Walking into Longhouse Branding and Marketing, the values instilled by founder Keenan Beavis are immediately evident. The office buzzes with a team of nearly 15 people, working collaboratively in one large open space – reflecting the long-standing traditions of the Stó:lō People, who have done so for generations in their longhouses. Keenan is an up-and-coming…

Content warning: This post relates to residential schools. A reminder that the Indian Residential School Survivors Society has a 24 hour Crisis Line available at 1-866-925-4419. Dr. Sarah Beaulieu, an anthropologist and assistant professor in the UFV School of Culture, Media, and Society, has been celebrated with a prestigious Governor General’s Innovation Award along with…

  Nick Taylor is a star in the world of professional golf. In 2023 he won his fourth PGA Tour event – the RBC Canadian Open, the first Canadian to do so since 1954 – and he’s currently the No. 32 ranked golfer on the planet. But he’s never forgotten his hometown of Abbotsford and…

UFV student Frankie Fowle believes misunderstanding springs from not being aware, and storytelling is a powerful way to foster understanding. That’s the philosophy which carried her through four years of university and it’s the reason she’s the 2024 winner of the Lieutenant Governor’s medal. The award goes annually to a student in a certificate, diploma,…

This year’s Governor General’s Gold Medal has been awarded to Master of Social Work graduate Marlae Vermeer with a GPA of 4.275. Granted to those with the highest academic standing in a graduate degree program, it is one of UFV’s most prestigious awards. When Vermeer learned of the achievement, she was shocked. Right away, receiving…

Pandora Siganakis hopes the skills she’s learned during her educational journey have set her up to help future students at UFV. The winner of this year’s Governor General’s Collegiate Bronze Medal for 2024, Siganakis has achieved the highest academic standing of any student in a diploma program. She completed the Library and Information Technology program…

Even if the change you make is small, it matters  Like all difference makers, Marion Keys has an origin story. To explain why she’s dedicated decades of her life to community service, she looks back to her youth growing up in a “difficult” home environment, making it through with tremendous support from friends, and teachers. …

When Amrit Singh sets his mind on an academic goal, he usually achieves it. So, when he zeroed in on winning the Governor General’s Silver Medal for 2024, odds were good he’d win it. It took a ton of work to achieve the highest standing in an undergraduate degree program, but Singh did what he…

Eddie Gardner was drawn to drumming and singing at an early age, from learning songs from Indigenous people back east where he grew up, to having Stó:lō songs come to him upon returning to his territorial and cultural roots. “Songs help connect us with our ancestors and bring harmony and joy to the work we…

In one year as head of the psychology department, Dr. Andrea Hughes has made a lasting impression on her colleagues. With more than half of her department being new to UFV, she took on the role during a period of change and growth, and keeps her teammates feeling energized and cared for. While her department…

In the heart of the University of the Fraser Valley's computing department is 2024 Faculty Service Award winner and recently appointed Director of the School of Computing, Dr. Opeyemi Adesina – a driving force of student innovation, locally and beyond. As an assistant professor in the School of Computing and a software engineer, Adesina's approach…

Sheila McKay has spent 18 years at UFV sewing togetherness with the threads of community, connection, and belonging. Before she was a staff member she enrolled as a student in 1988, studying early childhood education with the dream of becoming a teacher. After two professors encouraged her to apply for a job here, Sheila tried…

Over the past two years, Greg St. Hilaire has collaborated with the Seabird Island Band to implement and deliver specialized adult education courses that cater to the unique cultural and educational requirements of the Indigenous community while developing a pathway to post-secondary education.   For his efforts, Greg has been awarded with UFV’s 2024 Indigenization and…

Dr. Gillian Hatfield has been at UFV since 2016 and has seen many amazing researchers win UFV’s Research Excellence award. She never imagined she’d be in the same group as those “heavy hitters.” But here she is, part of that group. “I’ve been on the award committee that judges these awards and I know the…

Dr. Vanessa Radzimski believes the best way for students to succeed is to make mistakes and learn from them. It’s a core tenet of her teaching philosophy, along with the idea that students are the best teachers for students. Whether they enter one of Radzimski’s courses with a lot or a little mathematics experience, they…