The scholarship was designed to attract senior high school students to thinking about the culture of death, and its awful manifestation in the practice of abortion. Since that first year, more than 1100 students have taken up the challenge of entering the competition.Niagara Region Right to Life (NRRTL) is the sponsoring organization of the program, providing the prize money and other incidental expenses associated with running the scholarship contest.The Interim is a promoter and collaborator publishing the essays of the three prize winners annually.

As is stated in the scholarship brochure distributed to schools across Canada, “Niagara Region Right to Life wishes to help educate and inform the younger generations about the preciousness and possibilities of human life from conception to natural death and how certain threats/trends and societal changes affect those possibilities in its beginnings”.

It is always hoped that the choice of theme for the essay component prompts candidates to think about public issues from a moral perspective.

The three prize winners for 2023-2024 iteration of this scholarship program and whose respective essays were published in the March-May editions of The Interim newspaper were:

First prize  went to Andelka Peric of Holy Trinity Catholic High School, Oakville Ontario.

Second prize  was won by Sara Christle ofSt. Boniface Diocesan High School, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Third prize was awarded to Gianna Baklinski who is Home Schooled in Combermere, Ontario.

The deadline for the essay submission is Friday, October 11, 2024. 

The theme of the essay reads as follows:

Abortion is a hot-button and contentious public issue, generating arguments and justifications on both sides. Analyze the impact of abortion on several of the key components of Canada’s social fabric, for example: the practice of religious worship; demographic trends and immigration policies; changes in male and female roles and family structure; social cohesion and attitudes with regard to crime and violence; continued economic viability of the country; national unity and cultural character.

Please support this important educational initiative. Donate to Niagara Region Right to Life and you will receive a charitable tax receipt. You can do so online at niagararegionrighttolife.ca/donate/ or by remitting to them at 157 Catharine Street North, 2nd Floor, Hamilton Ontario, L8L 4S4.

You would be making a wonderful investment, sowing pro-life seeds. The future harvest of good works and good moral thinking will be great in the coming years.

Please note the 2024-2025 deadline date: Friday, October 11, 2024. 

Click here for details of the 2024-2025 Fr. Ted Colleton Scholarship Program (Brochure)

Click here for the 2024/25 English Poster

Programme de Bourse Père Ted Colleton 2024-2025

Click here for the 2024/25 French Poster

Click here for the MARK SHEET CRITERIA

Eligible candidates must:

REQUIREMENTS

• be high school students entering grade 11 or 12 at a Canadian high school (or be homeschooled in Canada)

• submit one letter of reference from a school staff member or community representative (pastor, employer, coach, etc.)

• provide a brief personal resumé outlining their participation in school life (clubs, sports, leadership, academic achievements, etc) and community activities, including any past or present interest/involvement in the pro-life cause. Please note: Lack of  such involvement does not disqualify the candidates from the scholarships.

The student must submit a typed original essay, approximately 1,200 words in length. The essay plus other documents must all be submitted by email only in word document format, to dirocco401@yahoo.ca, no later than midnight of Friday, October 11, 2024.

Call 416.204.1687 with questions.