Endowment of the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora Achieved

By Neil Armstrong

Left to right: Robert Savage, Dean of the Faculty of Education; Carl James, holder of the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora; Kamal Khera, Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities; Jean Augustine in whose name the Chair is named; Arielle Kayabaga, Chair of the Liberal Black Caucus; Kamala-Jean Gopie, educator and philanthropist; Rhonda Benton, President and Vice-Chancellor; and Paul Axelrod, former Dean of the Faculty of Education

The federal government has donated $1.5M to the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora thus making the full cost of endowment of the position possible at York University in Toronto.

 

Describing the announcement as a celebration of the work, vision and legacy of Dr. Jean Augustine, Rhonda Lenton, President and Vice-Chancellor of the university, said it was also a celebration of the Jean Augustine Chair.

 

Dr. Carl James, holder of the Jean Augustine Chair, is a professor in the Faculty of Education but he also holds cross appointments in the graduate programs in sociology, social and political thought, and social work. 

 

“He is advancing the vision of the Jean Augustine Chair in very exciting new directions and his research is driving positive change for Black youth in Canada,” said Lenton who also introduced Dr. Augustine describing her as a tireless advocate of social justice.

 

She noted that Augustine was an elementary school principal before entering federal politics, and in 1993, became the first Black woman elected to the parliament of Canada and was the first Black woman to serve as federal minister. Dr. Augustine was exceptionally instrumental in establishing Black History Month in Canada in 1995 and has received many awards and accolades for her leadership. She was honoured with the naming of the Jean Augustine Secondary School in Brampton.

 

Lenton noted that the trailblazer’s Order of Canada citation reads: “For her distinguished career as an educator, politician and advocate for social justice in Canada.”

 

She said since its launch in 2008, the Jean Augustine Chair has been “an incredibly important part of the York community with its unique focus and dedication to advancing scholarly research, programs, partnerships, and new opportunities for Black communities in Toronto and beyond.” 

 

The vice-chancellor said she could recall when they were doing important consultations with Black students and Black faculty on the campus asking for input about what would make a really important significant difference — one of the common recommendations was the need for a Chair which would not only be symbolic but would be driving the initiatives and bringing together post-docs, graduate students and other faculty members. 

 

“Contributing to that Chair, Dr. Augustine has helped us raise over $1.8M in community donations towards the endowment of the Chair,” she said.

 

Meanwhile, Kamal Khera, Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities, said Dr. Augustine has touched the lives of many Canadians and she is grateful for her remarkable legacy.

“To help ensure that your legacy continues to shine brightly for years to come,” said Khera, “I am so proud to announce that our government will contribute $1.5M towards the endowment of the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora.”

 

She noted that the Chair is supporting the next generation of Black leaders and changemakers. “It is helping to address the barriers that keep Black youth from advancing in education and, of course, it is about building on the social justice work that Dr. Augustine has been doing for years to build a more inclusive and equitable Canada.”

 

The minister said the fund will support research, educational programs for advancing community partnerships that are culturally responsive and relevant to the educational social needs and aspirations of Black and other racialized community members inside and outside, and throughout Canada of this university. 

 

Khera said everyone knows that racism continues to be an unacceptable daily reality for far too many Canadians, and in particular, Black Canadians. “Too many of our neighbours, friends and family members endure the harmful and disruptive effects of racism. You know I always say that in Canada diversity is a fact, but inclusion is a choice, and it’s a choice that I think all of us need to make every single day.”

 

She said since 2015 the federal government has taken several measures to combat racism and to empower vibrant Black communities in Canada. These include: $85M to develop and launch a new Canadian Anti-Racism Strategy and the first National Action Plan on Combatting Hate; over $200M to establish the first-ever Black-led Philanthropic Endowment Fund which is on top of the $65M to create Canada’s first Black Entrepreneurship Program.

 

“Over the next two years, we’re also providing over $50M for supporting the Black Canadian Communities Initiative. This will empower Black-led and Black-serving community organizations to promote inclusiveness.”

 

Arielle Kayabaga, Member of Parliament for London West and Chair of the Liberal Black Caucus, said the $1.5M donation will have a significant impact on the community. “The importance of investing in education for Black students cannot be overstated so by doing so we are empowering young minds to reach their full potential,” she said, noting that it will lead to a brighter future for all children in the country not just for the Black community.

Dr. Carl James, holder of the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora at York University

 

Since 2016, Dr. Carl James has held the position of the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora and the impact of his work in advancing the vision of the Chair is highly visible, said Robert Savage, Dean of the Faculty of Education, who also noted that Dr. James is the senior advisor on equity and representation at York University.

 

Dr. James referenced the Second Annual Youth Participatory Action Research Conference held recently at the university by the Centre of Excellence for Black Students Achievement in partnership with the Toronto District School Board and the Jean Augustine Chair.

 

Nearly 200 high school students plus parents, parents, administrators and trustees from the TDSB as well as members of other school boards attended the one-day session. 

 

“In all, about 300 people, including observers from Edmonton, Alberta, spent the day hearing from students about the research the students had conducted and in which they examined the experiences of immigrant students, community and health barriers to education, and the underrepresentation of Black students in STEM and other specialized programs.”

 

Dr. James said he referenced the work of the students to underscore the significance of this contribution from the Canadian government to the Jean Augustine Chair in ensuring the future of the Chair and its programs and what would happen to these students. “And, of course, it is valuable endorsement to the foresight and aspirations of Dr. Hon. Jean Augustine who chose York as the best institution for the Chair.”

 

“Furthermore, this contribution builds on the contributions from York University with the leadership of President Lenton, Dean Savage, and I have to remember Dean Paul Axelrod who was the dean of education when the Chair was established.”

 

Dr. James said the experience that the high school students had from being on the university campus at the conference will help them to meaningfully think of and imagine themselves at university pursuing postsecondary education and not drop out or not go on to graduate studies as research has shown.

 

He highlighted some of the research programs of the Chair including one funded by RBC called “Securing Black Futures” which is being carried out with colleagues from six other universities. At the University of British Columbia, University of Ottawa and Toronto Metropolitan University they are working with high school students to sustain their educational ambition. Meanwhile at McMaster University and University of Calgary the focus is on nurturing the STEM interest of Black students.

 

“So, working with faculty members, graduate students, undergraduate students, post-docs and other team members we are able to do research and we hope to produce reports and publications that will provide valuable insights that will inform further work and contribute to the brighter future of Black students, and of course not only to the Black community that’s going to be benefitting but Canada as a whole.”

 

Dr. James said the work of the Chair is supported by faculty associates and a community advisory committee that meet and discuss what is taking place and inform and educate the Chair about where the work should be going.

 

On November 20, the Chair will host 20 Black high school students from Halifax, Nova Scotia, giving them a “York University postsecondary education experience” which will be like one held in 2022 for students from Halifax. 

Dr. Jean Augustine addressing the audience inside the Kaneff Tower at York University where the federal government announced a donation of $1.5M towards the endowment of the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora

 

Augustine said Dean Axelrod believed in her dream when she was talking about the establishment of the Chair. She acknowledged all the friends and supporters from the community who were present at the announcement and singled out educator and philanthropist Kamala-Jean Gopie who among a small group of friends attended meetings with her years ago at the university to “buttress my backbone so that I could do the fight.”

 

“We kept coming to have conversations with the university to ensure that we talk about diversity, about multiculturalism, about the nature of the society that would include all our young people. And I was always a believer from my time in education that you have to do the educating,” said Augustine who said she has a young women’s centre for empowerment which works with girls from the age of 7 to build their self-confidence.

 

Augustine said from 2008, her life has been around securing the $3M required for the endowment of the Chair, and she sought donations and held various events to raise $1.8M.

 

She urged Minister Khera to not spend a lot of time on the issue of diversity because Canada is a diverse society. “We need to spend time on inclusivity, that’s where our energy has to go, inclusive.”

 

Dean Savage said the federal government’s support will allow for the future sustainability of the Chair.