William Yap's exceptional commitment to diversity and inclusion, and capacity to develop connections and open minds at Lakeland College is what makes him one of Canada's top student leaders.

The third-year business degree student received a bronze Leadership Excellence Award for Students from Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan) during CICan's annual conference in Niagara Falls, Ont. on May 6. 

"It's an honour to be nominated, let alone be chosen as one of Colleges and Institutes Canada's top three national student leaders of 2019,” says Yap.

Willam Yap holds bronze certificate at CICAN In addition to receiving the award, Yap is also a conference presenter. “I'm glad to be able to share Lakeland College's successes with regards to accepting gender diversity by co-hosting a workshop at this year's CICan conference. This opportunity shows that the location and size of an institution does not hold back the potential for dramatic social change.”

Yap's session, Gender Diversity: An Innovative Discussion, illuminates corners of underlying beliefs and bridges the gap that separates all gender expressions. Participants will discuss the LGBTQ+ community, safe spaces, identities, allyship and more. The hope is institutions will adopt and cultivate ideas that create more inclusive campus atmospheres. Jayden Rempel, Lakeland's wellness advisor, joins him as a session speaker.

Yap pulls inspiration from his experience organizing Lakeland's first Pride Awareness Week in 2018 and founding the college's LGBTQ+ student club. He also spearheaded a Coming Out Stories event and was instrumental in implementing safe space signage and training throughout Lakeland. 

Yap says he's proud to have helped spark a revolution at Lakeland and bring LGBTQ+ identity to the forefront.

William Yap holds his CICAN certificate

In between his degree studies, he exceled as the 2018-19 student representative on Lakeland's Board of Governors, as well as a member of the team that placed third at Alberta Deans of Business Case Competition in 2018. Yap graduated from Lakeland's business administration program in 2018. Currently he's enrolled in the Bachelor of Management program. His career goal is to work in public relations.

CICan's annual conference is the largest event of its kind in Canada and gathers post-secondary education leaders from across the country and around the world to network with colleagues, share best practices, and be inspired to envision the future of colleges and institutes focused on success and inclusion.

Photos: Top - William Yap receives a bronze medal for Leadership Excellence for Students from Colleges and Institutes Canada. Bottom - Yap, with his award, says he is proud to have helped bring LGBTQ+ identity to the forefront at Lakeland and beyond.