Black women students and leaders celebrated for impact and inspiration
February 25, 2026
What should have been a joyful moment, receiving a Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) student bursary at the 17th annual Viola Desmond Awards at Toronto Metropolitan University, was instead clouded by uncertainty for Jada Johnson-Mills.
Even as the fourth-year midwifery student accepted the award, one pressing question weighed heavily on her mind about whether she would be able to afford to complete her program.
For many students in TMU’s midwifery program, financial strain is an ongoing reality. Beyond tuition, they must pay for textbooks, specialized medical equipment, health certifications, travel to clinical placements and, eventually, licensing examinations.
The clinical component is especially demanding. Students are required to be on call for births and complete placements that involve irregular hours, including nights and weekends. The intensity of the schedule makes it extremely challenging to maintain steady part-time employment, limiting opportunities to earn supplemental income. For those living in Toronto, or relocating to accommodate placements, rising housing and transportation costs add yet another layer of financial pressure.
“Because we are on call 24 hours, we are unable to work,” said Johnson-Mills who graduates in April 2027 and counts Canada’s first Black woman Member of Parliament, Jean Augustine, as someone she admires and looks up to. “We also don’t get paid for placements. It has been a difficult journey because I have to constantly relocate. We are expected to have a vehicle, and the certifications we have do cost about $1,000 a year.”
Funding through the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) does not cover her full expenses. She is classified as an independent student after taking a leave of absence for health reasons. As a result, she is required to begin repaying previous funding while continuing her studies.
“I started in September 2022, but the way the program is designed, if you take any type of leave, it pushes you back a year,” Johnson-Mills said.
Earning the bursary, she noted, is especially meaningful because it affirms the hard work and resilience that mirror Desmond’s determination to stand firm in the face of injustice.
“Viola Desmond stood up and advocated for herself at a time when doing so required extraordinary courage,” Johnson-Mills pointed out. “In health care today, far too many people still struggle to advocate for themselves or feel unheard within the system. That is why being honoured at the Viola Desmond Awards ceremony is so deeply inspiring.”
Although Patrice Latka no longer teaches in the midwifery education program at TMU, she felt it was important to be there to support Johnson-Mills.
“I am incredibly proud of her, not only because she is receiving this bursary, which she so richly deserves, but because of the person she is,” said the educator. “She does not back down from challenges. She faces obstacles head-on, brushes them aside and keeps moving forward. She is navigating a demanding and rigorous program, yet she remains tough, intelligent and deeply committed to social justice. She truly wants to make the world a better place, and that determination defines her.”
TMU Student bursaries were also presented to Feben Bogale, Zintiat Kolly and Naomi Wokocha.
Bogale, a recipient of two Dennis Mock Student Leadership awards, is enrolled in the University of Toronto’s Lawrence Bloomberg Faculty of Medicine Bachelor’s degree program, Kolly graduated from TMU’s Social Work program and is the Student Success manager with the Pinball Foundation and Wokocha is completing a double major in English and Philosophy with a minor in criminology.
From left are Dr. Tanya (Toni) De Mello who is the VP of Equity & Community Inclusion, Dr. Cynthia Holmes who is the Ted Rogers School of Management dean, Zintiat Kolly, Feben Bogale, Chancellor Donette Chin-Loy Chang, Jada Johnson-Mills, Naomi Wokocha, Dr. Roberta Iannacito-Provenzano who is the Provost & Vice President, Academic and Jen McMillen who is the Vice-Provost, Students (Photo by Ron Fanfair)
The ceremony also recognized leaders within the university community, including Dr. Trudy McFarlane whose contributions to equity and health care continue to shape the institution.
She described receiving an award named after ‘one of the greatest changemakers in our history’ as both an honour and truly humbling.
McFarlane was the recipient of the Faculty/Administrator Award.
“Viola’s active courage for change and refusal to accept injustice are what resonates most with me,” said the Associate Dean, Black Flourishing and Medicine & Healthcare. “This achievement is a reflection of the power of collective community, those who came before me, colleagues, learners and allies who believe in and support Black flourishing.
“Viola Desmond challenged a system that was exclusionary and caused harm. My work carries this same vision forward. Continuing her legacy means continuing to examine and interrogate the policies, practices and assumptions that impact access and opportunities today. It means building pathways forward so that future generations do not have to fight the same barriers and injustices to create a better future for healthcare and medical education.”
As a former family physician in Nova Scotia, Desmond’s home province, McFarlane reflected on how her lived and professional experiences in the Maritime province shaped her understanding of equity, access to care and the structural barriers Black communities continue to face in healthcare.
“Practicing in Nova Scotia, particularly in communities with deep Black Loyalist roots, I witnessed the beauty and strength that are cultivated when communities come together,” the Black Physicians of Nova Scotia co-founder pointed out. “I also saw the impact of intergenerational inequities and environmental racism affecting housing, income, health and access to services. I observed how the interplay of these barriers contributes to justified mistrust and how physician shortages and limited resources further compound inequities. It is through these experiences that the imperative need for systemic change became undeniably clear to me and a defining conviction in my work. It is a commitment to building systems that allow for collective flourishing.”
Looking ahead, McFarlane emphasized both short-term and long-term priorities for creating equitable healthcare and educational systems.
In the short term, the ex officio member of the School of Medicine Council said there is a need for curricula, care models and pathways that are guided by the community and responsive to the cultural needs of learners, patients, prospective students and team members.
“We must also ensure faculty and leaders advancing this work are recognized, resourced and supported in order for this work to be sustained and not dependent on the efforts of a few individuals,” added McFarlane who is a candidate for a physician director position on the Ontario Medical Association Board of Directors. “Longer-term, a cultural shift is imperative. It has to be one where community knowledge, lived experience and relational leadership are recognized as contributors to excellence and embedded into policies, practices and decision-making. This work extends beyond representation alone, toward creating systems where Black learners, faculty, staff and patients feel safe, valued, empowered and able to truly thrive.”
Dr. Cynthia Holmes (r) and Dr. Tanya De Mello joined Dr. Roberta Iannacito-Provenzano (l) in presenting the Faculty/Administrator Award to Dr. Trudy McFarlane (Photo by Ron Fanfair)
Zoe Walwyn, a judicial law clerk at the Federal Court of Canada, received the TMU Alumni Award, while the Sidney and Metellia Ferguson Student Awards were presented to Helena Ashenafi and Lynn Larbi.
The Fergusons, who immigrated to Canada from Jamaica in 1969, went on to own six special care homes in Toronto, including Sidmet Serenity Home on Keele Street. The husband and wife passed away in 2016 and 2020, respectively, leaving behind a legacy of community care and service.
“The award supports two Black female students across the university who demonstrate active leadership and meaningful impact in their communities,” said Celeste Saddler, the co-chair of the Ted Rogers School of Management Anti-Black Racism Advisory Committee.
Ashenafi, a graduate of Notre Dame High School, is a fourth-year Business Technology Management co-op student minoring in Marketing and serves as executive vice-president of TMU’s Black Business Association.
Larbi has dedicated the past 15 years to supporting young people as a child and youth worker with the Toronto District School Board (TDSB).
Dr. Cynthia Holmes (r) and Dr. Tanya De Mello (l) joined Celeste Saddler in presenting the Sidney & Mettelia Ferguson Student Awards to Lynn Larbi (c) and Helena Ashenafi (Photo by Ron Fanfair)
TDSB Student Awards were presented to Westview Centennial Secondary School student Inioluwa Gbenjo and Fatima Omer who attends Parkdale Collegiate Institute.
Dr. Cynthia Holmes (l), Dr. Tanya De Mello, Chancellor Donette Chin-Loy Chang, TMU Black Business Student Association co-president Nimi Osunsanya and Dr. Roberta Iannacito-Provenzano (r) with TDSB Student Award winners Fatima Omer and Inioluwa Gbenjo (Photo by Ron Fanfair)
Chancellor Donette Chin-Loy Chang said it is disheartening to see echoes of Desmond’s struggles resurfacing in our own time, adding that the battles she fought for remind us that progress is neither linear nor guaranteed.
TMU Chancellor Donette Chin-Loy Chang (Photo by Ron Fanfair)
“We find ourselves at a crossroads,” she noted. “After fighting hard-won battles for racial justice, we are now confronting troubling setbacks. The progress we achieved is being challenged and, in some cases, rapidly rolled back. That is why this awards program is more than a ceremony. It is a powerful expression of our collective resolve. It affirms our commitment to keep standing up, speaking out, uplifting one another and moving forward together. We gather not only to acknowledge our struggles, but to celebrate our excellence, our resilience and our enduring humanity.”
In her keynote address, Dionne Sinclair, the Vice-President of Clinical Operations and Chief Nursing Executive at Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, pointed out that Desmond was not trying to be a hero that day in 1946.
“She simply wanted to watch a movie and sit where she belonged,” the award-winning body builder and fitness guru said. “But when she refused to move, she sparked a moment that shook the entire country. That small act declared to the world, ‘I am here, I matter and I belong.’ Isn’t that what we are all striving to do in our own ways? Each time we show up, mentor young people, advocate for equity, or speak the truth in spaces that were not built for us, we carry Viola’s spirit forward.”
Dionne Sinclair (Photo by Ron Fanfair)
In 2009, TMU Social Work student Jeff Perera met with Darrell Bowden to discuss the legacy of Viola Desmond. Knowing Bowden was from New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, the site of Desmond’s historic arrest, Perera was curious about his perspective and how the university might honour her story.
At the time, Bowden served as Director in the Office of the Vice-President of Equity & Community Inclusion and had a strong understanding of Desmond’s historic stand against racial segregation and its lasting impact.
In November 1946, while waiting for her car to be repaired in New Glasgow, Desmond went to see a movie at the Roseland Theatre. She chose to sit in the Whites-only main floor section and was arrested. Charged with failing to pay the one-cent tax difference between a balcony and main floor ticket, she was fined $20 and ordered to pay $6 in court costs.
After unsuccessful appeals, Desmond closed her business and moved to Montreal, where she enrolled in business college. She later settled in New York, where she died in 1965 at the age of 51.
Their conversation led to the idea of creating an award to honour Black women who reflect Desmond’s courage, leadership and dedication to community. That discussion became the foundation for the Viola Desmond Awards. Today, the awards are part of TMU’s Black History Awareness series, recognizing outstanding Black women who serve as role models and champions for change.
Since its launch 17 years ago, the program has honoured 106 individuals whose work reflects Desmond’s enduring legacy.
