Hayat Makwik, a grade 12 student from Chinook High School in Lethbridge, is one of the 23 recipients nation-wide of the up to $70,000 TD Scholarships for Community Leadership. (Photo: TD Canada Trust)

By Christian Oldale with files from Sarah Jones

Lethbridge student receives $70,000 scholarship

Jun 1, 2023 | 4:09 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – A local student has been named one of the recipients of a lucrative scholarship.

Hayat Makwik, a grade 12 student from Chinook High School in Lethbridge, is one of the 23 recipients nation-wide of the up to $70,000 TD Scholarships for Community Leadership.

The award recognizes students who have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to community leadership. The scholarship includes up to $10,000 for tuition and $7,500 for living expenses per year for a maximum of four years.

Recipients also have opportunities for paid summer employment, peer networking and mentorship.

Makwik has a heavy background and passion for community work and volunteering. She founded the Culture Club at her high school with one of her teachers. The club went on to secure local sponsorships and hold cultural awareness events such as Black History Month.

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Makwik credits her father as one of her major inspirations for her volunteer and community work. She added that her family, who are Sudanese immigrants to Canada, has a history of activism.

Makwik explained, “For the longest time, I’ve always been interested in volunteering. My dad, he actually worked for the Red Cross for over 15 years now, and he was a volunteer, so he would always take me to their little fundraiser events and you know, I kind of got my passion to volunteer from him.”

Hayat Makwik, the recipient of the scholarship. (Photo: TD Canada Trust)

Makwik heard about the scholarship through a school councillor, and after some deliberation and conversation with a tutor, she decided to go through the application process, which involved essay writing.

She added, “After talking to [her tutor], I was like, ‘Okay, I’ll write these two essays, I’ll send in this application.’ I was like, handing in my essays to my teachers and just asking them, ‘What do you think, is this okay?’ and then I finally submitted it, and it was just a waiting game from then on.”

Makwik is set to graduate from Chinook High School this spring, and has applied to multiple post-secondary schools. She has already been accepted into the University of Lethbridge for the Fall 2023 semester to study Psychology and Political Science. She is the first member of her family to attend university, and is looking forward to any opportunities in her near future.

Makwik said that after completing her university studies, she hopes to work in public health, and is considering attending medical school.

She added, “Having the scholarship will, you now, be able to help me achieve my dreams in the sense that I will be able to take whatever I want to in university, and kind of go through those four years stress-free.”

READ MORE: Lethbridge News Now.

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