Alumna, Leila Willoughby-Oakes wins national award

Leila Willoughby-Oakes

Congratulations to Leila Willoughby-Oakes for being nominated and selected as one of the recipients of the 2015 IPAC/CAPPA National Student Thought Leadership Awards in Public Administration. The NSTL Awards aim to recognize and showcase talents in public administration in Canadian schools at the regional and national levels. Leila's nomination was put forth by the School based on her Master's Project being selected as the Best MPA Graduate Report. She represented UVic, along with other national student award winners from institutions across Canada, at the National IPAC Conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia this August, where she participated in the Thought Leadership E-Poster contest. She presented her Master's project as an E-Poster and was selected the Bronze Winner. In addition to a cash prize, her work is recognized on the IPAC and CAPPA websites: http://www.ipac.ca/STL-Winners.

Leila attributed her successful Master's Project to her supervisor, Lynda Gagné, and Graduate Advisor, Jim McDavid, for their excellent guidance, and also to the staff and residents of the Town of Qualicum Beach (the Client) who played an integral part in providing resources and research for the project.

Leila, a 2013 MPA Graduate, is currently a City Planner with the City of Federal Way in Washington State (just south of Seattle).