WELCOME NEW FELLOWS TO DANCE ONTARIO

We are thrilled to welcome two fellows through the Urban Alliance on Race Relations. Asra Khan and Tayyaba Shazad who will be working with us through to September 2023. The Urban Alliance on Race Relations (UARR) established the Policy Youth Fellowship program with an aim to improve Black and/or Muslim youth’s access to employment and opportunities around the Greater Toronto Hamilton Area in four sectors: the Arts, Environment, Legal, and Public Policy/Government. UARR has developed partnerships to establish placements where Fellow’s support policy work (including advocacy and organizing) and gain exposure to the Arts sector while building organizational capacity. Learn more about UARR here: https://www.urbanalliance.ca/

 

Tayyaba Shahzad (She/Her) is a graduate from the University of Toronto where she studied Political Science and Criminology. Since then, she has become a multidisciplinary professional with over 5 years of experience working within the employment sector as a job coach and employer liaison. She is actively engaged in community organizing through her role as a Mentor with Apathy is Boring’s RISE program and as a Youth Advisory Committee member at LGBTYouthline. Alongside this, Tayyaba is one of the founders of Weaving Threads, a Toronto based collective working towards engaging QTBIPOC youth through art. Her passion lies with youth empowerment and working with them to create opportunities for community engagement, build foundational skills and discover their passions. In her spare time, she likes to collect books, scrapbook and play video games.

Asra Khan (She/Her) is a recent graduate of OCAD University’s Environmental Design Program. While completing her degree, Asra served on the Board of Directors at the OCAD Student Union, where she implemented programming and initiatives focused on affordability and food advocacy. She is actively working with The Moment, an innovation and service design company, to conduct design research for a university health center.

With a strong passion for equity-based placemaking, Asra aspires to pursue a career in urban planning and hopes to design spaces that are inclusive and supportive of community growth. Through her experiences and education, she has developed an interest in the interconnectedness between the built environment and social equity.