Top Ten
November 8, 2011
Man charged in assaults at Carleton
Ottawa police have charged an 18-year-old man in connection with 2 alleged assaults at Carleton University. On Sunday, university security arrested the man after responding to a report that a 19-year-old woman had been assaulted on campus. The allegation follows another report from the previous Sunday in which a 19-year-old female student was sexually assaulted as she walked toward her residence. On Monday, Carleton sent an e-mail to students regarding a sexual assault that happened Friday night, which security believes is unrelated to the other incidents. A female student reported being "sexually touched" by a unknown man in the university tunnel near Southam Hall. The suspect is described as Asian, in his early 20s, standing approximately 5'2'' and weighing between 140 and 150 pounds. The victim says he was wearing a black fall jacket and blue jeans. The suspect may have been seen leaving campus in a black SUV. Ottawa Police Service News Release | CBC | Ottawa Citizen
Ambrose University College locked down after bomb threat
Calgary-based Ambrose University College was briefly closed Monday evening after police received a report of a bomb threat. Police got an anonymous call around 6 pm stating a man "had built a bomb and it was set to go off on the second floor" of the institution. Police searched the campus and did not find any evidence of a bomb. Classes at Ambrose resumed yesterday. Ambrose University College News | Calgary Herald | Metro Calgary | 660 News
Ryerson student claims veganism discrimination in human rights complaint
The Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario will decide whether ethical veganism is a creed, as protected by anti-discrimination laws, in the case of a Ryerson University graduate student who alleges senior faculty "sabotaged" her career due to her moral equivalence of animals and humans. The master's student in social work claims a senior professor disagreed with her comparison of maltreated animals with marginalized people, said the connection was "very inhuman and racist," and pressured the student's untenured supervisor into dropping his recommendation of her PhD candidacy at other institutions. The student told the National Post the fallout has extended to her personal life, costing her friends among fellow students, and left her "traumatized." Correspondence from Ryerson to the student indicates it sees the dispute as an academic matter, exempt from discrimination. If the human rights tribunal accepts the student's complaint, mediation will precede with a hearing. National Post
NB Liberals question college seat funding
The New Brunswick Liberals' PSE critic is wondering why so few community college seats have been added across the province. In 2008, the previous Liberal government set a target of 1,200 seats by the end of the building program. The $105-million program saw expansions to campuses in Bathurst, Moncton, and Saint John, and new campuses built in Edmundston and Fredericton. The projects have been completed, with 425 seats added in 2011-12. "My concern is it's being held back by a Tory government that does not see post-secondary education as an investment and see it as a cost," the critic says. Although she agrees the 856 seats added to the anglophone sector since 2008 is short of the previous government's original target, New Brunswick Community College president Marilyn Luscombe says it does not mean the seats will not eventually be added. Some of the construction was meant to meet the needs of existing students and programs that did not have enough space, Luscombe adds. Telegraph-Journal
Ivey completes first phase of new building
On Monday, the University of Western Ontario's Richard Ivey School of Business celebrated the completion of Phase One of its new $110-million facility. Currently, 150,000 square feet of the eventual 270,000-square-foot building is complete. The $110-million price tag will deliver a LEED Gold-level certified facility. Funding for the project includes $25 million from the federal government, $25 million from the Ontario government, $22.5 million from UWO, and $37.5 million from private donations. Western News
CBU opens Verschuren Centre for Sustainability in Energy and the Environment
Last Friday marked the official opening of Cape Breton University's $31.7-million Verschuren Centre for Sustainability in Energy and the Environment (CSEE). With its green design, solar panels, geothermal systems and wind turbines, along with efficiencies built into every aspect of the CSEE's design, the centre is deemed highly efficient, realizing an estimated 50% decrease in consumption compared to similar facilities. The 35,000-square-foot CSEE features modern, sustainable lab facilities, collaborative work areas, a 144-seat lecture theatre, and areas for research chairs to work on their projects in ideal development circumstances. CBU News
Dal to launch new learning commons with $8-million gift
Dalhousie University students will have a new common area thanks to an $8-million donation from Margaret and the late Wallace McCain to the institution's $250-million "Bold Ambitions" fundraising campaign. To be an addition to the existing Life Sciences Centre at Dal, the Wallace McCain Learning Commons will features large open workstation areas, study rooms, and offices for department advisors, student societies, and science co-op programs. Construction on the facility will begin next April, with completion stated for September 2013. With this donation, the campaign has now raised $195 million. Dal News Release
McGill science faculty receives $5.5-million donation
McGill University announced yesterday a $5.5-million gift from entrepreneur, alumnus, and long-time McGill philanthropist Lorne Trottier to the institution's Faculty of Science. Of the total donation, $3 million will endow the McGill Office for Science and Society, whose new name will be the McGill Trottier Office for Science and Society. The remainder will endow the popular Lorne Trottier Public Science Symposium Series and Mini-Science Series. With his donation, Trottier becomes the single largest benefactor to McGill's science faculty in the university's history. McGill News Release
With teacher oversupply, Ontario may need to take new perspective on role of education faculties
Ontario is experiencing the worst teacher oversupply situation in Canada -- each year at least 4,000 more new teachers are entering the province's system looking for work than there are available positions. While education faculties acknowledge the existence of a surplus and bear some responsibility to help address, they say the way the reduction of funded teacher-education spots is being distributed creates challenges, especially when it means curtailing relatively new programs planned during the teacher shortage. The dean of York University's education faculty says fewer spaces may hinder a faculty's ability to support graduate programs or its ability to offer a BEd to those wanting to teach internationally or use what they have learned outside the formal K-12 school system. Education faculties suggest Ontario may need to take a different perspective on the faculties' role, and even to begin discussions about a longer time to earn a BEd. During the election campaign, the Ontario Liberals pledged to double the length of teacher education if re-elected. University Affairs
BCIT infographic shows how graduates stack up in labour market
The British Columbia Institute of Technology has designed an infographic that provides insights into the institution's advantages over a traditional university or college education. The infographic shows graduate outcomes, time investment, and earning potential. Supporting pages for applied and natural sciences, business and media, computing and IT, engineering, health sciences, and trades outline employment rates, education satisfaction rates, and average starting salaries. The support pages also include graduate profiles. BCIT Works
