For several years, Canadian Higher Education expert Ms. Janyne Hodder served as President of what was then the College of The Bahamas (COB), using her comprehensive experience in education to transform COB into the world-class institution it would become and impacting generations of budding Bahamian scholars in the process.
However, notwithstanding her commitment to the furtherance of quality Bahamian tertiary education, Ms. Hodder has also been keen on expanding the horizons of Bahamian university students via key philanthropic, academic, and research partnerships between COB/UB and Canadian institutions.
The end result was the establishment of the Janyne M. Hodder Travelling Scholarship, which seeks to support UB students with additional learning experiences at partnered institutions in Canada.
“A travel award to spend some time in a university abroad allows Bahamians to have the best of two worlds: an outstanding education at home and the experience of seeing the world beyond,” said Ms. Hodder. “Spending a semester abroad and spending time with the national and international students at a different university provides Bahamian students for opportunities to build networks of relationships that can be relied on throughout their professional life.”
The Janyne M. Hodder Travelling Scholarship has its roots in a desire by Ms. Hodder’s close colleagues to immortalize her efforts towards forging different avenues for success for Bahamian students via study abroad opportunities. Bahamians from all walks of life have been linked to Canada both academically and professionally over the years, so such a venture was immediately welcomed by Bahamian donors.
“Our wish was to honour Janyne’s pioneering efforts to facilitate study abroad opportunities for Bahamian students,” said Mr. Peter Dunn, Chairman of the Canadian Friends of University of The Bahamas (CFUB) Foundation, a supportive, non-profit fundraiser of the travelling scholarship. “We were thoroughly impressed by the generosity of Bahamian donors, a reflection of Janyne’s standing in the local community.”
Ms. Hodder hopes UB students will soon begin to enjoy the benefits of this award despite the global pandemic. Not only are study abroad experiences beneficial from an academic perspective, they also equip students with the necessary exposure and networks they will need to become successful on a global scale.
“Undergraduate education is about learning; it is also about becoming an adult at ease within a global world,” said Ms. Hodder. “Study abroad expands horizons and creates the conditions for an ever more creative personal journey to a full life.”
