Tommy Gallant of Charlottetown is the winner of the 2007 Council of the Federation Literacy Award.
The award is presented each year by Canada’s premiers to recognize outstanding achievement by an adult learner or educator in each province.
“Tommy Gallant is a most deserving recipient of this year’s award. Through his hard work and determination, he brought his literacy skills from a low level to a very high level. Along the way, he encouraged hundreds of Islanders to stay in school or return to learning later in life,” says Premier Robert Ghiz. “Tommy is an inspiration to us all and he deserves our heartfelt congratulations.”
Mr. Gallant left high school in grade 10 but never found a job that felt “right.” He completed a high school equivalency program in 1989 and then applied for admission to the University of Prince Edward Island. There, he studied biology, earning a Bachelor of Science with Honours in 1999 and a Master of Science in 2005. He has published multiple articles in academic journals and is the recipient of two scholarships for postgraduate studies from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. He will soon begin PhD studies.
Through the Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership program, Mr. Gallant mentors students who are at risk of dropping out of high school. In doing so, he shows them that everyone can improve their prospects through literacy and education. His advice is: “Work hard and ignore people who say you can’t achieve your goals.”
Previous winners of the Council of the Federation Literacy Award are Dianne C. Smith and Anne Morrisson.
While at the Rotary luncheon, Premier Ghiz presented a donation of $39,000 on behalf of the Province to the club’s Literacy Foundation. The donation matches funds raised by the Rotary club and the PEI Literacy Alliance for community literacy projects.
Each year, the Rotary Club of Charlottetown presents a special literacy agenda at its meeting closest to International Literacy Day which is celebrated each year on September 8. International Literacy Day is a grassroots event that involves Canadians of all ages and backgrounds. Across the country, special activities are held to promote literacy and lifelong learning and to celebrate local literacy achievements.