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2006 Atkinson Scholar

Ainsley Latour, this year's scholarship winner

Ainsley Latour, a student in the Queen's University concurrent BEd program and a graduate of Trent University, is the proud recipient of the Ontario College of Teachers Foundation's fourth annual Atkinson Scholarship. She accepted the award at a special ceremony on September 29, 2006.

Latour, 23, grew up in Whitby and was already a very good student aiming for a career in education by the time she was in Grade 8. In high school she immersed herself in extracurricular activities, including the Durham DSB's program, Students Together against Racism. The experience helped her focus her goal on social justice in education. In 2002 she was awarded several scholarships for academic excellence and community involvement, including the Whitby Race Relations Scholarship for her leadership in multicultural activities.

“Learning about other cultures has enabled me to better understand students around me,” she says. As a high school student she became aware that social class, ethnicity and language interact to shape kids. The issues she faced as a student leader were “of a moral nature.”

At Trent University this thoughtful young woman studied biology and dove into departmental activities. She worked as a teaching assistant. She breathed new life into the Biology Undergraduate Society, representing students on various faculty and student committees, tutoring, judging at Peterborough regional science fairs and creating a web site for biology students.

For several summers she has worked with children and teens in camps and outdoor education settings. Through all of this, she says, it's become clear to her that teaching is both an intellectually and ethically challenging profession.

Latour is a high achiever. But it might not have been so. Her experiences in school were not always positive. She suffers from hearing loss and, as a child, endured teasing and bullying for many years.

“The years from kindergarten through early high school were filled with considerable stress, frustration, fatigue and isolation, which all took a heavy toll on my self-esteem,” she says.

She credits her Grade 1–2 teacher, Bonnie Hambleton, with giving her opportunities to learn, encouraging her to take risks and valuing her individuality. This teacher “made all the difference to me” – and first inspired her to become a teacher herself.

In her application to the Foundation for the Atkinson Scholarship, she wrote, “I have a strong desire to demonstrate to others, especially other hard of hearing students in the mainstream that they are fully capable of learning and success. I yearn to inspire my students to be lifelong learners through providing opportunities for them to experience the excitement of learning through science.”

While she was an undergraduate Latour was active with the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association, organizing events for young people.

Next, Latour wants to create a youth mentoring program for high school students with hearing loss.

“Hearing loss is an invisible disability more prevalent in schools than many realize,” she says. “The scholarship will help me demonstrate to others that severe loss of hearing need not lead to a solitary or inactive lifestyle.”

For now, Latour is approaching student life at Queen's with gusto. In addition to carrying a heavy academic load she's thrilled to be on the novice rowing team and is taking a dance class. “Perhaps all teachers should try to learn brand new skills. It can remind us of how difficult it is to learn,” she says.

She is looking forward to teaching high school biology and chemistry in Ontario.

“Although my hearing loss does not define who I am as a person or who I will be as a teacher, it constantly challenges me to achieve things that those around me often view as impossible.”