March 26, 2009
In its latest budget, announced Wednesday, the Manitoba government outlines $609 million in PSE spending. The province will increase base operating grants and strategic program investments by 6% for universities and colleges, less than the
10% some institutions had sought. The budget includes investments in campus capital improvements, increased funding for the
Bright Futures Fund, doubling the scholarships available to Aboriginal medical students, and expanding training opportunities for nurses and apprentices.
Manitoba News Release |
Winnipeg Free PressThe Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research has granted $39 million in funding to 41 health researchers across the province. These 7-year awards are among the richest in Canada. Since 1980, AHFMR has committed over $1.2 billion to researchers at the Universities of Alberta, Calgary, and Lethbridge.
AHFMR News |
uCalgary NewsAt a recent meeting with the Nova Scotia public accounts committee, Nova Scotia Community College president Joan McArthur-Blair said the province might have to add $16 million to the college's budget in order to make room for at least 2,000 more students over the next 5 years. McArthur-Blair told the committee the college does not have the capacity to meet training in high-demand areas in the province, such as health care and trades. In September, NSCC turned away 2,000 qualified applicants. The province's education minister agrees training should be a top priority in the government's forthcoming budget.
Halifax Chronicle-Herald |
CBCA Quebec Superior Court judge has granted a temporary injunction ordering
striking faculty from the Université du Québec à Montréal to tone down pressure tactics and picket lines and allow students and other university personnel to come and go in peace. The 10-day order bars any attempts to harass, threaten or otherwise prevent people from entering university buildings. The professors have been on strike since last Monday.
Montreal GazetteSome faculty at St. Jerome's University, affiliated with the University of Waterloo, are pursuing a union drive. Professors are pursuing union formation over what they consider the recent "introduction of a top-down management system in which faculty are essentially cut out of negotiations around what kind of university we are going to be." The faculty association has asked the Ontario Labour Relations Board to hold a secret-ballot vote, which could take place early next week. Last month, the majority of faculty voted
non-confidence in the school's president.
Waterloo Region RecordA group of University of Calgary students belonging to a pro-life club set up a graphic display on campus Wednesday and Thursday, despite having been
charged with trespassing following a display back in November. The university had warned the group that if it did not comply with its request to have posters turned inward, members would be charged with trespassing. In a statement, uCalgary says this is not a matter of free speech, but about the school's needs to uphold its legal right to manage activities on campus.
uCalgary News |
Calgary Herald |
Calgary Sun |
CBCOn Wednesday, the BC government announced a $4.4-million investment in the second year of the Aboriginal Service Plans pilot for 11 public post-secondary institutions across the province to facilitate Aboriginal participation in PSE. Aboriginal Services Plans are a 3-year pilot dedicated to improving access, participation, and success rates for approximately 18,000 Aboriginal students currently attending PSE in BC. The initiative is part of the province's $65-million Aboriginal Post-Secondary Education Strategy.
BC News ReleaseAccording to eMarketer, over 69% of Canada's population is online this year, compared to less than 65% in the US. A recent survey by MSN Canada and Harris/Decima found that four-fifths of Internet users in Canada spend at least one hour a day online for personal reasons, and 45% of those spend 3 hours or more online daily. A large part of Canadians' personal time on the Internet is taken up with e-mail, instant messaging, and social networks. Those on the Web have an average of 7 online accounts.
eMarketerAccording to the
Princeton Review's annual College Hopes and Worries Survey, 67% of students and 63% of parents said the economic downturn has affected their decisions about applying or attending college. 85% of students and 81% of parents said financial aid was extremely or very necessary to paying for college education. 37% of students and parents replied that their biggest concern was getting accepted into a first-choice institution, but not having enough funds or financial aid to attend. Students' dream school this year is Stanford University, while for parents it is Harvard University.
College Hopes and Worries Survey 2009
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