Convocation 2016

Congratulations to all the Faculty of Students graduating this week! Please stay in touch--we are looking forward to seeing all the great places life takes you in the years to come.

Special congratulations goes to the winners of the University of Victoria Jubilee Medal for Science. This award is given to the undergraduate student(s) who achieve the highest academic standing in their graduating class. This years winners are Erick Jantzen and Karlee Bamford.

Erick Jantzen chose to study Biology partly based on a desire to study the complexity of nature. Erick says, “Nature is full of astounding details. I believe that it is critically important to understand that humans exist as part of the living world.” While he found his entire program to be a rewarding challenge, the Bamfield class retreat as part of a class on Invertebrates stood out for him.

As well as achieving an exceptional grade point average, Erick received an NSERC Undergraduate Student Research Award. This gave him the chance to work with Dr. Page in the Marine Invertebrates lab.

Erick is guided by his goal of helping to make the world a more environmentally and socially sustainable place. In many ways Erick is a wonderful example of what UVic represents: accomplishment, creativity and passion.

Karlee Bamford convocated last Fall with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, where she also received a grade point average of 9 out of 9.

Karlee took advantage of as many opportunities to do research as she could, spending bulk of her time in the lab. “UVic’s chemistry program is renowned for providing students with excellent technical skills,” says Karlee. “I achieved more than I thought possible during my BSc thanks to the encouragement of the faculty and I continue to do so in my current research, bolstered by the confidence instilled in me.“

In addition to receiving the Jubilee Medal, Bamford received an impressive number of other awards during her undergraduate degree, including the CSC Silver Medal, 2 NSERC Undergraduate Student Research Awards, the University of Victoria Excellence Scholarship (2011-2015), the JCURA and first place in the Faculty of Science Honours Fest.

When Karlee wasn’t in the lab, she enjoyed sea kayaking and camping. She also volunteered at Woodwynn Farms, a therapeutic community for the homeless and served on the board of directors for Creating Homefulness Society (Woodwynn Farms founding organization).

Karlee is pursuing her MSc in chemistry at the University of Toronto on the synthesis of air stable boron-centered radicals using the methods of frustrated Lewis pair chemistry.