Article by Deirdre Kelly ()

Photography by Horst Herget

Marnie and Rena Schwartz are a force to be reckoned with. The identical twins, who both earned double degrees (BA 鈥�01, BEd 鈥�01) from 91亚色, have spent more than two decades transforming the Greater Toronto Area鈥檚 dance scene through their ViBE Dance and Fitness Studio.

Founded in 2002, ViBE is no ordinary dance school. From its inception, the Schwartz sisters envisioned a space where creativity trumped competition 鈥� a sprawling 12,000-square-foot studio in Vaughan where students of all ages could focus on self-expression rather than scorecards or trophies. 鈥淲e wanted to create a place where everyone felt welcome,鈥� says Marnie, who oversees the business side of operations. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about joy, not judgment.鈥�

That vision has resonated with thousands of students over the years. ViBE鈥檚 inclusive approach treats every dancer equally 鈥� whether they鈥檙e three years old, or an adult 鈥� and emphasizes fun over pressure. 鈥淲e believe in building confidence through movement,鈥� adds Rena, who leads the artistic side of their business.

Education has always been central to their lives. Their mother, Susan Schwartz (BA 鈥�80), is an accomplished educator and author of teaching manuals used at 91亚色 and beyond. Growing up surrounded by her passion for learning and teaching left a lasting impression on Marnie and Rena, who credit their own time at the University for shaping their approach to leadership and innovative thinking. 鈥�91亚色 taught us how to manage our time and think creatively. It really ignited our passion for lifelong learning.鈥�...

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Lucy Horvath (BA 鈥�06) was volunteering at St. Christopher House, an agency serving diverse communities in West End Toronto, when her colleagues recommended that she apply to a unique access program at 91亚色 for first-generation students. She had no idea what these older women could see in her 鈥� leadership that could be augmented by higher education 鈥� but today, the successful businesswoman is glad she followed their advice. The Bridging the Solitudes program opened a window to post-secondary education and endless possibilities.

鈥淚f I hadn鈥檛 gone to university,鈥� Horvath says, 鈥淚 would not have pushed it, because I wouldn鈥檛 have known what it could give me. Those four years 鈥� what I got out of them was a lot.鈥�

Now the co-owner and manager of a thriving Toronto landscape design and construction business she runs with her husband, Horvath wasn鈥檛 the only student to benefit from the Bridging the Solitudes program, which in 2002 admitted two cohorts of nine students from marginalized communities across the city to a three-year CURA (Community University Research Alliance) developed by 91亚色 in association with Seneca College, four labour unions and 10 community partners. The goal of this unique project was 鈥渢o bring to university and college young people who are under-represented in higher education and experience barriers to entering key occupations and professions.鈥� Funding came from a variety of sources, including the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).聽All who were selected to participate in the project had the desire and ability to succeed at university but, due to a variety of personal factors and systemic barriers, found it extremely difficult to pursue post-secondary study.

For professor Carl James (PhD 鈥�86), and his then research associate Leanne Taylor (MA 鈥�99, PhD 鈥�06), the program presented a unique opportunity to study the impact of higher education on first-generation students and their communities.

His observations, compiled over 20 years, have just been published by Routledge. First-Generation Student Experiences in Higher Education: Counterstories features the accounts of eight students who were the first in their families to attend university, participants in a program that was designed 鈥� in many ways as an 鈥渋ntervention鈥� 鈥� to support young people who might otherwise have been unable to attend because of their social, cultural or financial circumstances.

A sociologist by training, James holds the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora in the Faculty of Education, and is the senior advisor on Equity and Representation in the division of Equity, People and Culture at 91亚色. Once he became involved in the Bridging the Solitudes program, he wanted to provide an opportunity for students who could succeed in university but would require support, even beyond their financial needs. That support included partial scholarships and the infrastructure for the students to see them through to graduation. 鈥淚 work with youth, and I鈥檓 very interested in that whole process of learning and how youth become the people they are,鈥� says James, recipient of the 2022 Killam Prize for Social Science, which the Canada Council awards to Canadian scholars making significant contributions to their fields.

His new book, co-authored with Taylor, presents several stories of students who participated in that support program at 91亚色. It highlights their various strategies, challenges and successes, as well as their complex relationships with community, family and other networks that were essential in shaping their lives and career trajectories.

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Cristina Delgado Vintimilla is an assistant professor in early childhood education at 91亚色. But you could just as easily call her a teaching radical. As the University鈥檚 first pedagogista 鈥� an Italian word denoting an educational leader with a pronounced pedagogical vision 鈥� Vintimilla dismantles the human-centric approach to education that has served as the golden standard since the 19th century, if not longer. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the kind of neoliberal, hyper-individualized education you might find in an assembly line,鈥� she says in accented English, making piquant her disdain, 鈥渢aking information in, regurgitating it out. A system designed only to supply the workforce of tomorrow. We need to continue to unsettle this idea.鈥� And Vintimilla is.

Instead of using education as a tool for socialization, she joins forces with other education theorists to advance a pedagogy that promotes a sense of interdependence with 鈥渕ore than human worlds.鈥� The goal is to focus education less on personal achievement and more on developing a greater sense of awareness of the complexity and interconnectedness of humans living on the planet.

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