Tara-Lynn Kozma-Perrin is an artist. She’s also a community builder. And an experienced public servant.   Combine those three superpowers and you have all the necessary ingredients for bringing communities to life. And UFV helped her develop those skillsets. Twice.  Her first degree was a Bachelor of Fine Arts, completed in 2008.   “I started out…

“I’m one of those forever students,” says UFV alumna Shana Smith (BA ’16). “I just love learning.”  So much so that she didn’t want to leave — after graduating with a major in English and a minor in Media and Communication, she continued on as an employee. Shana now brings her creativity to UFV’s Information…

Dr. Lisa Kelly teaches her law students at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario with confidence and compassion, qualities instilled in her as an undergraduate at UFV (then the University College of the Fraser Valley) in the early 2000s.  Completing a two-year Associate of Arts degree at UFV before embarking on a multi-institution academic journey, Lisa…

 Some artists struggle for years in obscurity. A few find fame and glory young, their talents celebrated, their work snapped up by collectors who pay top dollar to acquire a piece or two. Chris Woods falls into that latter category; his extraordinary talent gained attention just as he was beginning his career.    Having exhibited in…

In 1988, when Rebecca Anderson started her post-secondary education at Fraser Valley College at the age of 27, she developed a personal mantra: one course at a time.  Fifteen years later, she had completed a diploma at what had become the University College of the Fraser Valley, a bachelor’s degree at Simon Fraser, and a…

UFV gave Terry-Lynn Stone a springboard into a meaningful career in her 40s. Three decades later, she continues to contribute to her community through volunteerism. Terry-Lynn served two terms on the UFV Board of Governors, one in the 1990s and again in the 2010s. She was also founding chair of the UCFV Alumni Association in…

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…

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,…

Three-term city Councillor Kelly Chahal has a storied career in Abbotsford.  In addition to her decades as a probation officer, she chairs the city’s public safety committee, participates in the Purple Lights Campaign -- part of the violence against women in relationships committee (VAWIR) -- and she is part of the Empower Goddess group which…

As the NHL playoffs get going, UFV's Dr. Brett Pardy speaks about hockey and Canadianess at the Exploring Equity Speaker Series, taking place Thursday, April 25, from 6:30 to 9 pm on UFV’s Abbotsford campus. For decades, hockey has been presented as intrinsic to Canadian identity. But what does the current state of a game…

Of the 50,000 alumni who have graduated from a UFV program since 1974, 17,000 of those have earned a four-year bachelor’s degree. But if it weren’t for a determined group of students and community members who advocated for degree-granting status in 1991, UFV might still be a two-year college.   Jackie Rea was one of the students…

The highly anticipated play Rhinoceros, directed by associate professor Parjad Sharifi, will be performed March 14 – 23 . This will be the second production of UFV Theatre's 2023-2024 season, and it will challenge audiences to consider the state of the world and issues regarding conformism and complacency. Presented by the UFV SOCA acting and…