To mark Volunteers’ Week 2023, the University of Westminster’s Alumni Relations Office is celebrating the contribution that alumni volunteers and partners make to the Westminster community.
Westminster is fortunate to have hundreds of active volunteers, who selflessly give back to the University by giving their time to support and inspire students and recent graduates.
To celebrate their contribution to the Westminster community, the annual Alumni Volunteering Award recognises seven outstanding alumni and partners who have made a big difference over the past year.
The Alumni Speaker of the Year Award goes to Peggy Elechi, a Business Management BA Honours graduate, and Karl Donaldson, a Psychology BSc Honours alumnus.
Peggy was an appreciated panel speaker on the What Comes Next? Business Management event held in November 2022. During the event, the panel spoke about milestones from finding their first jobs after graduation to founding their own businesses and the uncertainty and excitement that came with that. Peggy was a standout panellist on a very strong panel. She used this as an opportunity to be transparent about her experiences of entering the world of work and provided attending students with invaluable insight.
Karl was part of an engaging What it Takes online panel event on how to overcome Impostor Syndrome. Karl contributed massively to the success of this event with his charisma and honesty. He was fantastic during the Q&A, providing valuable advice, resources, and insight on the back of an abundance of questions from the attendees.
The Exceptional Support for Students and Recent Graduates Award was won by Ivy Edemafaka, who graduated from the Architecture Postgraduate Diploma Professional Practice (RIBA Part III) course, and Sam Badcock, Marketing Communications BA Honours graduate.
Ivy has been providing Architecture students with extensive support through school events, mentoring schemes, and other initiatives since she graduated. This has involved providing guest critique for the Architecture BA Honours students on their projects and providing feedback and helpful suggestions to students returning from their work experience module. She has also been an active member of the School’s Employability Advisory Board, where discussions are held on how the University can support and prepare students for the industry.
Sam is a dedicated volunteer. Since taking part in the 2019 Westminster Working Cultures (WWC) trip to Washington DC as a student and graduating in 2020, he has hosted the WWC UK programme at the office where he now works, has been a keynote speaker at a WWC reunion event and a panel speaker for What it Takes. He also introduced a work experience/internship opportunity at his organisation Havas People. His dedication, flexibility and enthusiasm always have a strong positive impact on those he engages with.
The Going the Extra Mile Award is given to Haroon Omar Mahdi, former student on the Interactive Media Practice MA course. Haroon has been a huge supporter of the University’s Future Ready Mentoring programmes and every year he plays a vital role in providing outstanding support for Westminster students and recent graduates. He always goes above and beyond in his efforts to give students a meaningful and beneficial mentoring experience.
Journalism (International) MA alumna Dr Emily Rosado has won the Long Serving Volunteer Award. Emily has volunteered for Westminster in various capacities since 2016. She has regularly hosted WWC students in Washington DC and she always shares her positive, self-reflective insights that have left a strong impression on everyone she engages with. Despite being based in the US as a Professor at Montgomery College, she still manages to find a way to remain engaged and volunteer with the University. She has shared several alumni profiles, been a podcast speaker, supported various Equality, Diversity and Inclusion initiatives at Westminster, as well as running three separate sessions for the WWC Washington DC trip in 2018,2019 and 2022.
The Volunteer Partner Award is awarded to The Howard de Walden Estate. The University has benefited hugely from the six-year partnership with The Howard de Walden Estate. They have grown their relationship with the University to include scholarships, summer internships, participation in the Working Cultures UK and mentoring programmes, and financial support for the University’s hardship fund. Whether it is hosting 60 students for a morning workshop, one-to-one mentoring relationships, or helping someone studying a property-related degree get first-hand industry experience over the course of a month, Howard de Walden continues to expand the way they support students and pursue new collaborations to benefit both students and their colleagues.
Speaking about the Awards, James Huke, Alumni Relations Officer, said: ‘’Congratulations to all the amazing winners. It’s great to get a chance to celebrate the achievements of our volunteers and highlight the incredible support they provide. I’d like to say thank you to everyone who dedicates their time to supporting our students and programmes and all the staff that took the time to nominate a volunteer or partner.’’
Find out more about volunteering opportunities at Westminster.
Peggy Elechi, Business Management BA Honours graduate
Karl Donaldson, Psychology BSc Honours alumnus
Ivy Edemafaka, Architecture Postgraduate Diploma Professional Practice (RIBA Part III) graduate
Sam Badcock, Marketing and Communications BA Honours graduate
Haroon Omar Mahdi, Interactive Media Practice MA graduate
