Liam Israels and Katie Brown, two of the nation’s highest achieving secondary students, will begin their undergraduate studies at Western this fall as recipients of Schulich Leaders Scholarships.
Launched in 2012, the $100-million scholarship program funded by Canadian philanthropist Seymour Schulich provides 50 undergraduate scholarships across top Canadian universities each year. The program aims to allow the country’s most promising students to pursue their dreams and become global leaders in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
Two scholarship recipients are selected at each of the 20 participating universities, with five universities receiving an additional two scholarships for attracting the most applications. Students heading into engineering receive $100,000 while those planning to study other disciplines within science receive $80,000.
Read their stories:

Katie Brown will begin her first year at Western (Physics) this fall as the recipient of a $80,000 Schulich Leader Scholarship, awarded to 50 of the country highest achieving high school students. Brown looks to inspire others by empowering them to take action on a number of global issues.
Brown: Smallest actions make biggest difference
Katie Brown vividly remembers reading Abundance: The Future is Better Than You Think, a book spotlighting how scientific innovators and technology are being used to solve humanity’s biggest problems. It ignited in her a love for science and the drive to create a better society.
She was 12 years old at the time.
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Liam Israels will begin his first year at Western Engineering this fall as the recipient of a $100,000 Schulich Leader Scholarship, awarded to 50 of the country highest achieving high school students. Israels has a a strong interest in climate control and environmental issues.
Israels: I have tried to make a difference
Don’t look for Liam Israels to take credit for his success.
“I don’t do things for reward; I do things because they’re the right thing to do,” explained the 19 year old. “I always challenge myself to take part in new experiences and expand my learning.”