Jayden Parker, a fourth-year biomedical student at the University of Guelph, has received one of the most prestigious scholarships in the world, the Rhodes Scholarship.
Born in Montréal and raised in Bermuda, Parker says he was just blown away when he received the call, according to a recent news release from the University of Guelph.
“I called my mom, who was 12 hours away. I woke her up at 6 a.m. We were all crying. Because this is her achievement as much as it’s mine. And it represents a lot of family history and struggle, and my mom’s willingness to push me at a young age," Parker said.
Parker’s love for animal rehabilitation and environmental conservation began when he was just 13-years-old.
Dropped off at the local aquarium in Flatt’s Village, Bermuda, his mother enrolled him in a summer volunteer program, hoping to get her son out of the house.
“My mom raised me and my little sister by herself in Bermuda,” Parker said.
“I was not going to any of the prestigious schools without a scholarship. My mom worked so hard to take care of us – pushing me to volunteer at the aquarium, pushing me to apply to these scholarships. I owe this to her.”
According to the awarding office, Parker obtained the Rhodes Scholarship for his “exceptional academic achievements and dedication to environmental conservation".
With a 91 per cent GPA and hundreds of hours spent volunteering in animal rescue projects, at hospitals and veterinarian clinics, Parker has dedicated eight years of his life to the rehabilitation of seabirds, sea turtles, marine iguanas and fish.
Thanks to the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo’s volunteer program, he has travelled to the Galapagos Islands to work with Galapagos tortoises and to plant endemic trees.
Parker is involved with U of G’s Wildlife Club and Future Vets Club, and at the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC), he gained hands-on research experience with dairy and beef cattle.
“When you grow up on a tiny subtropical island with colourful fish, beautiful birds, pink sand against the ocean, watching turtles poke their heads out of the water, it’s hard to leave without a love for the environment, a love for animals,” Parker said.
This year, the Rhodes Scholarship will fully fund his education at the University of Oxford, where he plans to obtain two master’s degrees in two years: a master of biodiversity conservation and nature recovery and a master of environmental change and management.
After his time at Oxford, Parker plans to return to Guelph to study at OVC, to the campus that first inspired him.
“Many of my professors were very welcoming, down to-earth and inspiring. In my zoology program, we got to do these amazing labs, dissecting and learning about little sharks, snakes and birds. Dr. Sarah Schorno, the professor of that course, really helped to inspire my passion. I’m so grateful to her,” Parker said.
“Not only was I studying biomedical science, but there was so much to supplement my studies, learning about climate change, the philosophy of medicine, biological anthropology, environmental subjects and conservation.”
Parker is grateful for all the support he has received.
“I thank the Centennial Bermuda Foundation and the Orbis Foundation for their financial support of my journey, the Bermuda Zoological Society for the host of opportunities they provided me, the incredible and passionate professors at U of G and my friends and family for their unending support,” Parker said.
“I came to U of G for its reputation in sustainability, and this was the only place I felt I could explore my interest in the environment.”
