Alum and advocate Jen Powley inspires Planning scholarship

When Jen Powley (MPlan’09) passed away in September 2023, word travelled far and fast — not surprising given the impact she had on so many people. 

Powley was an exceptional student, with degrees in journalism, fine arts and planning from Dalhousie and the University of King's College, and an accomplished writer with three published books. She was a fierce advocate for persons living with disabilities and an inspiration to her colleagues and community.

Upon hearing the news and reminiscing about their friend over Facebook, the Master of Planning Class of 2008 decided to work together to find a fitting way to commemorate Powley.

“We wanted to contribute something as a collective that could help other people with disabilities in honour of Jen's memory,” says Andrew Kent (BEng’06, MPlan’08, MAsc’08), senior director of development at Killam REIT. “We spoke with Jen's family and they really encouraged us to go ahead with it, which was very generous.”

The group worked with Dalhousie Advancement to create the Jen Powley Memorial Scholarship. The award will recognize high-achieving students entering the Dalhousie Bachelor of Community Design program or the Master of Planning program who have a proven record of advocating for people with disabilities and/or who identify as having a disability themselves.

Building a legacy

In planning education and practice, Powley appreciated the link between the built environment and the issues she cared deeply about, such as environmental sustainability, accessibility and the right to housing. She worked with the Ecology Action Centre, the Accessibility Directorate of Nova Scotia, Open Harbour Refugee Association, Rainbow Refugee Association of Nova Scotia, JRG Society for the Arts and Independent Living Nova Scotia to address these same issues.

Powley’s legacy now lives on through the community builders she has inspired —including her old classmates. Determined to challenge and encourage her fellow students by always asking the difficult questions, Powley strove to ensure her future colleagues would go on to seek and appreciate a diversity of voices throughout their careers.

“Jen was a driving force and a big influence on all of us, in different ways,” says Kent, who notes that his class ended up pursuing a range of careers as planners, developers, government employees, politicians and professors. “In school we didn’t always have the opportunity to learn alongside someone who has a disability. Having Jen’s unique perspective influenced how we approach working with the public or with underrepresented groups or even just how we work with people as individuals.” 

Honouring diversity

Kent adds that while Powley never shied away from challenging her peers’ perspectives, she did it in a patient way that never shamed them but rather made them consider things differently.

“Jen was always very open about her disability and living with multiple sclerosis and how things were actually different for her,” Kent notes. “It may seem obvious, but I think sometimes people shy away from sharing their personal experience. But she always shared that perspective and what she was dealing with, or what she would see and encounter. We were all a bit in awe of Jen and the things she accomplished in a short time.”

With the Jen Powley Memorial Scholarship, the Master of Planning Class of 2008 hopes to bring even more diverse voices and perspectives into their field.

“I think that with the way Jen advocated for people, she would have been happy and proud of this scholarship in her name,” Kent says. “Hopefully it enables someone else to impact their class the way Jen impacted ours. Her influence is something we continue to rely on throughout our careers, so we hope this scholarship contributes to our profession by making all of us better at what we do.”

“Hopefully it enables someone else to impact their class the way Jen impacted ours. Her influence is something we continue to rely on throughout our careers, so we hope this scholarship contributes to our profession by making all of us better at what we do.” - Andrew Kent (BEng'06, MPlan'08, MAsc'08)

To make a gift to the Jen Powley Memorial Scholarship, visit giving.dal.ca/jenpowley