Janthur is the recipient of the 2026 Outstanding Mentorship Award
Business Administration instructor Charlie Janthur fondly recalled a formative memory about a time he was presenting a project as a university student himself, and felt the value of mentorship.
It was during his International Peace and Security class with Alec Morrison, a professor whose toughness had always intimidated him. When Charlie delivered an incorrect fact during the presentation, he and Morrison locked eyes. “Do I buckle or do I stand?” Charlie said, reminiscing about that nerve-wracking moment. Instead of panicking or providing misinformation, he chose to be witty.
“I just looked at him straight in the eye and I said [after the incorrect fact], ‘…according to me.’ And Morrison said, ‘Good. That's what I want to see,’” Charlie said of his professor’s subtle guidance. “It was the confidence… It had such a profound impact later on because everything is about that confidence.”
That’s why, to Charlie, mentorship means confidence. It means helping students unlock their potential by refining their skills so they develop the inner confidence to become the best version of themselves.
And as someone who actively nurtures that confidence and guides students at the University of Guelph-Humber (U of GH), he is the 2026 recipient of the Outstanding Mentorship Award.
He was nominated by Parth Kapoor, a fourth-year Business Administration student whom he mentored during the 2026 NIBS Worldwide Case Competition at Guelph-Humber. But for Charlie, the real award is the appreciation his students have for his guidance, and the proof of his mentorship capabilities can be seen in his successful mentees.
“If I can try to build confidence in a student through teaching them, through coaching them, through their successes, if I can play even a little role and bring them confidence to be able to achieve what I know they can, that is what's important,” Charlie said.
Throughout his two-decade career at U of GH, Charlie has always enjoyed mentoring because shaping students into young professionals is part of why he loves to teach. Notably, this academic year, he poured countless volunteer hours into coaching the Guelph-Humber NIBS business case competition team, including Jan Eros Intal, Mathew Davies, Maya Ostrom, and Parth Kapoor.
The team competed on the world stage with international opponents during the global case competition, placing third out of 16 teams overall. To prepare the students, Charlie assisted in training the team during sessions that would sometimes last up to six hours, often ending well after regular working hours. The students on the team noted that as a coach, he was the backbone of the team and said that he always made time for them.
Charlie said the students always had potential, but his job was to bring that out through tips and constructive feedback about approaching and analyzing the cases and presenting their findings.
He remained committed to the students throughout the entire case competition, from early in the academic year with numerous months of training, until the competition in February. In fact, he’s still invested in their success.
“I hate wasting talent, and when you see these students who've got that talent, and if they can't nurture it for whatever reason, and if I can turn that into their ability to see it within themselves, that's what I do. I want to see them succeed,” Charlie said. “[They] have the skill to achieve more.… You can see the students who’ve got that skill, that talent, but they might not fully realize it just yet. If I can help them achieve more than they thought they could achieve, it’s a good day.”
When it comes to receiving the Outstanding Mentorship Award, Charlie believes that the work he does with students isn’t about the recognition. He does it because it’s a passion and a calling. Upon learning he was nominated, he explained that he felt “touched” that he made such an impact on students’ lives.
It’s educators like Charlie who make Guelph-Humber an academic community where students are empowered to achieve their goals, feel supported, and find a mentor who can make a difference in their lives.
To read about last year’s award recipient, click here.
