The University of Victoria launched a new event aimed at connecting with fresh-minded high school students this term. The Fresh Minds Symposium, a one-day event held on November 3, was UVic's first opportunity for B.C. high school students from grades 9 and 10 to travel to Victoria to hone their skills in sustainable leadership in a convention-style format.
Students from Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland attended this year's conference with the intention of developing their leadership skills in the vein of sustainability but ended up getting even more: a taste of UVic life and a relationship with the campus, its faculty members and its students.
Jeneanne Kallstrom, campus visit coordinator at UVic, helped facilitate the symposium which chose sustainability as the headlining topic because of its pertinence to every department and area on campus.
"[The symposium] had a stronger educational focus and made the visit to UVic more experiential," explains Kallstrom. "These large events help to provide real-life learning to prospective UVic students as well as encouraging further education."
“The most important thing about considering an institution is visiting that institution. [The participants] aren’t acting like UVic students, they are being UVic students.”
The 2008 event spotlighted a range of disciplines including arts and culture, sciences, geography, health services and sustainability. The structure was designed to let participants concentrate on one stream of leadership during the symposium.
Beau Belle-Oudry, a grade nine student from Phoenix Middle School in Campbell River, sat in on the arts and culture session and had a great time on campus with his classmates. “It’s really great, UVic is really open [and] there’s lots of space to wander,” said Belle-Oudry.
Apart from enjoying the open spaces and bunnies on campus, Belle-Oudry also learned about sustainable practices and noted that "Recycling is really good!"
The Fresh Minds Symposium was a pilot project, with the goal of becoming an annual event and a projection of doubling attendance next year. “We provided a small travel grant for schools who wanted to attend this year's conference and hope next year to add a bit for schools that are farther away," explains Kallstrom. A larger travel grant for schools travelling a greater distance will make the symposium - and UVic as a potential university choice - accessible to more schools in British Columbia.