Fostering opportunities with Black Student Advisor Bria Symonds
Meet Bria Symonds, a new face on campus and Saint Mary’s University’s new Black Student Advisor*. Appointed to her role in July 2022, Symonds comes to SMU with experience and education in social work, community engagement and activism, and will bring these strengths to her new position.
As Black Student Advisor, Symonds will provide support to African Nova Scotian and Black students and the Saint Mary’s community.
“Black Students need to be heard, seen and reflected on campus, and within the institution,” says Symonds. “I see the gaps for Black students and what they may experience. I am excited to close those gaps and create a stronger community for all.”
Symonds hails from Cherry Brook/Lake Loon, a historical Black community in the Preston Township of Nova Scotia and identifies as an Indigenous/Black female. She hopes to connect her greater community to the Saint Mary’s community, allowing Black students to have a better sense of home, to thrive at Saint Mary’s and to develop careers in Nova Scotia.
Roles such as the Black Student Advisor and the Indigenous Student Advisor at Saint Mary’s are important because they provide culturally relevant services to specific student populations, says Deborah Brothers-Scott, Director, Diversity Inclusion and Wellness. These two roles can also benefit from working collaboratively together when and where possible, she says, but the responsibility for supporting the academic success of Black students extends beyond these advisors.
“You can be invited into a space and still not feel welcome,” says Brothers-Scott of Black students within a university environment. “Bria will need the support of all members of the SMU community to come together and provide that inclusive space of belonging for Black students. We all have a role to play.”
Current student Itai Kuwodza agrees Symonds will need the support of Saint Mary’s community members to enact change.
“The greatest asset will be the people ready to meet with her and meaningfully support her ideas and perspectives,” she says.
Symonds’ role also brings necessary representation in the room where decisions are being made, says Kuwodza, placing an advocate for the rights and experiences of students of colour such as herself at the table. “Bria is opening doors and starting needed conversations and challenging the institution to make the university experience a satisfying journey for all enrolled.”
Symonds, who aims to share the stories of Black faculty within the community and successfully bring Black students the support they need, looks forward to connecting with the Saint Mary’s community.
“I want Black students to have as many opportunities, connections and good experiences as possible,” says Symonds. “I am eager to be the support system they need, be accessible for them, and help amplify their voices.”
Learn more about support on campus for African Descended/Black students: smu.ca/blackstudent
*February 2023 update: The Black Student Advisor position is currently vacant and is actively being recruited for. In the interim, Student Affairs and Services has a wide variety of supports and services available to all students.