USask honours achievements of two new Rhodes Scholars
Two University of Saskatchewan (USask) students have been selected to receive prestigious Rhodes Scholarships for the second time in two years. Only 11 scholarships are awarded to students across the country each year.
By University CommunicationsUSask College of Law graduate Kennedy Marley (JD’24) and current College of Engineering student Colin Dyck have been selected to receive Rhodes Scholarships and will begin graduate programs at Oxford in fall 2025.
Established in 1903, the Rhodes Scholarship includes tuition, fees, and a stipend for living expenses while studying at the University of Oxford. It is the oldest graduate scholarship offered in the world and one of the most prestigious.
This marks the second time in two years that two USask students have been selected by the Rhodes Trust to receive Rhodes Scholarships, and the third year in a row in which a USask student has received the award. The previous years’ recipients, biological sciences student Rachel Andres, nursing student Taron Topham and English literature student Cassidy Serhienko, all went on to pursue graduate programs at the University of Oxford in England.
“This achievement is a testament to the academic excellence and community leadership that both Kennedy and Colin have shown throughout their time at the University of Saskatchewan,” said USask President Peter Stoicheff. “This success showcases the high calibre of academic, research and teaching opportunities at USask, and USask students’ high level of global achievement. On behalf of the University of Saskatchewan, congratulations to Kennedy and Colin on their remarkable accomplishment. They are joining a legacy of 75 other USask students who have received this honour since 1907.”
Marley is a Métis woman who grew up near Regina on Treaty 4 Territory and received her Juris Doctor from the USask College of Law in June 2024. She will begin studying at the University of Oxford next fall.
Marley earned the Law Society of Saskatchewan Silver Medal for attaining the second-highest cumulative average throughout law school. She is also a recent recipient of the Order of Gabriel Dumont Bronze Medal, which is awarded to students who have distinguished themselves through leadership, community service, cultural initiatives, and overall academic performance. Marley has been clerking at Saskatchewan’s Court of Appeal since June.
She plans to pursue graduate studies in law at Oxford, on the topic of criminal sentencing regimes and their applicability to Indigenous youth.
Dyck is set to graduate from USask with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree in June 2025. An avid student researcher during his time at USask, he worked alongside a research group from the Institute of Space and Atmospheric Studies in the College of Arts and Science to design satellite prototypes to monitor ozone and aerosols, including a campaign in Sweden to test a satellite prototype on a high-altitude balloon. He also participated in the design of Saskatchewan’s first and second home-grown satellites that were developed at USask: RADSAT-SK1 and RADSAT-SK2.
In the community, Dyck has mentored students at a local youth group and served as a maintenance volunteer at the Library of Things in Saskatoon. In his free time, he has also been part of USask’s Greystone Singers choir and played clarinet in the USask Wind Orchestra.
Dyck hopes to complete research at Oxford that will ameliorate anthropogenic climate change, and he plans to pursue a Doctor of Philosophy degree focusing on atmospheric science.