Giving Day 2026: Scholarship opens doors for future engineer Brianna Gratton

As the first in her family to attend university, Brianna Gratton faced a lot of uncertainty as she considered her post-secondary options. But that all changed when she learned she was a recipient of the University of Saskatchewan Chancellor’s Circle of Honour Scholarship.

By Sarah Trefiak

Growing up in North Battleford, Sask., Gratton always had a knack for numbers and creativity.  

“When I was about five or six years old, I would go to my grandparents’ house where they had a chalkboard in the living room and I would teach myself how to multiply,” said Gratton.  

That interest in math carried through to high school where she also enjoyed coding and art. Not surprisingly, she sought out a career path that would allow her to combine her love of both the artistic and technical sides of creating something new and so she applied to USask’s College of Engineering. 

"The idea of going to university was something completely new for my family," said Gratton, a proud Métis student whose father attended residential school. "We weren't even sure how we would make it happen." 

Initially, Gratton thought she would have to enroll as a part-time student and work to cover the expenses of tuition and rent, so she was thrilled to learn that she would receive a scholarship worth $30,000 upon entry. 

“It alleviated a ton of stress not only for me, but for my family,” she said. “For a stranger to donate money and trust that it is going to a place where it would be made of use, even when they had never met me—it just felt like I had people believing in me.” 

Gratton used that as motivation to get through her first year.  

“If someone was willing to invest in me, I just felt like I had to keep working to make sure I didn’t prove them wrong.” 

The ease of financial pressure also allowed Gratton to pursue extra-curricular activities at the college and so she joined the Huskie Formula Racing Team, an interdisciplinary team of students who design and fabricate an open-wheeled race car to compete in the annual Formula SAE competitions. This past May, Gratton traveled to Michigan as part of the USask team that finished 61st out of more than 110 teams. 

“It was a really great experience to be able to see the way everyone worked under pressure and solve problems in real time,” adding that her scholarship was the only reason she could afford to take time off to attend the competition. 

Experiences like that are helping shape Gratton's future goals as mechanical engineer. In the future, she hopes to develop more inclusive designs that better serve diverse populations, inspired by increasing awareness about how products and technologies are often designed around a narrow definition of the “average” user. 

As USask Giving Day approaches, Gratton is grateful that the Engineering Advancement Trust will be once again matching donations to her college and encourages alumni and donors to join in. 

“Every donation adds up and can really change someone’s path. It made a huge difference for me, and I know it does for others too.” 

USask Giving Day is coming up on Sept. 9, 2026. Whether you are passionate about your college, the Huskies, or groundbreaking research, you can support the area that matters the most to you. For Sept. 9 only, each gift to USask will be matched up to $1,000 per gift while matching funds last. Visit give.usask.ca to learn more.