For the month of July, St. Francis Xavier University is home to 62 of Canada's most motivated high school students.
The Grade 10 and 11 students, selected through a competitive national process, have travelled from across the country to spend four weeks at StFX as part of Shad Canada, the nation's longest-running STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) and entrepreneurship program. From July 5-31, the high school students are living on campus and are experiencing university life while tackling real-world challenges, learning alongside faculty and industry mentors, and developing skills needed to help shape Canada's future.
"We have something truly special here at StFX—academic excellence, hands-on learning, and a strong sense of community. Hosting Shad Canada gives us the opportunity to share that with exceptional students from around the country,” says Dr. Joe Apaloo, Dean of Science and Chair of the Shad-StFX Advisory Group.
"Every summer, Shad gives young people the opportunity to immerse themselves in new ideas, challenge their assumptions, and discover strengths they didn't know they had,” said Tim Jackson, President and CEO, Shad Canada. "We're grateful to partner with St. Francis Xavier University in helping Canada's next generation of STEAM innovators, entrepreneurs, and leaders discover not only what they can achieve, but the impact they can have on the world around them.”
For the students, Shad is an immersive introduction to post-secondary life.
Living in residence, participating in workshops that span academic disciplines, taking part in physical activities, and collaborating on projects, the students experience the close-knit learning environment that defines StFX. They also help contribute to society. A central part of the program is an entrepreneurial design challenge asking students to develop solutions for extending the lifespan of everyday goods to promote greater sustainability.
Outside the classroom, the students have explored some of Nova Scotia through experiences such as camping at Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Site and visiting Port Hood Beach.
Bringing the partnership with Shad to StFX, which will be an ongoing initiative at the university, was the result of a collaborative effort nearly two years in the making.
Chemistry professor Dr. Brian MacLean, faculty member on the Advisory Group, says discussions about attracting more exceptional students to StFX led to a conversation with colleague Dr. Alex Foo, who was familiar with Shad while an undergraduate at Queen's University. Those conversations eventually led to meetings with Shad representatives and faculty members from across the Faculty of Science to establish the partnership.
Since 1981, Shad has grown into a national program delivered at more than 30 leading post-secondary institutions across Canada. For StFX, the partnership aligns with the university's commitment to hands-on learning, close faculty-student interaction, and developing leaders.
Shad is a terrific opportunity for these students from across Canada to experience the high degree of interaction that StFX is well known for, says Dr. MacLean. "That degree of interaction is important. That leaves a mark."
He notes that while the program is designed to inspire Canada's next generation of innovators, researchers, entrepreneurs, and changemakers, it also introduces many students to StFX for the first time.
"These are high-achieving students," he says. "When they experience the campus and community, they may decide to come back here as university students."
The StFX Shad program is led by program directors Dr. Shamus Blair and Samantha Bursey, both of StFX, with support from a program manager and a team of student program assistants.
Faculty leaders have been impressed with the calibre of students. StFX computer science professor Dr. Jacob Levman says leading an AI workshop as part of the Shad-StFX partnership “was an absolute pleasure. The students were incredibly engaged and asked insightful and interesting questions on the use, ethics, and challenges associated with AI."
