Out of a pool of nearly 4,800 applicants, the 90 young people selected as Loran Finalists for the class of 2023 have demonstrated their drive to step up in the face of challenges and positively impact their communities. One finalist taught himself coding in order to develop an electronic medical record system for volunteers at a hospital in Haiti; another finalist and swim instructor advocated for the addition of French-language swim classes at her YMCA after recognizing the importance of preserving the French language in Manitoba; and another one established “Culinary Culture”, a culinary class for BIPOC to foster meaningful community gatherings in a post-COVID world. These students will be travelling from homes as widespread as Iqaluit, NU; New Albany, NS; and Kahnawake, QC when we welcome them at Loran’s National Interviews in Toronto on February 24-26, 2023.
The Loran Scholars Foundation identifies students with character; those who believe in pushing boundaries by questioning the status quo, while showing compassion and a commitment to service—seeing a need and making positive change in their own communities. These young people view the world through a lens of curiosity, and have leadership qualities they may not even fully realize themselves. Loran’s reflective and thorough selections process, carried out through the work of hundreds of volunteer assessors and interviewers, is designed to uncover this promise and leadership potential in students from the smallest towns to the largest cities across Canada. We look for qualities that grades alone cannot show: a breadth of interests, and deep commitment to service, the courage to make difficult decisions, and the determination to work towards long-term goals.
We know that such promising young people have the power to change the future for the better—they just need a launchpad and opportunities to grow. This is precisely what we offer Loran Scholars: an enrichment program of leadership development and diverse learning experiences that equip them to create positive change over the course of their lifetimes.
During National interviews, we will be seeking the 36 young people who most exceptionally demonstrate strength of character, dedication to service, and leadership potential to be named the class of 2023 Loran Scholars. Each will receive a Loran Award valued at more than $100,000 over their four-year undergraduate studies and join an extended community that will support their lifelong growth and pursuits.
Finalists not selected as Loran Scholars are eligible to receive a one-time $5,000 Loran Finalist Award tenable at any Canadian university. At the conclusion of our semi-final interviews, 70 students who distinguished themselves at that level received one-time $2,000 Loran Provincial/Territorial Awards. Overall, we will be investing close to $4M in 150 students across Canada this year.
Since its inception, the Loran Scholars Foundation has provided more than $62 million in undergraduate awards to 3,200+ promising high school and Cégep students including 615 Loran alumni. Together they form a diverse ecosystem of purpose-driven leaders pushing boundaries across an array of fields, such as technology, the arts, law, science, education and finance. Loran Scholars have gone on to hold such positions as: Partner, Environmental Law Group at Gowling WLG; Managing Director, Consulting & Deals at PwC; Chief Medical Officer at AIRMEDIC; Executive Director at Jane Finch Community & Family Centre; Research Scientist and Engineer at the NASA Ames Research Center; Co-Founder of FundThrough; and Assistant Professor, Critical Studies of Race & Indigeneity at the University of Toronto. Moreover, 8 Loran Scholars have gone on to clerk for the Supreme Court and 24 have been selected as Rhodes Scholars. Though their work spans a multitude of sectors and disciplines, alumni share and continue to be guided by Loran’s core values of character, service, and leadership.
2023 Loran Finalists
Sam Appleton
T.A. Blakelock High School
Oakville, ON
Banin Arjmand
Nutana Collegiate
Saskatoon, SK
Olivier Arsenault
École Marie-Esther
Shippagan, NB
Sarah Astatkie
Cobequid Educational Centre
Valley, NS
Ridhwanlai Badmos
Windsor Park Collegiate
Winnipeg, MB
Rhea Bhalla
Notre Dame High School
Calgary, AB
Aarushi Bhargava
Renert School
Calgary, AB
Momin Bilal
Bedford Road Collegiate
Saskatoon, SK
Cadena Brazeau
Strathclair Community School
Keeseekoowenin First Nation, MB
Kaitlyn Breon
Elwood High School
Deer Lake, NL
Ellen Brisley
Cameron Heights Collegiate Institute
Waterloo, ON
Chloe Budakian
Laurel Heights Secondary School
Waterloo, ON
Chloe Carruthers
Georgetown District High School
Georgetown, ON
Sonya Chatterjee
Semiahmoo Secondary
South Surrey, BC
Paige Cheng
Britannia Secondary School
Vancouver, BC
Jaime Chown Chaikel
F. H. Collins Secondary School
Whitehorse, YT
Brynna Coogan
Cowichan Secondary School
Duncan, BC
Elijah Cosby
Thorold Secondary School
St. Catherine’s, ON
Mariana Cueto Mendoza
Dawson College
Montréal, QC
Andie Davis
Abbey Park High School
Oakville, ON
Jules Dawkins
Esquimalt High School
Victoria, BC
Gabriella deHaas
St. Mary Catholic Secondary School
Alderville First Nation, ON
Cassidy Devereaux
Inuksuk High School
Iqaluit, NU
Emily Di Lauro
Oakville Trafalgar High School
Oakville, ON
Gracie Diabo
John Abbott College
Kahnawake, QC
Marème Diongue
École Ronald-Marion
Toronto, ON
Sabrina Du
John Abbott College
Kirkland, QC
Sophia El Bakir
Dawson College
Saint-Hubert, QC
Danya Elkhidir
Victoria High School
Victoria, BC
Liv Erickson
Central Collegiate Institute
Moose Jaw, SK
Tumi Fabiyi
Dr. E.P. Scarlett High School
Calgary, AB
Bethany Findlay
Eastdale Collegiate and Vocational Institute
Oshawa, ON
Anastasia Hamici
École secondaire Étienne-Brûlé
Scarborough, ON
Graeme Hanks
South Kamloops Secondary School
Kamloops, BC
Ayca Haskoylu
Western Canada High School
Calgary, AB
Alex Hawkins
Rothesay High School
Rothesay, NB
Islay Hayward
St. Malachy’s Memorial High School
Saint John, NB
Antong Hou
West Carleton Secondary School
Ottawa, ON
Cathy Hu
Collège André-Grasset
Montréal, QC
Braydon Hunter
Riverview Rural High School
Sydney, NS
Garvit Jain
Old Scona Academic High School
Edmonton, AB
Sarah Jeanveaux
Collège Universel – Campus Gatineau
Gatineau, QC
Joesh Khunkhun
St. George’s School
Vancouver, BC
Jacob Kranjac
Bishop Reding Catholic Secondary School
Milton, ON
Nyx Kucharski
Bridgetown Regional High School
New Albany, NS
Jocelyn Kuntsi
Manitoulin Secondary School
Manitowaning, ON
Telia Lafontaine
Flex ED School
Regina, SK
Olivia Lanc
St. Jean de Brébeuf Secondary School
Stoney Creek, ON
Rosalie Lavoie
Cégep de Lévis-Lauzon
Lévis, QC
Zoe Lee
Wexford Collegiate School for the Arts
Toronto, ON
Amber Leung
Port Moody Secondary
Coquitlam, BC
Jiayu Li
Harrison Trimble High School
Moncton, NB
Janie Maillet
École Clément-Cormier
Saint-Antoine, NB
Ava Majernik
École secondaire Gabriel-Dumont
London, ON
Félix Malhaire
Cégep de Granby
Shefford, QC
Chinmayi Manda
Sir Frederick Banting Secondary School
London, ON
Elijah Manjarrez
Windsor Secondary School
North Vancouver, BC
Ilia Mehr Bakhsh
St. Paul’s High School
Winnipeg, MB
Gerardo Mejia
H. J. Cambie Secondary School
Richmond, BC
Noa Melnick
The Anne & Max Tanenbaum
Community Hebrew Academy of Toronto
Toronto, ON
Vanessa Memeh
Cathedral High School
Hamilton, ON
Jennifer Mushagalusa
Centre scolaire Léo-Rémillard
Winnipeg, MB
Annabelle Newby
École secondaire catholique Paul-Desmarais
Ottawa, ON
Ivy Ngo
C. W. Jefferys Collegiate Institute
Toronto, ON
Hamidah Oderinwale
Blyth Academy Online
Brampton, ON
Richa Pandya
David Suzuki Secondary School
Brampton, ON
Ria Patel
Merivale High School
Ottawa, ON
Max Pittman
Corner Brook Regional High School
Corner Brook, NL
Maria Racine
Cegep de Jonquière
La Baie, QC
Lily Renaud
G.W. Graham Middle/Secondary School
Chilliwack, BC
Alexa Roop
South Colchester Academy
Westville, NS
Himanshu Sangale
Westmount Charter School
Calgary, AB
Muhaddisa Sarwari
Fraser Heights Secondary School
Surrey, BC
Bogdan Sava
Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf
Montréal (Pierrefonds-Roxboro), QC
Neila Selouani
École Marie-Esther
Shippagan, NB
Shreya Shah
University of Toronto Schools
Toronto, ON
Liam Sisson
Okanagan Mission Secondary School
Kelowna, BC
Chloe Son
École Saint Patrick High School
Yellowknife, NT
Miyawata Stout
École Secondaire Kelvin High School
Winnipeg, MB
Achyutha Surukanti
Old Scona Academic High School
Edmonton, AB
Ana Theriault
Fredericton Christian Academy
Fredericton, NB
David Tremblay
Cégep André-Laurendeau
Montréal, QC
Sera Tulk
Holy Spirit High School
Conception Bay South, NL
Max Turmel
École secondaire catholique Béatrice-Desloges
Orleans, ON
Laurence Vaillant
École secondaire catholique régionale de Hawkesbury
Vankleek Hill, ON
Jérôme Verret
Cégep Limoilou (campus de Québec)
Québec, QC
Gabrielle Walji
York Mills Collegiate Institute
Toronto, ON
Akutaq Williamson Bathory
Inuksuk High School
Iqaluit, NU
Burhanuddin Yamani
École Mallaig Community School
Vilna, AB
Steven Yang
Winston Churchill High School
Lethbridge, AB