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UVic Chair in Transgender Studies announces 2019 Scholars and Fellows

13 students from UVic to Australia have been awarded the positions
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13 students named the 2019 Scholars and Fellows of the UVic Chair in Transgender Studies. (Photo courtesy of UVic)

The University of Victoria’s Chair in Transgender Studies announced 13 Scholars and Fellows for 2019.

This year, there will be four new Visiting University-based Fellows. Terence Abrahams, a Masters student from Ryerson University, Gwen Benaway, a PhD student at the University of Toronto, Sophie Pezzutto, a PhD student at the Australian National University, and MT Vallarta, a PhD candidate from the University of California.

There are two new Community-based Fellows, Estraven Lupino-Smith, a writer and educator, and Arielle Twist, an author and multidisciplinary artist from Halifax.

READ ALSO: UVic Transgender Archives named one of top LGBTQ museums worldwide

Two doctoral students at UVic have been awarded the Doctoral Degree Scholar awards. Elanna Stephenson from the department of chemistry, and Kara Taylor from the department of sociology are grateful to have received the awards.

“Having the support of the Chair in Transgender Studies available to trans, non-binary and two-spirit students across all fields is a privilege,” says Stephenson.

Taylor says the award will support them while they take time off at the Canadian Institute of Substance Use Research to finish their dissertation.

Five new Masters Degree Scholars were also announced for 2019. Vincent Bolt, Gabe Schepens, Alyx MacAdams, Lydia Toorenburgh and Tianyi (Alivia) Wang.

READ ALSO: At one year mark, UVic Transgender Studies chair says there’s always more to do

Wang, whose research extends to all fields of chemistry, says they are honoured to receive the award.

“Receiving this scholarship reassures my confidence in my own decisions. With increasing awareness of minorities of all sorts in the STEM fields, this scholarship also inspired me to advocate for them, increasing their visibility.”

To learn more about the 2019 Scholars and Fellows, visit the Chair in Transgender Studies website. https://www.uvic.ca/research/transchair/research/scholarship/index.php.


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