November 6, 2009
Last week, philanthropists Peter and Doris Kule announced a $4-million donation to the University of Alberta's faculty of arts to establish what will become one of the world's leading interdisciplinary institutes. uAlberta will match the couple's donation to create the Kule Institute for Advanced Study. The Kule's interest in Ukrainian history and culture will be the focus of the institute. The institute's soon-to-be-established administrative board will choose research topics and study themes, which will change every 2 to 3 years.
uAlberta ExpressNews |
Edmonton Journal At the annual meeting of the Association for the Study of Higher Education last week in Vancouver, researchers from the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation presented reasons why Canada surpasses the US when it comes to the number of citizens with a PSE credential. The researchers assert that the mix of institutions in Canada is different, with much greater proportions of individuals attending college rather than university. Tuition is lower, there is less income inequality, and significantly greater proportions of second generation immigrants complete high school and go on to higher education in Canada than in the US. In order for the US to catch up to its northern neighbour, the researchers suggest the US develop a more flexible PSE system with better non-university options.
Inside Higher Ed |
The Chronicle of Higher Education (free access)
Trent University held a grand opening ceremony last week for its new Camp Kawartha Environment Centre, a one-of-a-kind facility that will provide environmental programming on sustainability, alternative energy, and nature awareness to primary and secondary school students. The centre will partner with Trent's School of Education and Professional Learning to provide best practices in environmental education for emerging teachers. Built by students in Fleming College's Sustainable Building Design and Construction Program, the facility took about 20 weeks to complete.
Trent Daily NewsOn Saturday, Wilfrid Laurier University held an official opening ceremony for its
50-metre pool, which underwent a $4.2-million renovation over the past 5 months. The upgrades were made possible through donations from WLU students, community users, Ontario and federal governments, and the Cities of Kitchener and Waterloo. The 35-year-pool is the only 50-metre competitive aquatic facility in the Waterloo Region, and is used by several community groups.
WLU News Release Nunavut Sivuniksavut, an Ottawa-based college preparation program for Inuit students, has asked each of the 3 regional Inuit associations in Nunavut to help pay a down payment on a new facility. The institution needs to raise about $2.3 million to acquire and renovate a former school in Ottawa. The expansion would allow Nunavut Sivuniksavut to double the number of Inuit students in its 2-year college program.
Nunatsiaq Online The North Bay and Parry Sound District Health Unit reported last Thursday that there are 5 confirmed cases of mumps in the region -- 3 at Nipissing University, one at Canadore College, and one at École Secondaire Franco-Cité. There have been several mumps outbreaks at colleges and universities in Canada in recent years, such as at
Dalhousie University and the
University of Calgary.
Nipissing News Release |
Sudbury Star Canadian institutions remain in peta2's annual Most Vegetarian-Friendly Colleges competition. On peta2's website, each university is represented by their school logo with a paragraph outlining their vegetarian offerings. The remaining Canadian competitors are Queen's, McMaster, uVic, and last year's champ,
Mount Allison. Those eliminated from the contest include Concordia, York, SFU, and UBC. The winner will be announced November 23.
peta2 Most Vegetarian-Friendly Colleges 2009Sherry Benteau, a part-time student at Dalhousie University, plans to raise 10 million pennies to pay off her $100,000 debt. Since she started collecting the coins in May, Benteau has garnered 30,000 pennies, or $300. If she can collect all the pennies required, the total weight of the coins would be an estimated 50,000 pounds, and a truck would be needed to take them to the bank. In May 2008, a University of Calgary student paid his spring session tuition in
nickels and dimes.
Metro News Green College, a graduate residential college at the University of British Columbia, has launched a redesigned website and a new visual identity. The site includes expanded information for prospective graduate students, post-doctoral and visiting scholar residents, as well as a new events calendar listing several interdisciplinary lectures by guest speakers. The website will soon feature a blog and a resource gallery with videos of lectures. The new-look site displays the college's new logo and visual identity to depict openness, opportunity, and community under the new tagline "Creating New Horizons."
Green College websiteAt Indiana-based Purdue University, a social networking-powered mobile Web application called "Hotseat" allows students to provide near real-time feedback during class. Using Facebook, Twitter, and Internet-enabled cell phones, students can post comments and online questions while professors deliver their lectures. Students can vote on posted messages, pushing collective questions to the top of the instructor's agenda. The program is being tested in 2 Purdue courses, and the university plans to roll Hotseat out in all of its classrooms at the beginning of the 2010-11 academic year.
Toronto Star |
Hotseat
rtraction