Scholarship Winners Honoured by the Canadian Somali Scholarship Fund at their Third Annual Ceremony in Ottawa

Youth, parents, community leaders and other notable members of the Ottawa Somali community filled the Hotel les Suites Ottawa events hall to honour this year's scholarship recipients.

The CSSFUND has grown considerably since its launch two years ago. Only one scholarship worth $1000 was presented to a student in CSSFUND’s inaugural year; in 2018 and 2019, six scholarships were awarded —two scholarships worth $1,500 and four worth $1,000.

The recipients of CSSFUND's 2018-19 scholarships were:

• Abdillahi Abdiaziz Mohamed of Edmonton, Alberta ($1500)
• Najla Ahmed Mohamed of Ottawa, Ontario ($1500)
• Liban Ahmed Hassan-Ali of Ottawa, Ontario ($1000)
• Mohamed Issa of Ottawa, Ontario ($1000)
• Tasbih Hussein Ahmed of Ottawa, Ontario ($1000)
• Abdifatah Ibrahim Abdi of Winnipeg, Manitoba ($1000)

All high achieving Somali Canadian students entering their first year of post-secondary studies were eligible to submit an application. Students were awarded a scholarship using a merit-based and blind review process. Applications were independently reviewed by five evaluators, whose combined average scores determined the award winners.

CSSFUND, a volunteer-run organization, was created to celebrate and recognize Somali students that are achieving educational excellence and are striving to become engaged members of society. Founding member and Chair of the CSSFUND Board of Directors, Said Ali, stated that it is important to showcase the youth that are thriving and the strengths of the community rather than focusing on issues that plague the relatively young Somali immigrant community.

The Board of Directors would like to thank all the volunteers and donors for their continual support of this initiative. As a grassroots organization, the CSSFUND would not have attained the success it has had without strong community support. The board hopes the Fund continues to grow and succeed.

About CSSFUND:

The Canadian Somali Scholarship Fund was created to encourage Canadian Somali students to succeed in post secondary schooling and support development in academic excellence and community involvement.

The scholarship is open to Canadian Somali Students entering first year post-secondary institutions in Canada.