Each year, the Queen鈥檚 University Alumni Association (QUAA) Board awards modest grants of up to $2,000 to alumni- and student-led initiatives that align with the mission of the QUAA: 鈥淭o reach out and foster a lifelong association with Queen鈥檚, to engage our members in the life and work of the university, and to serve the alumni community in all its diversity.鈥 This year, thanks to a successful micro-fundraising campaign targeted at Queen鈥檚 alumni volunteer leaders, our board was thrilled to be able to increase the total number of grants and funds awarded.
Our micro-fundraising campaign was likely effective because, over the course of volunteering, our alumni volunteers gain exposure to, and knowledge of, the impact even a relatively small cash infusion can have in the hands of our capable students and alumni.
We were recently reminded of this when we received a thank you from the Queen鈥檚 Genetically Engineered Machine (QGEM) design team, a QUAA grant recipient from last year. They shared their team鈥檚 recent achievements at the 2025 International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition in Paris, where their project earned a gold medal, received a Best Education Special Award (one of the most competitive distinctions, we are told), and was nominated for Best Therapeutics Project, Undergrad.
Having previously sat on the QUAA grant selection committee, I have also found reviewing the applications to be a fascinating and inspiring look into the activities of the Queen鈥檚 community across disciplines, on campus, and well beyond. In fact, the exercise serves as a reminder of why Queen鈥檚 is first in Canada and sixth worldwide in the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings. Our students and alumni truly are engaged in efforts to create a better future.
I am pleased to report the initiatives selected for our support this year include: another design team working to build smart, sustainable robotic boats; a film festival; a mentorship program that pairs Queen鈥檚 students with elementary school students in the Kingston community; a networking summit for Queen鈥檚 engineering alumni and current students; an initiative aimed at promoting oral health care among Queen鈥檚 students who may face barriers to maintaining oral health; a sustainability conference; and a mural project highlighting the strengths of Indigenous Peoples.
We hope the initiatives selected this year are as successful as the QGEM design team was in Paris 鈥 and that the QUAA can continue to grow our grants program for future years.
