CALGARY - Learners at Bow Valley College's Chiu School of Business received some valuable support today, thanks to a donation of $75,000 from Scotiabank.

The donation, which will be used to form the Scotiabank Business Student Support Network, was accepted by David Allwright, Dean of the Chiu School of Business, during a ceremony which took place at Bow Valley College this morning. The cheque was presented by Matt Boudreau, Manager, Training Centre at Scotiabank.

The Scotiabank Business Student Support Network is designed to provide one-on-one support for learners experiencing academic challenges by matching them with skilled learners in similar courses.

"Young people are our future leaders and Scotiabank's goal is to help ensure they have the resources they need to support their success," said Alana Riley, District Vice President, Calgary South at Scotiabank. "This is why we are excited to partner with Bow Valley College's Chiu School of Business on the Scotiabank Business Student Support Network. Through the Network, we believe students will develop skills and connections that will help them throughout their careers."

The Network will bring learners together to support each other through activities like peer tutoring, study groups, a speaker series and potential opportunities for networking and mentoring with Scotiabank staff. All the learners involved in the program will benefit from enhanced understanding of the subject matter, development of leadership skills, greater engagement with the institution and their instructors and development of communication skills.

"The Chiu School of Business fosters an environment where learners help each other. Learners helping learners is one of the most effective ways to develop the skills necessary for success," said David Allwright, Dean of Chiu School of Business.

"Our outstanding relationship with Scotiabank through this Network will provide them with more opportunities to connect with learners from the Chiu School of Business," said Allwright. "The Scotiabank Business Student Support Network will create another support system for our learners to enhance their knowledge, skills and understanding of the curriculum."

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About Bow Valley College
Bow Valley College - Calgary and region's only Comprehensive Community College - with more than 15,000 full- and part-time students, is a leader in business and health career training, community studies, adult upgrading, and English Language Learning.

About Scotiabank
Through our global community investment strategy, Scotiabank and its employees support causes at a grassroots level. Recognized as a leader for our charitable donations and philanthropic activities, in 2016, Scotiabank contributed nearly $70 million to help our communities around the world.

Scotiabank is Canada's international bank and a leading financial services provider in North America, Latin America, the Caribbean and Central America, and Asia-Pacific. We are dedicated to helping our 23 million customers become better off through a broad range of advice, products and services, including personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets. With a team of more than 88,000 employees and assets of $896 billion (as at October 31, 2016), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto (TSX: BNS) and New York Exchanges (NYSE: BNS). For more information, please visit ScotiaBank and follow us on Twitter @ScotiabankViews.