Reuben DeBoer’s final years of high school held many highlights. He was the school champion for both the Fermat and Hypatia math contests in Grade 11 and ranked in the top 25 per cent of all contestants for both competitions. A recognized leader, he organized his school’s intramural sports leagues and led its musical praise group. He created a fully functioning role-playing game in his computer science course, which his teacher played in front of the school. DeBoer also taught himself how to 3-D model, starting a small business, creating custom-designed parts that fixed, among other things, a snowblower and a piece of equipment for a local hair salon.
Reuben DeBoer (Christopher Kindratsky/Western Communications)
But one of the most memorable moments for the incoming Western engineering student, the recipient of one of the country’s most prestigious scholarships, was watching a watermelon soar 200 feet across his school’s soccer field. It had been sprung by a trebuchet (a type of catapult that uses a rotating arm with a sling attached to the top to launch a projectile) DeBoer had built from scratch with a friend.
They were inspired by a mini version of a trebuchet they saw in their Grade 11 physics classroom.
“We thought we should build a bigger one, about six-feet high, out of two-by-fours, which could throw a little pumpkin a short distance,” DeBoer said. “I went home and looked around and saw some metal and wondered, ‘what if we made the throwing arm 12 feet long?’ I worked out all the proportions on paper for how big everything else would be, but I still didn’t really picture how big it would be in the end.”
Working with the discarded steel and an old wagon chassis, DeBoer and his friend spent all their free time working on the project. After three months of designing, cutting, welding and repairing, they created a trebuchet more than 2,000 pounds, 22-feet-high, capable of throwing 15-pound projectiles about 200 feet.
“We saw something we wanted, and we made it happen. There were hiccups along the way, but it actually went pretty well.”
The satisfaction of crafting something original and impressive for others to enjoy is what drives DeBoer to create. It’s also what brings the Dunnville, Ont. native to Western to study engineering as one of 10 Schulich Leaders arriving on campus this fall.
“I love projects that require ingenuity, creativity and initiative,” DeBoer said, noting he hopes to continue to build and apply the new skills he’ll learn at Western to “innovate in a future business.”
Schulich Leader Scholarships: Investing in the next generation of innovators
Schulich Leaders are recipients of Canada’s largest Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) scholarship.
The scholarships are valued at $120,000 each for students pursuing an engineering degree and $100,000 each for students pursuing degrees in science, technology and mathematics.
Philanthropist Seymour Schulich established the scholarships more than 10 years ago. Schulich credits his success to a life-changing scholarship, which enabled him to attend McGill University’s first-ever MBA class in 1965. Now he’s “paying it forward.”
“We are proud to celebrate the continued success of Schulich Leader Scholarships, the premier STEM scholarship program in Canada,” Schulich said. “This group of 100 outstanding students will represent the best and brightest Canada has to offer and will make great contributions to society, both on a national and global scale. With their university expenses covered, they can focus their time on their studies, research projects, extracurriculars and entrepreneurial ventures.”
DeBoer and the other Western Schulich Leaders were selected from a nationwide pool of 350,000 potential candidates and 1,400 nominated students, to be named among 100 scholarship recipients from across Canada.
“Receiving this award is a great honour,” DeBoer said. “It feels amazing to receive it. It really helps financially and frees me up to focus on school and projects.”
Meet the other 2024 Western Schulich Leaders, from Newfoundland to British Columbia:
Vika Bohomazova
Vika Bohomazova, Campbell River, B.C. (science)
Vika Bohomazova’s life was turned upside down on the morning of February 24, 2022, when Russia invaded her homeland of Ukraine. She came to Canada and started her life, receiving the Academic Excellence Award at her high school in 2023. Fascinated by the abilities of the James Webb telescope and excited by Gateway, a project that will see humans return to the Moon and set the stage for further exploration to Mars, Bohomazova hopes to become an astrophysicist. Her goal is to “prepare and conduct space missions that focus on extraterrestrial environment research, colonization and material extraction from extraterrestrial objects.”
Jay Chaudhary
Jay Chaudhary, Lethbridge, Alta. (engineering)
Jay Chaudhary spends a lot of time thinking about problems in society and looking for innovative solutions. Being part of his high school’s iGEM (International Genetically Engineered Machine) team turned his thoughts into action. During the 2022 global iGEM competition, his team’s project centered on creating an alternative diabetes treatment by using self-amplifying mRNA (messenger ribonucleic acid). Though they couldn’t build a complete prototype, they laid the foundations for future research, winning a gold medal. Chaudhary aspires to “design life-optimizing tools to help create a better society.”
Mihir Dinavahi
Mihir Dinavahi, Markham, Ont. (engineering)
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Mihir Dinavahi, worked with his local Member of Parliament and attended local council meetings, helping to provide solutions to improve the quality of life for vulnerable populations, including seniors in long-term care homes. He also took part in the University of Toronto Global Engineering Challenge on COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution, using steps of the engineering design process to effectively distribute the vaccine. Dinavahi worked with three other team members to generate an innovative vaccine distribution method. He hopes to become “a dynamic engineer, bringing agile and creative solutions to real-world challenges.”
Keira Hanlon
Keira Hanlon, Dartmouth, N.S. (science)
Keira Hanlon was the winner of Engineers Nova Scotia’s Grade 11 award for Excellence in Math and Science for her school, based on her top marks and ability to work at a level beyond what is covered in the curriculum. She also scored the second highest level attainable on a French oral proficiency test. To improve her collaboration skills, she attended a summer leadership camp, which helped her learn to work more effectively in groups. Hanlon hopes to pursue a career in science, engineering or both, with a goal to be seen as an expert in her field.
Himnish Kaila
Himnish Kaila, Aurora, Ont. (science)
As vice-president and then president of his high school Distributive Education Club of America (DECA), a program for students interested in business, Himnish Kalia helped his fellow students develop and improve their business literacy skills. His team developed lessons and curated high-quality resources to empower students with an education in various business fields such as finance, marketing and entrepreneurship. As a result, over 90 per cent of his club members consistently qualified and achieved high-ranking positions at regional and provincial level competitions. While working with the engineering team at SolidXperience Inc., Kalia also took the initiative to conceptualize the design of a strain tester machine. Kaila hopes to one day own a consulting firm that provides “high-quality tech solutions to various businesses in the finance, logistics and cybersecurity industries.”
Ryan Marsh
Ryan Marsh, Exeter, Ont. (science)
An inquisitive and dedicated learner in all areas of his life, Ryan Marsh achieved the highest academic average in his high school in Grades 9 and 11, and various subject awards throughout Grades 9, 10 and 11. Marsh was accepted into the Shad Program in July 2022, and, through a variety of STEM and entrepreneurial experiences, collaborated with like-minded students from across Canada to creatively solve challenges. Marsh hopes to work in the space sector conducting and applying scientific research in the fields of astronomy, physics, chemistry and mathematics.
Oliver Ridge
Oliver Ridge, Trail, B.C. (science)
Oliver Ridge’s aptitude for math and physics appeared early, including completing Grade 12 math courses in Grade 5, and Grade 12 physics in Grade 6. Ridge notes these great achievements would not have been possible “without open-minded teachers and a local high school willing to take in a 10-year-old seeking enrichment.” Ridge also created “Leading Tech Space with Oliver”, a community library program to help children learn how to use technology. Ridge aspires to work “on the cutting edge of physics, applying scientific research that allows humanity to progress forward into the future.”
Rebecca Sirkin
Rebecca Sirkin, Vaughan, Ont. (engineering)
When Rebecca Sirkin was 16, she created a swimming business that offered families flexibility and convenience by teaching private swim lessons at their homes. She also developed her leadership skills as vice-president of the athletic council at her school, a peer tutor and captain of her school softball team. She secured the most votes to become president of the Women in STEM Club, where she was proud to lead and encourage other female students within her school to pursue their interests in the STEM field. Sirkin hopes to practice as an engineer “creating environmentally friendly systems that will improve lives,” and to start a business where she can market her inventions.
Davin Tapp
Davin Tapp, McKay’s, Nfld. (engineering)
Davin Tapp achieved the highest academic average not only in his class, but across his school, earning a 99 per cent overall average in his Grade 11 year. He also earned multiple athletic awards, including senior athlete of the year for both volleyball and softball, and the most sportsman like player during the 2022 AA Volleyball Provincials competition. Tapp hopes to someday work in the water purification field to find economically friendly ways to meet the demand of fresh water.
