Northwestel has awarded twelve scholarships worth a total of $30,000.00 to outstanding post-secondary students from across the North. The scholarships were awarded under the 2008-2009 Northern Futures Scholarship Program.

Each student receives a $2,500.00 scholarship to assist with their post-secondary studies during the 2008-09 academic year. Four of the scholarships are available exclusively to Aboriginal students.

"We are proud to provide support and encouragement to outstanding northern students like these twelve recipients," said Paul Flaherty, Northwestel President and CEO. "Our scholarship program is just one of the ways in which we invest in northern people and communities."

"The Northwestel scholarship and others like it motivate students to pursue excellence in their education," said scholarship recipient Sheng Choi of Whitehorse. "Scholarships allow me to focus on school, rather than worry about money. I don't have to work a part-time job and I have the freedom to concentrate on my studies. I've won the Northwestel scholarship several times before and I'm now in grad school. In the end, this type of support will give me more opportunities, and one of those might be to return home and work for Northwestel."

"As northerners, we are so lucky to have this type of financial assistance from Northwestel," said Aboriginal recipient Jasmine Mooney of Whitehorse. "Going to school is so expensive and it's a big relief to receive this kind of support. It's also really helpful for scholarship recipients to have the opportunity to work for Northwestel during summer breaks and after graduation. This program helps northern students go to school, and gives us something to come back home to."

"I was thrilled to hear that I had won this scholarship," said recipient Kieran Slobodin of Whitehorse. "The money will be a significant help as I pay for my education expenses like tuition and housing. It's great to see Northwestel give back to the community and to youth in particular. Northern students are often asked if they intend to come back to the north after finishing their education and this program is a great way of encouraging them to return home to work and live."

 The 2008-2009 scholarship recipients are:

Yukon

·  Sheng Choi of Whitehorse - Engineering - University of Alberta - Edmonton, Alberta

·  Aaron Holway of Whitehorse (Aboriginal recipient) - Business Administration - University of Calgary - Calgary, Alberta

·  Jennifer Matchett of Whitehorse - Business Administration/Commerce - University of British Columbia - Vancouver, B.C.

·  Jasmine Mooney of Whitehorse (Aboriginal recipient) - Business Administration/Commerce - British Columbia Institute of Technology - Vancouver, B.C.

·  Shawn Sederberg of Whitehorse - Engineering - University of Alberta - Edmonton, Alberta

·  Kieran Slobodin of Whitehorse - Business Administration - Queen's University - Kingston, Ontario

·  Kevin Sylvestre of Whitehorse - Computer Science - University of Waterloo - Waterloo, Ontario

Northwest Territories

·  Peter Boggis of Yellowknife - Engineering - University of Alberta - Edmonton, Alberta

·  Molly Duntra of Fort Liard (Aboriginal recipient) - Business, Management Studies - Aurora College, Fort Smith, N.W.T.

·  Alexandrea Malakoe of Yellowknife - Business Administration, Economics - Bishop's University - Sherbrooke, Quebec

·  Ross Wallbridge of Yellowknife (Aboriginal recipient) - Business Administration - University of Quebec - Montreal, Quebec

·  Xiao Xuan (Lillian) Cao of Yellowknife - Computer Science - McGill University - Montreal, Quebec

Scholarship Recipient Contacts

 Northwestel provides complete telecommunications solutions in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Yukon, northern British Columbia and High Level, Alberta. The company's operations span nearly 4 million square kilometres of the most remote and rugged areas of Canada.