OTTAWA, Feb. 15, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Telesat (NASDAQ and TSX: TSAT), one of the world’s largest and most innovative satellite operators, today announced that applications are now being accepted for its two marquee scholarship programs—the fourth annual National Women in STEM scholarship program and the company’s second annual Fellowship for Indigenous Youth program.

“Telesat recognizes the importance of increasing diversity within STEM and we are proud to provide scholarships that help elevate and empower Canada’s diverse voices,” said France Teasdale, Telesat’s Vice President of People. “With these programs we aim to provide women and Indigenous students with access to impactful education and career opportunities while developing STEM talent throughout Canada.”

Women in STEM Scholarship Program:
Through the Women in STEM scholarship, Telesat will award $5,000 CAD scholarships to eight full-time undergraduate students pursuing studies in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Students in undergraduate university and those enrolled in accredited technical college programs are eligible to participate. With this scholarship, Telesat hopes to empower more women to engage in these important, emerging, and high-paying fields.

Women in STEM scholarship applications will be accepted until 1:00 p.m. ET on March 26, 2024. Telesat intends for this program to reflect Canada’s broad diversity and the company strongly encourages Indigenous, visible minority students, and students with disabilities to apply. Scholarship Partners Canada (SPC), a division of Universities Canada, administers the scholarship program on behalf of Telesat.

For more information on the scholarship program and eligibility, and to view the impressive 2023 scholarship winners, visit https://www.telesat.com/scholarships.

Fellowship for Indigenous Youth:
Under the Fellowship for Indigenous Youth program, Telesat will provide scholarships for Indigenous students to pursue their studies and advance their careers in STEM fields, and gain significant, hands-on working experience during paid internship placements at the company. Telesat will award two Indigenous students each with $5,000 CAD scholarships, $15,000 stipends, and up to 8-month paid internships at one of Telesat’s cutting-edge facilities in Alberta, Manitoba, Nunavut, Ontario, or Quebec.

SPC will administer Telesat’s Fellowship for Indigenous Youth Program and select a committee of Canadian University representatives and an Indigenous-led application review committee. The candidate evaluation criteria will include academic performance, quality/relevance of a written essay, reference letters, relevance of academic and professional experience, and interview performance. Scholarship applications will be accepted until 1:00 pm ET on March 26, 2024. 

For more information on the program, eligibility and application, and to view the 2023 awardees, visit https://www.telesat.com/indigenous-fellowship.

About Telesat

Backed by a legacy of engineering excellence, reliability and industry-leading customer service, Telesat (NASDAQ and TSX: TSAT) is one of the largest and most innovative global satellite operators. Telesat works collaboratively with its customers to deliver critical connectivity solutions that tackle the world’s most complex communications challenges, providing powerful advantages that improve their operations and drive profitable growth.

Continuously innovating to meet the connectivity demands of the future, Telesat Lightspeed, the company’s Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite network, will be the first and only LEO network optimized to meet the rigorous requirements of telecom, government, maritime and aeronautical customers. Telesat Lightspeed will redefine global satellite connectivity with ubiquitous, affordable, high-capacity links with fibre-like speeds. For updates on Telesat, follow us @Telesat on X, LinkedIn, or visit www.telesat.com.

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Forward-Looking Statements Safe Harbor

This news release contains statements that are not based on historical fact and are “forward-looking statements’’ within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and Canadian securities laws. When used herein, statements which are not historical in nature, or which contain the words “will,” “hopes,” or similar expressions, are forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from the expectations expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements as a result of known and unknown risks and uncertainties. All statements made in this press release are made only as of the date set forth at the beginning of this release. Telesat Corporation undertakes no obligation to update the information made in this release in the event facts or circumstances subsequently change after the date of this press release.

These forward-looking statements are based on Telesat Corporation’s current expectations and are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond Telesat Corporation’s control, are difficult to predict, and could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or forecasted in the forward-looking statements. There are numerous risks and uncertainties associated with Telesat’s business and the Telesat Lightspeed constellation. Known risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to: inflation and rising interest rates; Telesat’s ability to enter into definitive funding agreements with the company’s Canadian federal and provincial government partners, and to meet the funding conditions of those agreements and of its vendor financing; technological hurdles, including our and our contractors’ development and deployment of the new technologies required to complete the constellation in time to meet our schedule, or at all; the availability of services and components from our and our contractors’ supply chains; competition; risks associated with domestic and foreign government regulation, including access to sufficient orbital spectrum to be able to deliver services effectively and access to sufficient geographic markets in which to sell those services; Telesat’s ability to develop significant commercial and operational capabilities; risks associated with operating satellites and providing satellite services, including satellite construction or launch delays, launch failures, in-orbit failures or impaired satellite performance; and volatility in exchange rates. The foregoing list of important factors is not exhaustive. Investors should review the other risk factors discussed in Telesat Corporation’s annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2022, that was filed on March 29, 2023, with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the Canadian securities regulatory authorities at the System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (“SEDAR”), and may be accessed on the SEC’s website at https://www.sec.gov/ and SEDAR’s website at https://www.sedarplus.ca/ as well as our subsequent reports on Form 6-K filed with the SEC and also available on SEDAR.