The Chapeau, les filles ! competition and its Excelle Science section, organized by the Québec Education Ministry and partners, are designed to encourage the next generation of women in fields where women are rarely present, pay tribute to students who break new ground, and acknowledge them by awarding over $250,000 in prizes, services, internships or professional visits.

Polytechnique winners of a 2004 Excelle Science prize are: Annick Anctil (Materials Engineering) and Valérie Fréchette (Geological Engineering), who each took home a $5,000 bursary; Émilie Langlois-Bellemare (Electrical Engineering), recipient of a $3,000 bursary; as well as Marie-Josée Cathy Clergé (Civil Engineering) and Catherine Le Blanc (Mechanical Engineering), who were each awarded a bursary of $2,000.

Our five awardees have no shortage of projects, for which they'll surely be putting their bursaries to good use. Ms. Clergé, who is headed for a career in water management, wants to promote sustainable development. Ms. Anctil, who hopes to develop novel materials, is passionately committed to the same issue, as is Ms. Le Blanc, who is closely following advances in ecologically responsible vehicles that use electricity, hydrogen fuel cells and solar energy and hopes to become part of major projects in this field. Ms. Langlois-Bellemare, for her part, plans to participate in engineering projects that will take her all across the world and help her "reconcile culture and science." Ms. Fréchette, meanwhile, is a volcanology buff who plans to fly to Hawaii and work as a volunteer at the volcano observation centre there.

In congratulating the award winners on their academic success and the determination they show in pursuing a career that they are passionate about, Education Minister Pierre Reid pointed to their roles as models for success for all of society.
 

Polytechnique winners of the Excelle Science competition:
l. to r., Marie-Josée Cathy Clergé, Émilie Langlois-Bellemare,
Catherine Le Blanc, Valérie Fréchette, Annick Anctil.