{"id":292,"date":"2020-10-28T07:31:59","date_gmt":"2020-10-28T11:31:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advancement.apps01.yorku.ca\/impactreport2020\/?page_id=292"},"modified":"2020-11-05T11:19:58","modified_gmt":"2020-11-05T16:19:58","slug":"changing-lives-one-student-at-a-time","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/advancement.apps01.yorku.ca\/impactreport2020\/changing-lives-one-student-at-a-time\/","title":{"rendered":"Changing lives, one student at a time"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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For more than a decade, Georg Zoidl watched as his grandfather battled Parkinson\u2019s disease and eventually passed. He knew then that he wanted more than anything to help find a cure for this devastating disease.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So when Georg was offered a spot in a new program called Integrated Science at York in 2016, he felt he finally had a chance to make a real difference. Alongside 22 other students, he worked hard to keep up with the cross-disciplinary teaching in math, physics, chemistry and biology, all while playing for the York U Lions tennis team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"This
Georg Zoidl<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

For his honours thesis, Georg chose to study the molecular mechanisms of Parkinson\u2019s disease in memory of his grandfather. Once he completed his undergraduate degree, he looked for financial support a Master\u2019s program in Biomedical Science at York to continue this critical research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Georg never dreamed that he would be nominated for the Nestmann Scholarship, established by long-time York University supporter Earle Nestmann.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over 50 years, Earle has shown his commitment and enduring love for York University and its students. He started himself as a student and became a visiting assistant professor. Today, he is an active member of the University\u2019s Board of Governors and a donor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI know what it\u2019s like to be a student. I know what it\u2019s like to struggle financially as you try to get your education. I have also been on the side of faculty and taught exceptional students,\u201d says Earle. \u201cThat\u2019s why my wife Berna and I truly understand and want to help the next generation of students.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

True to his words, Earle established the Nestmann Scholarship Fund in 2010 for graduate students studying molecular biology or genetics at York University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This endowed fund has changed the lives of 10 promising students including, most recently, Georg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe nomination for the Nestmann Scholarship came as a big surprise and it\u2019s a great honour.\u201d says Georg. \u201cThe funds will allow me to continue my research project on Parkinson\u2019s disease.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Endowment funds like this show just how much this tremendous support means to students at York.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve used this expression before and I\u2019ll use it again, endowments to me are the \u2018gifts that keeps giving\u2019 and they provide opportunities to deserving students,\u201d says Earle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And Earle lives by those words every day, having generously contributed to other funds including the Dean\u2019s Undergraduate Research Awards in Science, the Science Exploration Camps and most recently, the Student Emergency Relief Fund to support students deeply impacted by the fallout of the pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy parents instilled a belief in education,\u201d Earle explains. \u201cAnd I have continuing faith in the present and future mission of York.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To students like Georg, this support means the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis Scholarship will always be special to me as it\u2019s the first ever fellowship I\u2019ve been awarded,\u201d Georg says. \u201cWith these funds, I can hopefully help many generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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For more than a decade, Georg Zoidl watched as his grandfather battled Parkinson\u2019s disease and eventually passed. He knew then that he wanted more than anything to help find a cure for this devastating disease.\u00a0 So when Georg was offered a spot in a new program called Integrated Science at York in 2016, he felt […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-292","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancement.apps01.yorku.ca\/impactreport2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/292","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancement.apps01.yorku.ca\/impactreport2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancement.apps01.yorku.ca\/impactreport2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancement.apps01.yorku.ca\/impactreport2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancement.apps01.yorku.ca\/impactreport2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=292"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/advancement.apps01.yorku.ca\/impactreport2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/292\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":418,"href":"https:\/\/advancement.apps01.yorku.ca\/impactreport2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/292\/revisions\/418"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancement.apps01.yorku.ca\/impactreport2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=292"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}