Brandon University Associate Professor Dr. Aloysius C. Anyichie has become the first individual from Brandon to receive a Manitoba Mosaic Award since the provincial recognition program was inaugurated in 2025.
Anyichie received the 2026 Welcoming Community Champion - Individual Award during a ceremony at the Manitoba Legislative Building in Winnipeg on Thursday, Sept. 17.
Dr. Aloysius Anyichie at the Manitoba Mosaic Awards with Manitoba Minister of Labour and Immigration Malaya Marcelino (at left), and Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba Anita Neville.
Presented as part of Manitoba's Welcoming Week, the Manitoba Mosaic Awards recognize newcomers, immigrants, refugees and community champions whose leadership and service help create stronger, more welcoming and inclusive communities. The Welcoming Community Champion Award honours individuals, organizations and businesses that foster belonging, inclusion and opportunity while helping newcomers feel supported and empowered to thrive.
"I receive this recognition with profound gratitude and humility," Anyichie said. "Although my name appears on the award, the work it recognizes has been carried forward with many students, colleagues, volunteers, mentors, community members and partner organizations."
"For me, welcoming is more than opening a door. It means helping people experience belonging, recognize their strengths, contribute their gifts and develop meaningful pathways to success."
Anyichie is an Associate Professor of Educational Psychology and Student Services in Brandon University's Faculty of Education. His teaching and research bring together culturally responsive pedagogy and self-regulated learning to support student engagement, motivation, belonging and academic success in culturally diverse learning environments.
He is the Founder and Director of the CREAMS Research Lab Culture, Regulation of Learning, Engagement, Academic Motivation, and Success at Brandon University. Through the lab, Anyichie leads collaborative research, student training and knowledge-mobilization initiatives focused on improving educational experiences and outcomes for diverse learners.
His scholarship includes the development of the Culturally Responsive Self-Regulated Learning Framework, which helps educators design learning environments that recognize students' identities and experiences while strengthening their agency, motivation and capacity to regulate their learning. He is also the author of Self-Regulated Learning and Culturally Responsive Pedagogy.
"Dr. Anyichie has made a signifcant impact on Brandon University and our students in his time here," said Dr. Alysha Farrell, Dean of Education at BU. "His substantial efforts have also extended to the wider community, fostering a sense of collaboration, fellowship and inclusion, helping many feel welcomed and at home in Brandon."
Beyond his university roles, Anyichie is the Founder of Loy Excellentia Initiative, a community-based organization that advances mentorship, empowerment, belonging and educational success, particularly among African, Black, Caribbean, international and other culturally diverse students and community members.
"This recognition renews my commitment to education, mentorship, inclusion and community service," Anyichie said. "I hope it encourages all of us to continue building communities where people are not only welcomed, but also experience belonging, contribute their gifts and flourish."
The Manitoba Mosaic Award adds to a growing record of recognition for Anyichie's academic and community leadership. In 2025, he was named one of Canada's Top 25 Immigrants and received the Manitoba Council for International Education's International Student Support Award.
The Government of Manitoba recognized 12 individuals and organizations through the second annual Manitoba Mosaic Awards. Anyichie and Winnipeg community leader Izzeddin Hawamda were the two recipients in the Welcoming Community Champion - Individual category.
