This Concordia student is fighting for a more inclusive business world

The HSBC LGBT Student Award recognizes outstanding academic achievement, leadership and community service through participation in lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender organizations or initiatives.

Concordia student Samuel Miriello, who’s majoring in human resources management at the John Molson School of Business (JMSB), is the 2016 recipient.

“This award is a beautiful statement,” says Miriello, who hopes to spend his career creating more diverse workplaces.

“It demonstrates how valuable it is for the business environment to be inclusive of the LGBT community.”

Miriello is the first-year representative for the John Molson Human Resources and Management Association. In his brief time at Concordia, he has also formed an LGBT group for first-year students.

“We meet regularly,” he says. “We develop a sense of pride for our identity and help each other deal with discrimination that we may face in our family, school and work environments.”

His efforts have already had an effect on policy beyond the university’s walls. As a result of proposals he made to the United Nations Association of Canada, Global Affairs Canada has committed to more strongly considering funding for LGBT-supportive international assistance programs.

Open to first and second-year undergraduate students at select universities across Canada, the HSBC LGBT Student Award comes with $5,000 and consideration for a summer internship with HSBC. Recipients are also considered for the bank’s management trainee program upon graduation.

Since its inauguration in 2013, 16 students from across the country have received the award.

Find out more about the John Molson School of Business.