INSPIRED BY HER OWN JOURNEY AS A MATURE INTERNATIONAL STUDENT, TRU alum Qingtong (Grace) Ye’s newly established Resilient Heart Award directs her gratitude into action.
The new award will support students in the Master of Education program, with preference given to Indigenous students—a reflection of Ye’s deep respect for the people and land that welcomed her.
She says the idea for the award grew from two core influences in her life—her family and a professor.
“My father would often say, ‘When you succeed, be grateful to those around you. When you fail, take responsibility without excuses.’ I must have heard those words a thousand times. Eventually, they became part of who I am.”
The second inspiration came during an academic conference, where her supervisor, Dr. Tory Handford, gave a keynote address titled “Dangling in the Glimmer of Hope: Academic Action and the TRC Calls to Action.”
“Her words, along with the care and encouragement I received throughout my time at TRU, made me feel that it was time to turn gratitude into something real. That’s when the idea of an award began to take shape. It became my way of honouring both my roots and the people who helped me grow.”
Originally from Shanghai, China, Ye arrived in Kamloops in 2021 with her husband and daughter. Juggling the demands of graduate studies and family life while adjusting to a new language and culture required a deep well of resilience.
But through perseverance—and the support of TRU faculty and classmates—she succeeded. In June 2025, Ye graduated with a Master of Education. During her studies, she received the International Students Overall Excellence Award and consistently maintained high grades. She is now preparing to pursue a PhD in Education. Through her award, she wants to recognize others who show the same tenacity she’s had to.
“I want to do something to express my gratitude and let other students know that if they keep putting in effort, they will succeed,” she said. “And when they do, I hope they’ll carry forward this spirit of love and resilience, sharing it with others.”
A DONATION TO TRU TOTALLYING $25,000 FROM PROGRESSIVE PLANET aims to support women in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
With that pledge of $25,000 over five years, the company recently established the Progressive Planet STEM Bursary to support female students at TRU who are passionate about STEM.
As a father with three daughters, CEO Stephen Harpur says with this bursary he wants to help reduce barriers for females with financial need who want to pursue careers in sciences and engineering.
“We know that more than 50 per cent of admissions to Canadian universities are females, but there is an imbalance in engineering–in math, in science and in technology–and we want to help level the playing field,” he says. “This bursary embodies our commitment to supporting the Kamloops community by fostering STEM education.”
For Bachelor of Natural Resource Science student Autumn Smeltzer, receiving scholarships and awards have been incredibly impactful, allowing her to dedicate time to research, studies and volunteer work without the burden of financial stress. Smeltzer plans to pursue a career where she can contribute to sustainable resource management and conservations initiatives.
“I’m extremely appreciative of the support I’ve received and consider it an investment in my future,” she says. “I hope to honour it through my continued commitment to environmental stewardship.”
The Faculty of Science is one of the largest academic units at TRU and currently serves the educational needs of over 4,000 learners annually—more than half of them women. With expanded programming and flexible learning options, STEM education at TRU continues to be a popular choice for prospective students.
Faculty of Science Dean Greg Anderson affirms that partnerships like the one with Progressive Planet are reducing gender disparities in STEM and increasing accessibility for all.
“We are excited about this gift and the difference it will make in our female STEM students’ lives,” he says. “Partnerships are essential to our ability to provide student supports and opportunities that may otherwise not be possible for prospective students. It definitely takes a community to ‘raise a student’ and help provide them with the best possible learning opportunities.”
