Congratulations to all of the nominees for this year’s President’s Award for Student Volunteer of the Year! A new award created for 2014, the Student Volunteer of the Year recognizes volunteers who are students currently attending a BC college or university and have gone outside their comfort zone, shown tremendous spirit and teamwork.
2014 Student Volunteer of the Year – Winner
Alexandra Lowe
Alexandra, previously won and IABC/BC Student Communicator of the Year (SCOY) Scholarship Award and has become a true ambassador for this program. She now sits on the Student Services committee as Events and Social Media Coordinator since September 2013.
She says, “Being an IABC/BC volunteer has improved my professional skills immensely. I was given the opportunity to not only network with industry professionals, but also work with them first hand to organize events and plan social media campaigns. The IABC community is an amazing support network with each member offering a wide range of knowledge.”
Being involved on the Student Services committee has given Alexandra the opportunity to improve her public speaking skills, schedule tweets, use new social media tools and receive amazing support.
“What I love the most is how much I am able to connect with intelligent and passionate volunteers, attend great events, and discover career paths.”
Alexandra’s advice to new student members is, “Take initiative and be a self starter. Being a volunteer is valuable. Volunteers at IABC/BC have a lot on their plate and they still manage to offer awesome events and career opportunities. It is inspiring and motivational.”
“When you decide to volunteer, it is hard to pick just one area! For me, I choose something that I love doing (event planning) and an area that I wanted to improve my skills and get more experience (social media). I would recommend that interested volunteers take time to reflect and think about what they want to get out of their volunteer experience. What you put in is what you get out!”
Alexandra is currently attending Simon Fraser University to attain her Bachelor of Arts with a major in Communication, designation in Co-op
2014 Student Volunteer of the Year – Nominee
Shaelah Clancey
Shaelah Clancey is a student member of IABC/BC, in her first volunteer role as Event Assistant for the 2014 Bronze Quill Awards Gala. She took on the role with the Gala to start collaborating with IABC/BC members of different backgrounds; indeed, she finds the hands-on experience invaluable for the opportunity to work with communicators from different backgrounds.
When it comes to communications, crisis communication planning is one of Shaelah’s areas of interest, while event planning also captures her attention. She is currently in the two-year Public Relations diploma program at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. One of her passions is travel, and she hopes to combine her interests once she graduates by working in public relations in the tourism industry.
Shaelah credits volunteering with IABC/BC with helping her gain confidence in her career path. “I had a bit of a rough time with my first year of school,” she admits. “Transitioning from high school to university can be tough! But IABC/BC has shown me that anything is possible. If you want to do something, get out there and do it.”
When asked for her advice for other student volunteers, Shaelah says, “My advice would be to not take on more than you can handle. You want to be able to meet the objectives that are given to you. Try and stay as balanced as you can! Learn to manage your time.”
