Two GFESS students win $5,000 in Brock scholarships

Two Greater Fort Erie Secondary School (GFESS) graduates have each received a $2,500 Niagara Principal’s Scholarship from Brock University, where both will begin undergraduate programs in the fall.

The Niagara Principal’s Scholarship, now in its 11th year, has distributed more than $1.6 million to Niagara students since launching in 2015. Each secondary school in the region nominates two graduates, and Brock makes the final selections.

Emma Mowers and Wyatt Todd were selected by principal Fred Louws among all GFESS graduates planning to attend Brock this year.

Louws told Fort Erie Radio that both students balanced strong academics with extracurricular activities, community involvement and family commitments throughout their years at GFESS.

“These traits will serve them both well throughout their years at university and beyond,” said Louws.

Mowers will pursue an Honours Bachelor of Science in Medical Science at Brock. Todd will complete an Honours Bachelor of Business Administration co-op degree through an international double degree program, studying at Brock and at a partner institution in Europe to earn two internationally recognized credentials.

“With the costs associated with post-secondary school, these scholarships will lessen the burden that both Emma and Wyatt will experience during their time in university pursuing their future careers,” said Louws.

Last February, Ontario ended a seven-year tuition freeze which will now allow publicly funded universities–including Brock University–to raise fees by up to two per cent per year starting this fall, after the province’s post-secondary sector faced a financial crisis driven by years of low government funding and sharply reduced international student enrolment.

The $2,500 award is an entrance scholarship that considers academic achievement, community involvement and financial need of the students. Fifty-eight students from across Niagara received the scholarship at a ceremony at Brock on May 14.

Louws said the recognition matters beyond just the financial relief it provides the two students.

“With so many of our GFESS graduates attending university and college each year, along with those that obtain apprenticeships, these options become normalized for our younger grades in turn creating a culture of excellence,” said Louws.

Both students and their families attended the May 14 ceremony on campus, where recipients received an award certificate and a package of Brock resources for the coming school year. A panel of students who received the scholarship in 2025 also spoke to the incoming group about their first year.

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