From campus roots to lifelong impact
Erik Einsiedel - 1 October 2025
James and Kalissa Vy with their son Cooper (Photo: Supplied)
For James and Kalissa Vy, Augustana wasn’t just where they earned their biology degrees — it’s where they found each other, stepped into leadership and laid the foundation for a life of service and community. Now, they’re helping today’s students build their own futures through the Vy Engagement Award.
Created in lieu of wedding favours, the award reflects the couple’s deep ties to Augustana. “We wanted to give back to the place that gave so much to us,” says James, who proposed to Kalissa in front of Founders’ Hall (Old Main) on a chilly November morning. “Augustana shaped our paths. Cooper — our son — wouldn’t even be here if not for this campus.”
The Vy Engagement Award supports upper-year undergraduates who demonstrate leadership, volunteerism and extracurricular involvement — the very qualities that defined James and Kalissa’s time at Augustana. Both were deeply involved in student life: James served as president of the Augustana Students’ Association and a residence hall coordinator, while Kalissa led campus tours as an ambassador, helped organize science outreach events and performed with the community band.
“Getting scholarships allowed us to participate in those extracurriculars, which to me is the best part of university life,” says Kalissa. “When students are focused on class, studying, and working part-time, it can be hard to make space for the other things — the things that help you grow as a leader. That’s why we wanted to create this award.”
James began donating the year after graduating in 2014 — a rare move for such a young alumnus. “It just made sense,” he says. “We benefited so much from scholarships ourselves. We felt it was our responsibility to start paying that forward as soon as we could, even if it was only $100 a month.”
That sense of responsibility has grown into a tradition of giving — of time, too. The Vys regularly return to campus for donor events and have volunteered at student welcome weekends and community banquets. James recently joined the º£½ÇÉçÇø Senate, further strengthening their connection to the university.
Cadence Kruk, a psychology student from Lac La Biche, is one of the most recent recipients of the Vy Engagement Award. After suffering a brain injury during a summer job, she’s been navigating her studies with resilience and part-time course loads. The scholarship, she says, made a meaningful difference.
“I wasn’t at full capacity, and the financial pressure was a lot,” Cadence shares. “This award gave me one less thing to worry about. And being recognized — it reminded me that I’m on the right path. That someone sees the work I’m doing and believes in me.”
She hopes to one day pay it forward, too. “Be the person you needed when you were younger,” she says. “That’s what I want to do. That’s what James and Kalissa are doing.”
And if their son Cooper one day chooses to walk the same Augustana halls? “That would be pretty cool,” says James — a new chapter in the story that started on campus.
Students have a remarkable will to change the world. They will broaden our horizons, feed the world, improve health outcomes and take on inequity. Join the Shape the Future campaign as we raise $100 million to provide the next generation of º£½ÇÉçÇø change makers with the access, opportunities and spaces that will help them shape an inspiring future for all.
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