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Three Faculty of Arts and Science students were recognized recently during the Ban Righ Centre's Spring Awards.

Alanna Stuart (Department of Gender Studies) is the recipient of the Carole Kinnear Bursary, honouring years of perseverance by a student in Gender Studies. Claire-Elizabeth Djaballah (Department of Psychology) is the recipient of the Dorothy Matheson Parnell Bursary, awarded to a mature student with a preference given to single mothers. Monica Coral Young (Department of Psychology) is the recipient of the Marian Webb Award, intended for a student who is a newcomer to Canada or is the daughter of a newcomer and is over the age of 25.

Susan Belyea, director of the Ban Righ Centre since 2019, utilized the Centre’s services herself as a mature PhD student in the School of Kinesiology and Health Studies.

“There aren’t many opportunities aside from graduation, where you stop and celebrate the end of the year, and I believe it’s really important for students to have these moments,” Belyea shares. “We get to hear a lot of the trauma, hardships, and challenges, but we also really like to be part of the other side - the successes - whether its graduation or the moments of celebration like these Spring Awards.” 

For 50 years the Ban Righ Centre has provided support and services to mature women students returning to studies after time away. Some of the students who utilize the services of the Centre have a gap of only a couple of years; others are returning to school after a decade or more away. Many of the students have children; many are international students.

The Spring Awards celebration is more than a tradition - it’s an opportunity for the community to come together. This celebration began in the 1990s and continues to be an important event for both on-campus and distance students.

Monica Coral Young lived in a group home when she was a teenager. She has not let her past hinder her. She has sought refuge and support through the Ban Righ Centre.

Monica Coral Young, recipient of the Marian Webb Award, pictured with her three daughters. 

“For a long time, I was ashamed of talking about this aspect of myself, because I wanted to fit in and I always wanted to be seen solely for my academic performance, so I hid this piece of me,” Young says. "But now, I’ve come to a point where I feel like it's time for me to talk about it and be an inspiration to others.”

Although Young has faced various challenges throughout her life, she continues to demonstrate empathy and resilience. She is a single mother of three, a volunteer with various organizations, a small business owner, entrepreneur, and has recently just published an internationally distributed , called “Who is God?”, all while maintaining a high GPA. She dreams of one day becoming a psychotherapist.

“I want to help give a voice and be a support to others who are experiencing hardships through my writing and my endeavours. I’m enjoying what I’m doing even if it may be difficult,” Young explains. “I want other people - those who lived in a group home, those who were neglected or experienced violence, or any adverse situation- to know that it’s okay, there is hope and they are capable of so much and worthy of so much. They value and they will get through it”

Claire-Elizabeth Djaballah, recipient of the Dorothy Matheson Parnell Bursary, pictured with her daughter. 

Claire-Elizabeth Djaballah is a single mother, and a distance student in Psychology. “The Ban Righ has made my journey with Queen’s something memorable, meaningful, and empowering,” Djaballah shares. “My experience at Queen’s is one of women helping and supporting each other with love and friendship - what I would call a Sisterhood. As an online student, it would be very easy to self-isolate. The ladies, especially Taylor Cenac [student advisor], have gone out of their way to reach out and support me emotionally." 

To learn more about the awards visit Ban Righ Centre’s Spring Awards.