Congratulations to the Class of 2023!

Students walking to the convocation ceremony, MFA student Umar Turaki pictured at the front

The year’s convocation ceremony was held in person on June 8^th, and the faculty and staff in the Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies are happy to congratulate all of the students who completed their degrees in 2023.

This year we have sixteen masters students, four doctoral students, fifty-one Bachelor of Arts students, seventeen Bachelor of Fine Arts students, and four Bachelor of Media Studies students who are graduating with their degrees.

Breckin Baillie, who completed his BA degree with an Honours in English, and a member of the graduating class of 2023, was the student reader at our ceremony, and shared these words with the graduating class:

“These years of our lives, will not be idly shelved into the recesses of our brain to be forgotten. While we have been here, we have fulfilled this etymology of nourishing – we have been nourished by this institution, by the education we have received,” he said. “We have been nourished as adults, as future leaders, as pioneers in our fields, the giants whose shoulders will be stood on, we have learned to speak, to read, to think, our minds, our greatest gifts, have been challenged, corrected and expanded.”

Breckin reminded us all that these graduating students are now part of the alumni family of UBC: “Never forget the nourishment we have received here. While our time as students may be over, our relationship has just changed status. As alumni we are now part of a great family – a family of scholars, creators, world builders. We now belong to a community of changemakers and leaders.”

After the ceremony, a reception was held in the Creative and Critical Studies building for all of the FCCS graduates and their guests to continue the celebrations of the day. Bryce Traister, Dean of the faculty raised a glass to toast this year’s graduating class and their families.

“There are moments when I feel very proud to be part of an institution, and today was one of those days,” Traister said. “I always feel lucky to say I get to spend a life in schools, it has been my privilege to be able to do that. And I want to extend a welcome to each of you to come back and see us, tell us what you are doing, what you want to do, and what we need to do better. The faculty and all of the staff are full of excitement for your future.”

FCCS is also pleased to recognize the achievements of the following graduating or continuing students who received awards for their outstanding academic performance this year:

Savanah Babij, Kelly Curtis Memorial Scholarship in English
Sonja Berg, Jaeger Entrance Award
Aditri Chatterjee, Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies International Student Award
Ronnie Cheng, 2021 Vernon Film Society Media Prize
Mihai Covaser, FCCS French Essay Prize
Rain Doody, Jill Douglas Entrance Award
Katja Ewart, Asper Scholarship
Cady Gau, Visual Arts Scholarship; Murray Johnson Memorial Award in Visual Arts
Madeline Grove, FCCS International Student Award
Makeena Hartmann, Elinor Yandel Memorial Award in Fine Arts; Norma and Jack Aitken Prize in Visual Arts
Jaine Hillier, Media Studies Scholarship
Josie Hillman, Asper Graduating Prize
Chloe Jenkins, Visual Arts Prize
Simone King, Doug Biden Memorial Scholarship in Visual Arts
Peyton Lynch, Craig Hall Memorial Visual Arts Scholarship in Printmaking
Elizabeth MacDonald, FCCS French Scholarship
Emily-Jayne May Myatt, FCCS Dean’s Award for Visual Arts
Mariah Miguel-Juan, Visual Arts Prize
Claire Miller-Harder, Campbell Family Graduate Award in Fine Arts
Carrie Mitchell Jack and Lorna Hambleton Memorial Award
Alberte Patenaude, FCCS Spanish Scholarship
Christal Perdison, FCCS Languages Scholarship; FCCS International Student Award
Rachel Pickard, FCCS Cultural Studies Scholarship
Arthur Pielecki, Asper Scholarship
John Prendas, Frances Harris Prize in Fine Arts; Henderson Award in International Development
Calise Stankoven, Creative Studies Transfer Prize in Creative Writing
Marissa Thompson, Creative Writing Prize
Naomi Ukrainetz, Jessie Ravnsborg Memorial Award
Mathew Wanbon, FCCS Creative Writing Scholarship
He Wanling, FCCS Art History and Visual Culture Scholarship
Ziv Wei, FCCS International Student Award
Abigail Wiens, FCCS English Scholarship
Margaret Wileman, Dr. Shelley Martin Memorial Scholarship

The FCCS Dean’s Honour list recognizes students in all years of the BA and BFA degrees, who are at the top of their class with a GPA of 85% or better.