Athena Software is pleased to announce it is doubling the amount of a scholarship it awards to social work students at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ont. The Bernard Porlier Award of Social Work Excellence was established by Athena Software and the university in September 2008. The annual scholarship award, given to a student in the two-year full-time or four-year part-time MSW program, will now be worth $2,000.

The award was created to recognize the community contributions of Bernard Porlier, who served as executive director at K-W Counselling in Kitchener, Ont. for over 30 years, and to encourage others to emulate his example of being a voice for the wellbeing of families.

CATCHING UP WITH PAST RECIPIENTS

Kendra Aronson was the first student to be awarded the scholarship. Now employed as a PAR program coordinator and VAW counsellor in Peel Region (near Toronto), Kendra works with men with domestic violence-related charges who attend court-mandated groups, and with women who have been victims of domestic violence. She has been working in this position for almost two years and says she enjoys the challenge of managing two diverse caseloads.

Amanda Holler received the scholarship in 2009, and says the award allowed her to finish more course work so she could obtain her master's degree while still working part-time at a local AIDS committee. She has recently completed a position in children's mental health and is now hoping to work within the HIV/AIDS community, preferably on an international level.

"My career is new and the opportunities are endless. With Athena's support, I am able to explore my interests and discover my passions," she says.

2010 scholarship recipient Jenany Jeyarajan is currently working in the Toronto area as a crisis counsellor and mental health worker at a shelter for women and children who are escaping abuse, and at a short-term residential bed program for people experiencing homelessness with severe mental illness diagnoses and criminal justice involvement. "I am hoping to get more training in trauma-focused CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) and other therapy approaches in order to excel as a mental health social worker," she says. "My ultimate goal is to have my own private practice and do trauma work."