Top Ten
September 22, 2010
Between 1990 and 2000, the average debt for a university graduate in Canada more than doubled, rising from $12,271 to $24,706, the Canadian Council of Learning states in a new report analyzing the current and future impact of the Canada Student Loans Program (CSLP) on students. By 2009, the average debt for university and college graduates was $26,680 and $13,600, respectively. The rise in debt-loads follows news that the CSLP has for the first time reached its $15-billion ceiling, requiring further allocation of funds. The report notes that PSE graduates who have accumulated debt-loads of over $20,000 were less likely to own their homes or to have saved for retirement than graduates who were debt-free. The report calls for a streamlined federal-provincial approach, resulting in a "one student, one loan" reality throughout Canada. CCL News Release | Read the report UWO's Richard Ivey School of Business announced this week the formation of the Ian O. Ihnatowycz Institute for Leadership following a $3.5-million gift from Ian Ihnatowycz and Marta Witer, whose donation is being augmented by $1.5 million in matching funding from UWO. Ivey also announced a $1.3-million contribution from Great-West Life, London Life, Canada Life, and Power Financial Corporation. With these new gifts, Ivey has reached $153.9 million in its $200-million "Campaign for Leadership" fundraising initiative. Ivey News Release | Western News On Tuesday, Red Deer College announced plans to relocate its Donald School of Business to the Millennium Centre in downtown Red Deer. By expanding to this downtown location, says RDC president Joel Ward, the college will provide increased access to the local business community, signalling RDC's strength as an education leader. Renovations to the college's leased space at the Millennium Centre are expected to begin by December, with completion set for August 2011. The facility will feature multiple classrooms, computer labs, learning common areas, and office space. Students will begin classes at the centre next September. RDC News Release A Downtown Community Campus Committee will be formed in order to establish an Okanagan College campus in downtown Salmon Arm by 2020. The college's regional dean for Shuswap-Revelstoke says it's likely the town's existing campus and the trades training centre in the industrial park would be relocated to a new site. The regional dean stresses that any plan for a downtown campus must be community-driven. "If the community decides this is not for them, it won't go ahead." Salmon Arm Observer New figures from the Ontario Universities' Application Centre show that as of September 16, 88,474 secondary and non-secondary students have accepted admission offers. The acceptance rate among high school student rose 3.8% over September 2009, and among non-secondary students the rate increased by 7.1%. An increase in confirmations among high school students was the highest at Lakehead University, where the acceptance rate rose 19.1%. An increase in confirmations among non-secondary students was the highest at McMaster University, where the acceptance rate jumped 49.5%. OUAC Undergraduate Confirmation Statistics -- September 2010 Since fall 2006, Centennial College has seen its full-time student enrolment grow by 35%, including a 9.5% increase in the past year alone. The college welcomed 14,766 full-time students this month, not counting those enrolled in apprenticeship programs. When accounting for every full-time category, the student population tops 16,000 -- the largest fall enrolment since Centennial opened in 1966. Much of the expansion is attributed to continued growth in international and Second Career students. Centennial News Release The Federation of New Brunswick Faculty Associations (FNBFA) is concerned that the province's political parties "are not taking seriously the future of universities for the province in a knowledge-based economy, or the importance of consulting the faculty on the front lines delivering university education." As of September 15, the federation has received no response from any party on questions posed to them about the future of PSE. The FNBFA raise concerns over the Liberals' and the Conservatives' respective PSE-related platforms, in that there are no dollar numbers attached to the multi-year funding arrangements, and no clear direction is provided on how primary research will be supported. FNBFA News Earlier this week, Algonquin College kicked off a new recruitment campaign called "Go Succeed," which highlights the institution's track-record of helping students become successful in their desired field. The campaign includes a video featuring interviews with students, professors, and alumni, who discuss the hands-on learning, state-of-the-art facilities, and skills acquired at the college. Over the coming weeks, Algonquin College will run the campaign across Ontario through print, radio, TV, and outdoor advertisements, and online through contests and social media. The video will be screened at movie theatres in Ottawa. Algonquin News Release | Watch the video (short version) | Watch the video (full version) On Tuesday, the University of Northern British Columbia celebrated the opening of its new gathering place for Aboriginal students. The UNBC Gathering Place, or Lhuhuhwhezdel, has a fully equipped kitchen, is finished with various types of wood, and features a unique ventilation system designed to exhaust all smoke during smudging ceremonies. The facility will be used by the university's First Nations Centre, faculty, staff, and the community. UNBC's gathering place is one of 27 being built at public PSE institutions across BC through a $13.6-million investment from the province. BC News Release The City of Oshawa has hired a private security firm to monitor campus-area neighbourhoods until Thanksgiving. The city's manager of municipal law enforcement says it has been standard practice in recent years to boost bylaw presence in the area in the fall, and private security was brought in this year due to few bylaw staff. Students living near UOIT say they are being unfairly targeted. Calling the tactic "a violation of human rights," the city councillor who heads the finance and administration committee says the matter should have come there for approval and subsequently gone to council. Durham Region News
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