As a Model School graduate, Jaeda is ready for future academic and personal success Changing lives: Student Stories

Like many of her fellow seniors, Collegiate student Jaeda Cochrane-Murdock is now reflecting on the past four years of school. Having started her journey at the Collegiate in Grade 9 during the fall of 2021, her experience at Wesley Hall has been positive thanks to her peers and people on campus.

“I’ve built a lot of connections with people I wouldn’t normally have engaged with outside the Collegiate,” says Jaeda. “My friends and teachers have also helped me grow a lot during this time. Having started as a freshman, I remember feeling that I had so much work to finish before graduating—and now that I’ll be wrapping up my final term in the next few weeks it feels as though time has flown by.”

An active member across the Collegiate campus, Jaeda has immersed herself in numerous teams and clubs throughout her high school tenure.

“I’ve played on the volleyball and basketball teams, clarinet in concert band, and I joined the Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) club in grade 12,” says Jaeda. “As part of the club, we hosted cultural days for students from different national backgrounds to showcase their food and traditions from around the world. We also organized potlucks and Kahoot tournaments for people to test their cultural knowledge against one another.”

As a Model School student, Jaeda is part of a unique cohort at the Collegiate. Based on her exemplary skills in the classroom, she was chosen by public school educators to receive a full four-year bursary that covers the cost of her tuition and school supplies.

This investment in her education puts her and other promising students on a path that will help them be successful in completing their post-secondary education at UWinnipeg. Since beginning in 2009, a total of 144 students have graduated from the Collegiate as part of the program. At this year’s graduation ceremony for the class of 2025, 13 other Model School students joined Jaeda on stage to receive their diplomas.

“The Model School has an important place at the Collegiate,” says Jaeda. “The program helps many inner-city kids who have the knowledge needed to succeed in school but lack the necessary funds to enroll. The Model school helps students thrive by inviting them to use their academic skills at the Collegiate and gets them thinking about what they can achieve at university after graduating.”

A dedicated member of the campus community, Jaeda was also presented with the Job Yellowhead Award in 2024 in recognition of her volunteer efforts and support of indigenous culture at the Collegiate.

Beyond school, Jaeda spends her time working at the University’s Wii Chiiwaakanak Learning Centre, which provides educational and cultural programming rooted in Indigenous knowledge to the surrounding downtown community. During the summer, Jaeda takes on a counseling role as part of the STEAM Camp (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math)—helping lead attendees between activities and meals during the day.

“The atmosphere and cultural presence is a big part of what drew me to the position,” says Jaeda. “In addition to all the science programming, we pick medicine and berries with the campers and sew ribbon skirts together as staff members.”

Jaeda will begin her undergraduate degree in September this year at UWinnipeg, where she hopes to graduate in 2029 with a degree in physics.