Introduction

The Greek Community of Toronto, in collaboration with institutions, organizations and citizens of the metropolitan area of Toronto, has established a scholarship program, which honours “Paideia” students with Academic Awards for Excellence in Greek Language Education. These awards are scholarships for students, who attend and excel in Greek Language and Heritage Programs run by the Greek Community of Toronto (GCT). The GCT has established the Paideia Scholarship Foundation in order to accept and assess all applications from eligible candidates. It is important to note that the scholarship funds are deposited directly in the scholarship recipients’ University or College account.

The Paideia scholarship program started in 2014, when Ms. Fouli Georgareas-Tsimikalis and her spouse Mr. Stavros Tsimikalis, owners of Toronto Prep School, decided to grant two scholarships to Paideia students. The scholarships are established in honour of Mr. Elias Georgareas, who has consistently supported and promoted Greek Education and Hellenism in Canada for several decades. The Louis Georgareas Academic Awards for Excellence in Greek Language Education are $ 2,500.00 each, and they are granted to students of the GCT, in order to cover their tuition costs at any institution of higher education in Canada or abroad.

Current Scholarships

In addition to the aforementioned scholarship, more sponsors have taken the initiative to be included in this program in recent years. Specifically, the following scholarships will be awarded during the 2023-2024 school year:

• LOUIS GEORGAREAS – Sponsored by Ms. Fouli Tsimikalis and Toronto Prep School
• KOSTAS KRANIAS - Sponsored by Ms. Anastasia Kranias. 
• PRONOIA – Sponsored by The GCT’s Pronoia.

We invite all philhellenes to become scholarship sponsors. Please reach out to us for more information. Thank you.

Scholarship Criteria and Application Requirements

Transparency, fairness and objectivity are central to this process. Specific criteria have been established to ensure that this process is explicit, unbiased, inclusive and equitable. The Greek Community of Toronto has established these criteria, to ensure transparency throughout the process (i.e., submission of applications, evaluation of application packages, and final selection of scholarship recipients). It is important to state that only applicants who meet all the specified criteria will be considered for a scholarship. Candidates are required to submit their applications to the GCT Education Office, from September 1^st to November 30^th of each calendar year. Successful candidates will be announced publicly upon the completion of the evaluation process.  The scholarships (i.e., Certificates and Funds) are awarded to the recipients, during the Academic Awards Ceremony, which is hosted by the Greek Community of Toronto. 

The submission and evaluation criteria for all Academic Awards for Excellence in Greek Language Education are the following:

1. Ellinomatheia Exams Certification: The Ellinomatheia Greek Language Proficiency Examinations are conducted and assessed by the Ministry of Education, Lifelong Learning and Religious Affairs of Greece and the Greek Language Center. The fact that the evaluation of the examination papers is conducted by the Greek Language Center in Greece, and not by the Greek Community of Toronto, adds transparency to the evaluation process. Candidates are tested in six levels of language proficiency and are assessed in four or five skills: reading, writing, understanding, speaking and the overall effective use of the Greek language. In cases, where there is only one candidate who has achieved the highest level of attainment and meets all of the other criteria, then he/she will be awarded one of the aforementioned academic awards beginning with the awards that offer the highest financial support. If there are no candidates at the highest level, the evaluation process moves to the next level of attainment in hierarchical order.
2. Five years minimum attendance in a GCT Greek School: To be eligible for a Paideia Academic Award for Excellence in Greek Language Education, the applicants must have studied at GCT Greek Schools for at least five years, before the date of the application. Attendance of grades 11 and 12 are mandatory.  The above criteria reinforce the objectivity and transparency of the process, promote Greek-language programs of the GCT, and reward students and families that have supported our programs for a long period of time. The criteria establish equity and fairness in this process, since students who have recently moved to Canada from Greece, will not be eligible to apply for the aforementioned awards. In the near future, it is the intent of the GCT to grant additional scholarships based solely on financial and social criteria or for post-graduate studies. 
3. Ontario High School Average - Applicants for the Paideia Academic Awards for Excellence in Greek language Education, must be Ontario High School Graduates who have been accepted by a Canadian or foreign University or College. The highest high school averages (i.e., the top 6 grade 12 university level courses will be included in the calculation, excluding the grade 12 Greek Credit) are considered first for the scholarships. An application will be accepted only if a candidate’s high school average exceeds 79%.
4. Greek Community of Toronto Membership. Applicants or their parents/guardians must be active members of the Greek Community of Toronto, at the time of the application. 
5. Tiebreaker Situations - In cases of tiebreaker situations, socio-economic criteria (i.e., low family income, single parent family, etc.) will be taken into consideration.  Additionally, the scholarship committee will take into account any voluntary work that the candidates may have contributed to the GCT.  Finally, the quality and the completeness of the applications will be considered as well.

A. Scholarship Evaluation Committee

All applications will be evaluated by a three-member committee. Specifically, the committee will consist of the Chair of GCT’s Education Department, the GCT’s Director of Education, and a member of the GCT’s General Manager. In order for a scholarship to be awarded, it is mandatory that there is a unanimous decision among the three committee members. In the event where one or more committee members are not able to fulfill their responsibilities, this/these member(s) will be replaced by members of the GCT Board of Directors. 

B. Application Process

All candidates must submit their applications to the GCT’s education office within the application period (September 1- December 10). 

When applying, all candidates must submit the following:

1) Ellinomatheia Exams Certificate Copy (if applicable)

2) Οfficial Ontario High School Transcript, which indicates the scores of all secondary school courses, including all grade 12 courses.

3) Photocopy of two pieces of photo identity (passport or driving license and birth certificate)

4) Short CV where the candidates explain the reasons for applying for the scholarship.

5) Application Form which is provided by the GCT’s Education Office.

D. Evaluation of Applications

The committee will evaluate all eligible applications according to the following process:

Phase 1: Pre-Selection

1. Only applications which have been submitted before the due date (i.e., December 10) will be accepted. Past due applications will not be accepted or included in the evaluation process.

2. An application will be accepted, only if the applicant has completed grade 12 or has graduated from a Canadian high school in the calendar year in which the application is being submitted. Additionally, the candidates must be enrolled in a Canadian or Foreign University or College. 

NOTE: In cases, where students graduate from Greek school early, (i.e., while they are in grade 11 at their day school), they will have to apply during the year of their graduation from Greek school, and not the following year, when they graduate from their day school. If such a candidate is awarded a scholarship, the funds of the scholarship will not be released to the student, until they provide proof of being accepted to a university or college. At this point, the donors will issue a cheque payable to the institution on behalf of the student 

3. An application will be accepted, only if the applicant has studied in GCT Greek Schools for a total of five years minimum.  The aforementioned period does not have to be continuous and uninterrupted. However, grades 11 and 12 are mandatory.

4. An application will be accepted, only if the applicant or their parents/guardians are active members of the GCT during the time of the application.  

Phase 2: Evaluation of Applications

Only applications who meet all of the above four criteria of the pre-selection process will be included in the stages of the evaluation process.

1. Ellinomatheia Exams Certification

The candidates’ Greek language proficiency will be assessed through their Ellinomatheia Examination Certificates, which are issued in Greece by the Centre of Greek Language.  The scholarships will be awarded according to the level of Greek Language Attainment of the candidates. Specifically, the awards will be granted to the candidates with the highest level of language attainment. For example, a sole candidate with the highest level of Greek language attainment (verified by an official Ellinomatheia Exams Certificate) will by default receive the scholarship that provides the biggest financial support. If two applicants stand out with the highest levels of attainment in Greek from all other applicants, by default they will receive the two biggest scholarships. This process will be repeated until all available scholarships have been granted.  

2. Ontario High School Grade 12 Average

In tiebreaker situations, or if all of the scholarships have not been granted because of a small number of applicants with Ellinomatheia Certificates, the committee will then take into consideration the candidates’ grade 12 high school average. The average will be calculated by adding the final mark of the top 6 grade 12 subjects, as indicated in the high school transcript. The grade 12 Greek credit mark will not be considered in the above calculation. However, if a candidate does not have 6 grade 12 credits, then the high school average will be calculated with the top 5 grade 12 marks. The Greek credit will not be considered as the 6^th credit. 

3. If the above process does not produce any eligible recipients or tiebreaker situations remain, then the committee will take into consideration socio-economic criteria (low family income, single parent family, etc.).  In addition, it will consider any volunteer work that the candidates may have provided to the GCT.  Finally, the completeness and quality of the application package and the candidates’ resumes will play a role, if all of the above criteria have not produced a clear awardee for the remaining scholarships. 

Phase 3 – Final Results and Announcement of Results

After a unanimous decision, the members of the scholarship committee will sign their decision granting scholarships for specific recipients. The results will be communicated to all the candidates and their families, including those who were not granted an award. Scholarships and final results will be published no later than the established Awards Ceremony, which is organized by the Greek Community of Toronto.  

Phase 4 – Receiving Scholarship Funds

Scholarship funds will be directly credited to the recipients’ student accounts at their university or college, in order to be applied toward their tuition fees. If an awardee has already paid their tuition fees, they may have a credit balance in their student account after receiving the scholarship.  For more information about our Academic Awards for Excellence in Greek Language Education, please contact the Education Department of the Greek Community of Toronto: 

Phone (416) 425-2485                                                 

Email: education@greekpaideia.org

30 Thorncliffe Park Drive,

Toronto, Ontario 

M4H 1H8               

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PAIDEIA AWARDS

ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE IN MODERN GREEK

Scholarship Eligibility Criteria and Requirements

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The Candidate:

1. Must be a member of the Greek Community of Toronto in good standing  

    (personal or family membership).

2. Must provide proof of university enrollment.

3. Must provide a copy of an official High School transcript.

4. Must provide two references (name, e-mail and phone number).

5. Must be a student of the Greek Community of Toronto for at least 5 years.

6. Must provide an Ellinomatheia Exams Certificate.

7. Must provide an essay on his/her personal goals in life and his/her involvement  

     in the Greek Community of Toronto.

8. Must provide photo ID 

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