UWindsor student Emily Burden has beaten the odds —and 600 fellow applicants — to receive an award from the Sobey’s Inc. national scholarship program for the third straight year. The fourth-year liberal arts and professional studies major was one of four across Ontario to win the $1,500 scholarship.

Sobey’s determines the recipients based on community engagement and leadership.

Burden works at the Brights Grove Foodland, where she has impressed store owner Paul Wright with her work ethic.

“She has demonstrated intelligence, wit, and efficiency above the norm,” says Wright. “She has endeared herself both to customers and her co-workers.”

Tim Brunet, program coordinator for Liberal Arts and Professional Studies, says he is particularly pleased to see Burden excel at both work and her studies.

“Emily is a diligent, outstanding student who shows a passion for learning and a natural ability for leadership,” he says. “Her achievements are proof positive that liberal arts students excel in the labour market and beyond.”