DANIEL MOHAMMED (BELOW) RECEIVED A LIFE-CHANGING CONFIDENCE BOOST FROM THE BRIDGES PROGRAM.

Like Ajimal and Mohammed, many alumni of the program go on to support diverse voices in their workplaces and communities and they’re an asset to their university peers. “They’re incredible role models,” says Pinto. “There’s a lot of resilience and determination already built in them.”

Mature students, students who are parents, and students from marginalized communities offer points of view that their classmates might not have considered. “They contribute immensely to classroom discussions from another lens,” adds Edwards.

In an effort to ensure that more universities benefit from diverse classrooms – and more students benefit from university – Spanning the Gaps has expanded its programming over the years. Two years ago, Edwards launched the Summer Academy, in which 25 Grade 9 students are given a taste of the university experience. The students take a course designed for their age group, and are encouraged to roam the campus. After the experience, students take a survey. “I feel better about myself. I know I can get to university,” one wrote. Another said the program inspired a dream – “to be the first one in my family to go to university.”

Another program, Ryerson University Now (RUN), provides older high school students the opportunity to take an actual university credit course, which they can use toward their degree at Ryerson or elsewhere.

Kimberly Burke-Levy, program facilitator at Pathways to Education Regent Park, says the RUN program has been eye-opening for the high school students her organization supports. “Thinking of going to a post-secondary school can be daunting and intimidating,” she says. “The course allowed them to become comfortable with the environment and gave them a good understanding of what the expectation would be, of the differences between high school and university.”

Spanning the Gaps also offers programs aimed at veterans, Aboriginal students and students who are upgrading their marks through the high school system. To date, 324 Spanning the Gaps students have graduated with an undergraduate degree. They’re students Edwards, Pinto and all the support staff have fought for – struggling alongside them to conquer financial, psychological and numerous other barriers. Why? Because they believe in the power of education to transform lives.