Dr. Sergiy and Tetyana Kryvoruchko began supporting A&S students with scholarships in 2022 with an aim to foster academic excellence and preserve Ukrainian cultural heritage. They recently strengthened their commitment with a generous bequest to endow these scholarships for impact in perpetuity.
The Kryvoruchkos established their first two scholarships at U of T following Russia's invasion of Ukraine to support students studying Ukrainian culture with the Department of Slavic & East European Languages & Cultures. Since then, they have established additional awards to benefit students across a range of programs in A&S.
Earlier this month, the donors and this spring’s 21 award recipients celebrated at a warm reception on U of T campus.
“We sincerely congratulate you,” Sergiy Kryvoruchko told scholarship recipients and faculty members at the celebration. “May this success, paired with your commitment to academic achievement in your chosen field, guide your future path and lead to many more accomplishments.”
The family's latest gift will back students from other units, including PhD candidate Oksana Dudko from the Department of History. The scholarship will enable her to pursue critical research in Ukraine after experiencing delays, first because of the COVID-19 pandemic and then because of war.
“I was deeply moved to receive this scholarship,” says Dudko, who immigrated to Canada from Lviv 10 years ago. She studies how Galician Ukrainian soldiers’ experiences of continued violence shaped their selfhood and nationhood during the First World War and the 1917 Revolutions in Eastern Europe. “This honour reaffirms my research is valuable and ensures I can finish my dissertation.”
“I'm so grateful for donors like the Kryvoruchkos,” says fellow PhD candidate Michal Mlynarz, who studies the cultural impact of war on communities in eastern and central Europe in the twentieth century, with a particular focus on Poland and Ukraine. Prior to Russia's invasion, Mlynarz conducted research in Ukraine. “This award will help me realize my goal of becoming a cultural historian who can help rebuild the museums and archives of Ukraine.”
The Kryvoruchkos have also pledged support for academics aligned with their personal interests, championing students affiliated with the Department of Mathematics, Rotman Commerce, the Centre for Entrepreneurship and more.
“This is a tremendous opportunity and I'm very thankful to the donors,” says Ayasha Abdalla-Wyse, a PhD student and scholarship recipient with the Department of Cell & Systems Biology who studies the sleeping habits of fish.
Some scholarships bearing the Kryvoruchkos’ names will support undergraduate students like Noelle Taylor, who will soon graduate with her honours bachelor of arts degree as a member of Victoria College.
“Receiving this award is a testament to the hard work I've done these past four years — this feels like my greatest accomplishment at U of T,” says Taylor, an industrial relations and human resources major.
In the years to come, the Kryvoruchkos will meet each new wave of scholarship recipients, motivated by their drive to preserve Ukrainian heritage and empower the next generation of scholars to reach their full potential.
Students will also be inspired by the Kryvoruchko Classroom on the second floor of Sidney Smith Hall. Inside, a plaque is inscribed with the couple's mantra: “Happiness is to be helpful to the people.
“Helping others fills our lives with meaning,” Tetyana Kryvoruchko told this year’s scholarship recipients. “We are so happy to be here today, celebrating the successes of these students, and we wish them to reach a level of happiness that will remain stable for all their lives.”
Interested in establishing your own scholarship and creating transformative opportunities for students? Contact Courtney Boost, Development Officer, at c.boost@utoronto.ca or 416-946-3923.