#BlackExcellenceDay

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The third annual Black Excellence Day event will take place on January 15, 2025. The event will again be held virtually to provide a meaningful, inclusive and accessible experience for students across Canada.

Click here to watch the event!

Who will be involved?
  • Co-hosted and planned  with Burnaby School District #41
  • Beth Applewhite – District Principal of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion for Burnaby School District
  • Kirstin Schnider – Chair of the Burnaby Board of Education
  • Ethos Lab – STEAM Innovation Hub for Youth
  • Alicia Adole – 15 year old UBC student and videographer
  • Studio Pluto – web design studio owned and operated by Black youth
  • CanCorp Branding Inc. – Black owned and operated apparel company
  • 15+ School Districts; the number of participants is expected to be tens of thousands
  • Black Excellence Day has been officially proclaimed as a day of cultural significance.
  • A growing list of our incredible speakers is below!

Support Black Excellence Day!

Interested in making a donation or sponsoring our event?
Email us at blackexcellenceday@gmail.com for more information.

Valerie Jerome

Athlete, Educator, Activist

Valerie Jerome is an African-Canadian retired Track and Field sprinter, educator, and political activist. She competed in the women’s 100 metres at the 1960 Summer Olympics. She finished third in the 1959 Pan American Games 4 × 100 metres relay. Jerome also finished seventh in the 1959 Pan American Games long jump. Jerome is the only Canadian athlete to compete in five track and field events in the Olympics, Commonwealth Games, or Pan-American Games. She is the sister of Harry Jerome and the granddaughter of John “Army” Howard, Canada’s first Black Olympian in 1912.

Tosaint Ricketts

Player Liaison, Vancouver Whitecaps

Toisant is a former Whitecaps FC & Canadian Men’s National Team player. On 8 August 2019, Ricketts returned to MLS and Canada, joining Vancouver Whitecaps FC. He was re-signed to a new deal through 2022, with an option for 2023 in March 2022. At the end of the 2022 season, Vancouver announced they would not exercise the option on Ricketts’ contract for 2023, ending his playing time with the club. Ricketts was previously the Manager of Community Impact for the Whitecaps organization.

Michael Newman

TV Host

Michael Newman is a Regional Emmy award winning TV personality, journalist, actor, and mindfulness meditation facilitator. He has extensive experience as an on-air talent for both live and pre-recorded broadcasts, and as an editor for most of his projects. He is recognized for making an impact in his roles, such as serving as the Community Reporter for Global BC, British Columbia’s top-rated news organization, and hosting the travel documentary series, New Mexico True TV.

Jillian Christmas

Poet, Artist

Jillian Christmas is a Canadian poet from Vancouver, British Columbia. Her work focuses on anti-colonial narratives, family, heritage, and identity. She is most noted as the 2021 winner of the League of Canadian Poets’ Sheri-D Wilson Golden Beret Award for spoken word poetry. Furthermore, she has represented both Vancouver and Toronto at 11 national poetry events and was the first Canadian to make the final stage at the Women of the World Poetry Slam.

The Honourable David St. Pierre

Judge, Provincial Court of British Columbia

The Honorable David St. Pierre has been a sitting judge at the Provincial Court of British Columbia since 2009. He completed his undergraduate degree in Psychology at the University of Alberta. After a few years working in the music business, he attended the University of Calgary for law school. For many years, he was a partner at the criminal law firm of Cobb, St. Pierre, Lewis, Barristers and Solicitors.

Janelle Reid

Singer, Artist, Teacher

Janelle Reid is a multidisciplinary artist with a passion for singing, acting and marital arts. She has a Bfa double major in music composition and theatre and has a second bachelor’s degree in Education. Her ability to sing in a variety of genres has granted her the opportunity to sing alongside a wide range of other artists. She is always excited to take the opportunities given to share her passion of singing and performance as a means to bring people together.

Sam Darkoh

Artist, Writer, Actor

Born in New Westminster, Sam Darkoh has moved around all of his life. A graduate from Capilano University’s Acting for Stage & Screen program, Sam currently lives as a working Actor (Riverdale, DC Legends of Tomorrow, Snowpiercer) alongside being a Voice Actor (Cocomelon Lane) & Hip-Hop Musician based in Vancouver.

Lord Nation

Musician

Lordnation (Osaretin Eweka) is a musician, singer, songwriter and an instrumentalist. Lordnation was born in Edo state, Nigeria. His love for music started at a young age from listening to different genres of contemporary music and playing in his high school strings orchestra.

The Nigerian Native pulls inspirations from the likes of Kanye West, Damien Escobar, Fela Kuti, Michael Jackson etc. “The goal is to inspire kids from the current generation to spread peace and love through music,” says the artist. After experiencing an emotional roller coaster during his migration from Nigeria to Canada, Lordnation has drawn inspiration from his struggles to create original music from the soul. As a means of giving back to the community, Lordnation also teaches classical violin lessons to kids who aspire to follow his musical journey.

 

Brian Seremba

Community Leader & Activist

Brian Seremba is a visionary leader and advocate for systemic equity, recently awarded the prestigious King Charles III Coronation Medal for his groundbreaking contributions to social justice and community development. As the Co-Founder of the BC Community Alliance (BCCA), Brian has spearheaded transformative initiatives such as the BC Racism Tracker, the Supports for Student Learning Program (SSLP), and the Black Youth Empowerment Toolkit. These programs have directly supported over 70 Black youth with mentorship, mental health resources, and financial literacy, while empowering families to navigate systemic barriers in education and beyond. Under his leadership, BCCA has engaged 400 youth in shaping anti-racism policy, developed actionable tools for advocacy, and built partnerships with over 30 organizations in 2024, including the NBA Foundation and Vancity. In addition has created multiple campaigns for missing and murdered Black youth and families creating millions of impressions, tens of thousands of likes, and securing $150,000 in go-funding to create long-lasting impact for Black youth and families across British Columbia.

Brian’s work doesn’t stop at advocacy. He is the founder of Mutima Canada, a brand focused on Tropicraze, an innovative beverage company and africopia an online grocery store that supports newcomers to Canada while fostering sustainable farming practices in Uganda. Mutima Canada bridges the gap between community empowerment and global sustainability, creating opportunities for resettled families while promoting ethical supply chains. Through this work, Brian integrates his passion for economic development and equity, providing newcomers with meaningful ways to engage in their communities and farmers with a fair chance to thrive. Combined with his leadership in passing the 2024 BC Anti-Racism Act and influencing legislative reforms, Brian’s work exemplifies how grassroots action, business innovation, and legislative advocacy can converge to create systemic change that uplifts marginalized communities.

 

Ken Headley

Educator, Musician

Kenneth Headley is a Caribbean/Black school administrator. He has been an educator for over 12 years and an advocate for marginalized students, their families and their communities. Through his long-standing relationship with Beth Applewhite and James Morton, Kenneth has been a part of a team that focuses on providing meaningful opportunities to discuss issues of racial discrimination with students and educators. Since 2016, he has played an integral role in the success of annual Anti-Racism Youth Symposiums and Black History Month Student Conferences. Kenneth completed his Bachelor of General Studies in Canadian studies and sociology at SFU. He completed his B.Ed at SFU as well as his Master’s Degree in Educational Practice, looking at integrating cultural narratives in the classroom. Kenneth has been a moderator on #bcedchat for 5 years moderating conversations on race and curriculum goals for BC Students. Kenneth taught in Surrey for 9 years before becoming a Vice-Principal with the Maple Ridge School District in 2018.

Carolyn Roberts

Author, Speaker, Educator, Faculty at UBC Teacher Education

Carolyn Roberts is a renowned educator, speaker and storyteller with a wealth of experience and expertise in Indigenous education and decolonization. She is a St’at’imc and Sto:lo woman belonging to the Thevarge family from N’quatqua Nation and the Kelly Family from the Tzeachten Nation and a member of the Squamish Nation. Throughout her illustrious career as an educator and administrator for over 20 years, she has consistently demonstrated a passion for supporting Indigenous resurgence through education.

Currently Carolyn holds the position as an Indigenous academic and Faculty Lecturer in the Teacher Education Department of the University of British Columbia. Her dedication to building teachers’ understandings in Indigenous history, education, and ancestral ways of knowing has not only garnered her recognition within education community, but it has also had a positive impact on the decolonizing of the education system.