Ontario Tech advancing diversity in Engineering with new Black and Indigenous PhD fellowship

Ontario Tech University is taking a major step toward greater representation in engineering. Two doctoral students in the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science (FEAS) have been awarded the university’s first Indigenous and Black Engineering and Technology (IBET) PhD Momentum Fellowships.

The IBET Fellowship provides $40,000 annually for four years, along with a full teaching assistantship, to support doctoral students from Indigenous and Black communities pursuing advanced research in engineering.

Created to address the underrepresentation of Indigenous and Black scholars in academia, the program enriches the engineering profession by bringing diverse perspectives into research, teaching and innovation.

The fellowship reflects the university’s broader commitment to advancing an inclusive and supportive academic environment where students see themselves represented, encouraged, and inspired to realize their full potential at every stage of their journey.

Launched nationally in 2021, the IBET PhD Momentum Fellowship is supported by partner universities across Canada. Ontario Tech joined the network in 2022, aligning the fellowship with its institutional vision of Tech with a Conscience, ensuring that innovation is informed by ethics, equity and social responsibility.

IBET PhD Momentum Fellowship Recipients

Bakisanani Sibanda

Sibanda will focus his PhD research on subsonic and automotive aerodynamics. Building on his Master of Applied Science in Aerospace Engineering, he will advance vehicle aerodynamics research using the climatic wind tunnel in Ontario Tech’s world-class ACE Core Research Facility.

“Discovering my selection as the inaugural recipient of the IBET PhD Fellowship at Ontario Tech evoked an indescribable feeling, along with a keen awareness of its importance,” says Sibanda. “This opportunity is both an honour and a privilege, and a responsibility I do not take lightly.”

Kimberly Davis

Davis, will pursue research on the ethics of artificial intelligence (AI), exploring issues of bias, safety and trust.

“[This fellowship] means a lot, it really pushed me to start my PhD now,” says Davis. “You don’t see a lot of diversity in engineering courses… this fellowship is good to encourage more people not just to be an engineer, but to take it further and get a PhD as well.”

Beyond her studies, Davis contributes to Ontario Tech’s Engineering Outreach Black Youth program, where she designs and leads STEM programming for students from Kindergarten through Grade 12. Her efforts empower young Black students to explore engineering and technology pathways while connecting their learning to the contributions of Black innovators in STEM history.

Quote

“IBET is an important pipeline for talent in engineering academia. This mission aligns closely with our commitment at Ontario Tech to champion diversity and create opportunities for underrepresented groups. I am proud to welcome Kimberly and Bakisanani and wish them both success.”
- Dr. Hossam Kishawy, Dean, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, Ontario Tech University