Mayo recognized with award

When Kahnawa’kehró:non Zye Mayo found out he was a recipient of this year’s David Olivier Award from his CEGEP, Dawson College, he initially told his family not to come to the ceremony - it might be long, and it’s a bit of a journey from Kahnawake.

Although he told the college he wouldn’t be bringing any guests at first, it wasn’t long before he had to change that request and ask for five, with his mother and sisters determined to come to the ceremony. As word of his achievement spread in the family to his grandmother and aunties, he eventually let the school know that he’d actually be bringing “a whole bunch of people.”

Mayo said that he’s been enjoying life at Dawson in his second year, focusing on his studies and getting involved in extracurricular life at the school. He hasn’t been thinking about awards, but hearing the news that he’d been recognized with one was exciting.

“It’s really cool,” said Mayo, who is in his second year at the college. “I didn’t expect it, because I didn’t really think I did too much, but they chose me.”

The David Olivier Award, awarded annually in memory of a beloved member of the Dawson Student Services staff, is given to a second or third-year student in good academic standing who shows leadership promise in extracurricular activities. Students are nominated for the award by Dawson College faculty or staff members, and Mayo was nominated by a former teacher of his, Anjali Choksi.

Choksi co-coordinates the Journeys program, an introductory program designed for First Nations, Inuit, and Metis students starting CEGEP. The one-year transition program enables students to get to know teachers personally and meet other Indigenous students, as well as to better access peer tutoring and mentoring and receive cultural support while in the program.

Mayo completed that program in his first year and benefited from its structure, and now works with other students currently in the program to help ease their journey into CEGEP.

“(Choksi) has seen what I do to help Journeys students get into the programs they want to get into and just make sure students are doing good and that they’re still in school,” Mayo said. “She saw that I was always open to being helpful with Journeys-related stuff while still doing what I’m doing in my actual program, and I’m pretty sure that’s a big part of why I got nominated.”

His mother, Tiffany Mayo, said that she’s beyond happy to see her son flourish as he continues his post-secondary education.

“I’m just so proud of him. He’s a good kid, and I’m glad he’s getting the recognition he deserves,” she said. “I find that they know he’s going to show up, they know he’s going to put that effort in, and he’s going to get it done.”

Since joining Dawson, Zye has grown in confidence, Tiffany said, adding that he was most recently a speaker at a Palestine solidarity protest at the college earlier this month, and has also been involved in ongoing protests to exempt Indigenous CEGEP students from Law 14, Quebec’s French-language legislation.

“He participates in pretty much everything,” Tiffany said. “One time he told me that he got to talk in front of 500 people. I was just like, wow, he definitely doesn’t get that from me!”

After being nominated for the award, Zye also had to participate in interviews and submit a letter speaking to his involvement in leadership activities at the college.

Jessie Evans, an awards officer at Dawson’s awards and scholarships office, said it’s all part of Dawson’s commitment to recognize students who contribute in the fullest to the school community.

“It’s really gratifying to see so many people working so hard, and just going above and beyond,” she said. “They’re so young and they’ve already accomplished so much, so it’s really nice to reward them for that hard work.”

Evans said her office processes and coordinates the awards, meaning she doesn’t often interact one-on-one with students until awards night. She said it’s a special evening, because she gets to see the support systems that helped students get to where they are today.

“It’s so nice to see their friends or family come there and celebrate with them and recognize their accomplishments, it’s very positive,” she said. “There are so many hardworking students coming from so many different walks of life, and some people are really overcoming obstacles, so it’s important as a community to have this recognition.”

Zye received $500 as part of the award, and his family watched him collect his certificate on Wednesday evening during a ceremony at the college, where around 30 students were recognized for their academic and extracurricular achievements.

“I’m really glad he’s finding his spot out there in the world,” Tiffany said.

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