Keelan Dagdick

Keelan Dagdick, BA Honours
Valedictorian

Keelan Dagdick is passionate about rural economic development and strengthening rural communities. She hopes to empower under-represented groups by continuing to advocate for inclusive economic growth.

Dagdick was drawn to UWinnipeg for the small class sizes, and flourished as an award-winning student that earned her many scholarships — including the prestigious Dr. and Mrs. Roderick Hunter Scholarship.

Studying in two male-dominated fields, economics and computer science, she is changing the landscape and hopes to eliminate the gender gap. Dagdick also enjoys data analysis and manipulation in computer science, which she discovered after taking an econometrics course, tying her two interests together.

Dagdick enjoyed her introductory classes in microeconomics and macroeconomics which opened up an opportunity for her to intern at Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD). While at WD, Dagdick assisted with rural economic development and was able to see the real-world impact of economics first-hand, which solidified her decision to choose economics as a career path.

Despite Dagdick’s busy academic schedule and work at WD, she still found time for community. She was active in several extra-curricular activities on campus that she credits with improving her university experience.

“I met like-minded students who were passionate about economics and committed to creating a community,” said Dagdick. “My love for economics has extended past my education and has influenced my decision to support others in their studies.”

Dagdick served as the first female president for UWinnipeg’s Finance and Economics Students’ Association (FESA) and developed a Vice-President of Academic Services position. Through this position, she created a tutoring centre which assists students in their studies.

“For me, it was about so much more than putting on events, I wanted to grow the community and create momentum that would expand beyond my time at the University of Winnipeg” she said.

Dagdick is currently working as a policy analyst/economist at WD and is considering graduate studies in her future.