Wayson Choy Scholarship

Wayson Choy (1939-2019) was an award-winning novelist, a committed activist and most of all, a gifted and devoted teacher. His writing first came to public prominence with the publication The Jade Peony (1995), a poignant novel set in Vancouver’s Chinatown, where Wayson grew up. This best-selling work, which won both the City of Vancouver Book Award and the Trillium Book Award, was followed by Paper Shadows (1999), All That Matters (2004, which also won the Trillium Book Award), and Not Yet: A Memoir of Living and Almost Dying (2009). He was made a member of the Order of Canada in 2005.

Wayson came to Humber in 1967, the College’s first year, and he spent the next nearly 40 years as an inspiring teacher, much-loved colleague and esteemed mentor. Wayson’s great passion was helping students who arrived underprepared or who struggled in a new and sometimes overwhelming environment. With a mixture of what one colleague called “gentleness and steel,” he helped many become better writers, clearer thinkers and more confident and successful students. In recognition of Wayson’s great love of teaching and learning, this award will be established for a student in the General Arts & Sciences program who has overcome challenges and strived to reach their full potential.