Back Issues

$182 million for CFI's Leaders Opportunity Fund

News Date: 
Aug 9, 2010
Science and Technology Minister Gary Goodyear announced Friday a $182-million federal investment in the Canada Foundation for Innovation's Leaders Opportunity Fund, which is designed to help Canadian universities to attract and retain the world's best researchers at a time of intense global competition for leading faculty. The funding will enable universities to strategically set priorities and acquire new infrastructure to support these top researchers and improve facilities and laboratories. The funding will ensure the CFI continues to carry out its mandate in 2012 and beyond. Industry Canada News Release

again, humanities left out

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 2010-08-09 08:41.
It would be nice if the government would support teaching, learning and research in the humanities. We are shut out of CFIs by their very "infrastructure" mandate -- library databases etc are not considered infrastructure. Lame and shortsighted.

Quest U receives US accreditation

News Date: 
Aug 9, 2010
Last month, Quest University, a BC-based non-profit liberal arts and science institution, was awarded full accreditation by the American Academy for Liberal Education (AALE), an accrediting body recognized by the US Department of Education. In March, the AALE evaluation team spent a week at the institution to carry out a site evaluation. According to the award letter, the evaluation team's report "commended the excellence of your instructors and the high quality of your students who were unusually engaged, articulate and thoughtful." Quest U is also fully accredited by BC's advanced education ministry through its Degree Quality Assessment Board, making the institution one of the few universities in North America fully accredited in both Canada and the US. Quest U website

"Accreditation" in BC

Submitted by Robert Clift (not verified) on Mon, 2010-08-09 13:40.
Without detracting from what Quest University has achieved, some clarification is required. The BC Degree Quality Assessment Board (DQAB) does not "accredit" institutions, it makes a recommendation to the Minister of Advanced Education as whether or not a degree-granting institution should be granted permission (i.e. given a license) to offer specific degree programs in British Columbia. Although there are similarities between the processes employed by the DQAB and the accreditation bodies in the United States (and elsewhere), to imply they are equivalent is not correct. There is no system of accreditation of universities or degree programs in Canada similar to that employed in the United States. Individual provinces have different systems of licensing of degree-granting institutions.

StatsCan figures do not reflect rising enrolment at MUN

News Date: 
Aug 9, 2010
Following the recent release of Statistics Canada data showing a continued decline in university enrolment in Newfoundland and Labrador, Memorial University's vice-president academic reported that more recent figures from the university show a turnaround. The VP told the CBC that StatsCan's numbers are incomplete, as the agency's data stops at fall 2008, while MUN's published data goes further along to fall 2009. On his blog, MUN professor Dale Kirby plots both the StatsCan and MUN data. The agency's data is consistently higher because the figures reflect enrolments over a full academic year, while MUN's data only reports on fall semester enrolments. The more recent data from the institution shows the recent uptick in enrolment for fall 2009. The University of Saskatchewan has also questioned StatsCan's figures in the recent report. CBC | Adventures in Canadian Post-Secondary Education (Dale Kirby's blog)

Stats Can data

Submitted by Peter Morris, Memorial University (not verified) on Mon, 2010-08-09 07:00.

The CBC and others have headlined this story in a manner that suggests Memorial University of Newfoudland (MUN)is challenging Stats Can's data. The university isn't. Our VP (Academic) was simply pointing out that the Stats Can report did not include newer data from 2009 that show a rise in university enrolment in Newfoundland and Labrador (Memorial Univesity being the only university in the province, the instutional and jurisdictional data are the same). There was no contradicting of the Stats Can report. One the contrary, the VP (A) confirmed the accuracy of the Stats Can data, as far as they go.

The only other factor to consider in the analysis of the data is where was the enrolment decline coming from in 2008 and earlier because during the same period, MUN's enrolment of students from elsewhere in Canada and internationally was increasing.

MUN's data, confirmed by Stats Can, show that the decline is almost entirely within the group of high school leavers from Newfoundland and Labrador schools. Memorial is capturing about 80% of the eligibles (70% graudating average)in this group and can't forsee improving much on that figure. The simple fact is that there is a demographic issue at play. The sheer numbers of school-age children has been dropping in Newfoundland for much of the last two decades.

MUN recognized this demographic issue many years ago and, in a proactive response, undertook to develop significant student recruitment and marketing resources. Those efforts, matched with the tuition fee advantage* in Newfoundland and Labrador, has enabled MUN to attract students from all across the country to fill the classroom seats that otherwise might sit empty.

*(MUN has the lowest tution fees in the country for Canadian students, with the exception of Quebec students at Quebec schools -- this is a matter of provincial public policy and the provincial government provides MUN with the additional financial resources to ensure that educational quality remains high while tuition costs are contained for students).

Peter Morris, Memorial University

Queen's seeks parliamentary approval to reduce size of trustee board

News Date: 
Aug 9, 2010
Queen's University will seek Parliament's approval to amend the institution's charter to decrease the size of the university's board of trustees from 44 to about 25. The number of faculty, staff, student, and University Council representatives would remain the same, while the graduate, benefactor, and School of Religion representatives would be phased out as terms expire. The board itself would elect fewer members. The board unanimously supports the plan, reflecting trustees' desire for a more engaged decision-making body, says the chair of the board's governance working group. Queen's News Centre

New residence, architecture school site among recent Laurentian board decisions

News Date: 
Aug 9, 2010
On his official blog, Laurentian University president Dominic Giroux recently reported on important decisions made by the university's board of governors at its meetings in June. Among them is the final approval for the construction of a 236-bed student residence to open in September 2012. This project will be 100% self-funded through residence fees, Giroux writes. The board has also approved a shortlist of 3 potential temporary sites to serve architecture students for 3 years, pending the construction of a permanent site for Laurentian's planned architecture school. Giroux reports that the university is on track to balance its operating budget in 2011-12. President's Blog

Renison's English Language Institute to set up satellite in Toronto

News Date: 
Aug 9, 2010
Renison University College's English Language Institute plans to establish a satellite campus in Toronto. Operated in partnership with Hudson College, a private school offering programs from pre-kindergarten through university and college entrance, the new campus will first offer the high-intermediate and advanced levels of the institute's English for Academic Success (EFAS) program. This program will accept its first students at the Hudson campus in September. Successful completion of the advanced level of EFAS satisfies the English language requirement of the University of Waterloo, of which Renison is a federated institution. Renison News Release

Cambrian breaks ground for Xstrata Nickel Sustainable Energy Centre

News Date: 
Aug 9, 2010
Last Thursday, Cambrian College held a groundbreaking ceremony for its Xstrata Nickel Sustainable Energy Centre. The 16,400-square-foot facility will provide opportunities for students, faculty, and the local community to acquire the skills and practical experience to become leaders in the green-collar economy. In addition to the main facility, the centre will feature 6 "Living Labs," which are designed to be used for research, education, and technology development by Cambrian students, entrepreneurs, primary and secondary school students, and the general public. Half of the labs have been in use since last fall. Cambrian News Release

Ivey student creates rap video in tribute to business school

News Date: 
Aug 9, 2010
Mike Lickver, an MBA-law student at the University of Western Ontario, has produced a light-hearted rap video paying tribute to the Richard Ivey School of Business. With music based on Drake's "Forever," the "MBA Forever" video, which has garnered a few thousands hits on YouTube, describes how Ivey and its students stand out, with references to rankings, grades, business cases, and leadership. Last February, Lickver created an 8-minute skit and music video called "Law School Husslin," which features some of his law school friends. When Lickver's MBA classmates saw it, they asked that he make one for the business side. The student says both videos have received positive reaction from alumni, professors, and classmates. Before graduating next spring, Lickver plans to release a sequel to Law School Husslin. London Free Press | Watch the video

Disappointing

Submitted by Keltie Jones (not verified) on Mon, 2010-08-09 10:04.
I was interested to see this, and then deeply disappointed. Are there no female students at Ivey? The only ones in the video were the dancing party girls. Why were the African Canadians portrayed as rappers only, not in suits with the rest of the students? If I were working at Ivey, I certainly wouldn't use this piece to promote the school.

Two things that stand out:

Submitted by Ena (not verified) on Mon, 2010-08-09 10:32.
Two things that stand out: black folks don't get to wear suits and women are conspicously absent, except as sexy party girls. Hmmm...

Youth labour market improves over last year

News Date: 
Aug 9, 2010
Last month, employment increased by 4.5% for students aged 15 to 24 compared to July 2009, with the bulk of the gains for students between 20 and 24 years of age. Compared to 12 months prior, the unemployment rate for students aged 15 to 24 dropped 4.1 percentage points to 16.8% in July. Despite the increase in employment, the unemployment rate remains 3 percentage points above that of July 2008, a summer where student employment was particularly strong. Younger students had a more difficult time finding work in July than older counterparts. The unemployment rate for students aged 15 to 16 was 28.2%, compared to 18.2% for 17- to 19-year-old students, and 7.5% for 20- to 24-year-olds. Statistics Canada

Google to stop development of Wave

News Date: 
Aug 9, 2010
Because Google has not seen the user adoption of Wave it would have liked, the company announced last Wednesday it doesn't plan to develop the site as a standalone product, but will maintain Wave at least through the end of the year and extend the technology for use in other Google products. Launched in May 2009, Google Wave was an online platform where groups could have real-time conversations, share documents and media files, and collaborate on projects. Expectations for Wave were high in academe, as some higher education bloggers had suggested that professors might use the site as a foundation for "whole interactive courses," while others had mused that Wave could challenge learning-management systems. Google Blog | Inside Higher Ed | The Chronicle of Higher Education (free access)