BMO Nesbitt Burns donates commissions to charity

BMO Nesbitt Burns today launched its first Equity through Education trading day. The new charitable program is designed to raise money for students who demonstrate academic promise but lack funds to pursue education opportunities.

Specifically, all of the institutional equity trading commissions earned today by BMO Nesbitt Burns across Canada will go directly to four organizations dedicated to giving bright and deserving individuals a chance to achieve their fullest potential.

“We are in a position to make a difference — a big difference,” said Eric Tripp, vice chairman, BMO Nesbitt Burns and campaign chairman of the special trading day, in a release. “The driving principle behind Equity through Education is to create educational opportunities for those who don’t have them. It is one day of trading for a lifetime of opportunity.”

The four charities BMO Nesbitt Burns’ Equity through Education program is supporting are:

• Canadian Merit Scholarship Foundation (CMSF). Founded in 1988, CMSF is an independent and privately funded organization that gives out the largest undergraduate awards to the country’s most promising young leaders. Specifically, the proceeds from Equity through Education will be used to fund awards for women.
• The Pathways to Education Program. A unique program of the Regent Park Community Health Centre, serving Toronto’s Regent Park, Canada’s oldest and largest public housing project. Pathways to Education supports “at-risk,” economically disadvantaged youth through high school and inspires them to move on to post-secondary programs. All funds donated by Equity through Education will be used towards the four supports that comprise the trademark Pathways model: tutoring, mentoring, student and parent advocacy, post-secondary bursaries and immediate financial assistance in the form of transit tickets earned through attendance at school.
• 
  The National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS). NEADS is a national organization that works to achieve full access to education for post-secondary students with disabilities across Canada. NEADS also supports the transition from school to the employment market for college and university graduates with disabilities. The proceeds from Equity through Education will be used to develop training programs for students with disabilities as they prepare to enter the job market.
• Foundation for the Advancement of Aboriginal Youth (FAAY). Administered by the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB), FAAY is a scholarship and bursary program dedicated to developing the next generation of aboriginal leaders. By encouraging youth to stay in school, FAAY bridges the gap between the reality aboriginal youth face in their communities and the opportunities available to those with higher education. All funds contributed by Equity through Education will be applied directly to bursaries and scholarships for Aboriginal students.