President Benoit-Antoine Bacon and Student Charlotte Smith Recognized for Leadership in Mental Health
Photo Credit: Fangliang Xu
Carleton University President Benoit-Antoine Bacon joined a list of acclaimed Canadians on March 4, 2021 when he was presented with the Transformational Leader for Mental Health Award from the Royal Ottawa Foundation.
Past winners of the award include retired general Romeo Dallaire, author and advocate Margaret Trudeau, former Ottawa Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson and Olympic figure skater Elizabeth Manley.
Bacon has been sharing his own story of depression and substance use to engage and empower the Carleton University community in open and honest conversations about mental health in order to better address these critical issues on campus and beyond.
“Benoit has become a beacon of strength and leadership for the 30,000 students at Carleton University,” the foundation said in a written tribute.
“His reputation for having a steady hand at the helm and continued communication around caring for one’s mental health . . . have given him the reputation of a very inspirational and well-respected leader.”
“As president of Carleton, I feel a responsibility to be truthful about my own mental health journey so students, faculty and staff who are suffering know they are not alone,” Bacon said in a question and answer session during the ceremony.
“To everyone who comes from a traumatic past, or who are struggling currently, I want to say you are stronger than you know, you deserve help, and even with seven arrows through the heart, healing is always possible.”
Today, Carleton faculty, students and staff talk more openly about mental wellness and an extensive array of resources, services and learning opportunities have been developed to support them.
Personal Leader for Mental Health Award
Charlotte Smith, a master’s student and peer researcher at Carleton’s School of Social Work, was also honoured at the virtual 2021 Inspiration Awards, receiving the Personal Leader for Mental Health Award.
Smith was once a homeless youth addicted to drugs. After conquering her addiction and returning to school, she is decided to become a social worker so she could help the friends she had left behind. She works with homeless youth at organizations in downtown Ottawa.
Carleton’s Strategic Integrated Plan, released in September 2020, calls for “a focus on mental health, purpose, activity, resilience and togetherness so that we and our communities may thrive.”
Bacon set the tone for a new focus on wellness when he was installed as president at a Convocation ceremony in November 2018 when he told the audience about his life’s journey. He has been talking openly about it ever since.
“I’ve had a strange life,” Bacon told the awards ceremony.
“My parents, and my father especially, were fighting their own demons so I grew up in a dysfunctional, confusing, abusive home.
“You think in your mind: ‘As soon as I’m old enough, I’m going to get out of here and live a beautiful life.’ But that’s not what happens because you’ve been conditioned to think about yourself in the wrong way. You’ve been conditioned to think that you are a shameful person, or an ineffective person, and you’ve been conditioned to think that the world is dangerous. And if you are ashamed and afraid, you’re not prepared to create beauty in the world. In fact, you are suffering and need help. It’s a journey.”
Bacon said seeking help turned his life around, as did focusing on new activities like running, singing and pursuing leadership opportunities in academia.
He credits Carleton’s openness to the story of his life’s journey for where he is today.
“I was honest in my interview. I thought, they are looking for a president; they deserve to know who this president is. So, I told my story in that interview and they called me back—to my great surprise—and they offered me the job.
“To me, that’s incredible and it tells you everything you need to know about Carleton University.”
To view a video featuring President Bacon called ‘Leading with Truth and Beauty’ click here.
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