Top Ten
October 18, 2016
Centennial opens first site in China to offer Canadian dipomas
Centennial College reports that it has opened the first Canadian institution registered and approved by China's government to award Canadian diplomas in the country. Located 100km northwest of Shanghai, Suzhou Centennial College was established in association with Suzhou University of Science and Technology and has received approval from China's Ministry of Education. The institute offers 18 programs, including four Centennial programs providing Canadian credentials in accounting, finance, software engineering, and business foundations. All of the institute's programs offer articulated pathways to Centennial's campuses in Toronto, as well as opportunities for Centennial's Canadian students to take a semester of school in China. Centennial
uLaval tightens security, condemns perpetrators in wake of sexual assault reports
Quebec City police are looking for three individuals in their 20s following four complaints of breaking and entering and two complaints of sexual touching at Université de Laval last Friday, reports CBC. The suspects were said to be roaming residence hallways and knocking on doors at random. The university has tightened security on campus and issued a release condemning the attacks and pledging to protect the safety of all students. The incidents have led PhD student Vahid Asgharian to call for the university to restrict access to residences through card readers, as under the current system, he claims that “everybody can enter” a given residence building. CBC | CTV News | Globe and Mail | La Presse
Canada, ON bolster postsecondary infrastructure in Sault Ste Marie
Postsecondary institutions in Sault Ste Marie have received a major boost to their infrastructure and research capacity thanks to $23.5M in federal and provincial investments in Algoma University, Sault College, and the Shingwauk Education Trust. $15.6M of the funds will be used to establish Sault College's Institute for Environment Education and Entrepreneurship, which will facilitate research in forestry and clean tech. $2.9M of the funds will be used to upgrade all mechanical and lighting systems in Algoma University’s main building, and $5M will be used to enable the Shingwauk Education Trust to establish the Anishinabek Discovery Centre, which will be home to the National Chiefs Library, the Training Centre of Excellence, interpretive teaching and cultural spaces, and a state-of-the-art event space. NationTalk | Sault Star
uManitoba union votes for strike mandate, claims school has $135M in savings
University of Manitoba professors claim that the university has $135M in cash savings that it is not spending on salaries or benefits, reports the Winnipeg Free Press. The claim comes in the wake of an 86% vote by the school’s faculty association to give its bargaining team a strike mandate. The union is asking for a one-year deal giving its members a 6.9% overall raise, while the university has offered 7% over four years in base salary and 17.5% over four years to roughly one-third of the bargaining unit's members who are eligible for incremental increases. The union contends that the school's savings are being spent largely on capital projects. uManitoba Communications manager John Danakas, however, says that professors “have received a competitive salary offer” and that much of the cited savings are spent on operating costs at the beginning of a fiscal year, before provincial grants and tuition are paid. Winnipeg Free Press
U of King’s College passes up NS window for tuition increase
The University of King’s College has reportedly become the first Nova Scotia university to pass on the provincial government’s allowance for a tuition reset. University President Bill Lahey said that the main reason behind the unanimous decision was the drop in enrolment currently faced by the school. “We're doing a lot of work on improving our recruitment and our enrollment situation, and a reset would potentially counteract the value of that work that we're doing,” said Lahey, who added that the school’s fees are already high and that the board does not want to increase “difficulties or situations of hardship” for students. “Today’s victory is concrete proof that tuition fee hikes are not inevitable,” said U of King’s College Students’ Union President Aidan McNally. “When students come together and pressure our decision makers to oppose tuition fee increases, we can win.” Global News | The Coast
Brescia faculty signs contract that sees improved workloads, pay
Brescia University College and the Brescia Faculty Association have negotiated a collective agreement that OCUFA reports has secured workloads and salaries for Brescia faculty that are comparable with peer institutions. The deal was ratified by the Brescia Board of Trustees last week. “It’s a small faculty and it’s a small (affiliate) university and I think this agreement shows that we continue to make progress,” commented Brescia Board Chairperson Larry MacKinnon. “We’re an institution that prides itself on education of women leaders but before we got what we’ve got this time around, I felt it was contradicting that message,” stated Brescia Faculty Association President Melissa Jean, who described the agreement as “a step in the right direction.” London Free Press | OCUFA
Members of uToronto's transgender community face online threats
Police are investigating threats made to members of the University of Toronto’s transgender community that have come in the wake of a professor's controversial statements about using gender-neutral pronouns. The university issued a release last Friday warning students of the threats and condemning those who made them. “We deplore the targeting of individuals and communities on the basis of gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, race, religion or any other ground of prohibited discrimination,” said the release. Globe and Mail (Subscription Required) | uToronto
uLethbridge, Lethbridge College nursing program receives national accreditation
A nursing program delivered collaboratively by Lethbridge College and the University of Lethbridge has received accreditation from the Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing. While the program has been approved at the provincial level since its creation, the new accreditation means that it has met the national standards for all nursing programs across Canada. “The benefit for students is that they have a CASN-accredited program supporting their access into graduate programming in nursing, as well as international nursing opportunities,” says Chris Hosgood, dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences at uLethbridge. “Students also receive life experience that is the best of both worlds,” adds Debra Bardock, dean of Lethbridge College’s Centre for Health and Wellness. “They experience both university and college life, and ultimately get to benefit from the success of the high-level collaboration between the two institutions.” uLethbridge
uSask, partner break ground on new campus-based hotel
The University of Saskatchewan and developer PR Hotels Ltd have broken ground on a new nine-storey hotel that will aim to serve both the university and surrounding community. Under the terms of the partnership, PR Hotels will be responsible for the capital and operating costs of the hotel, and the university will provide a long-term lease on a parcel of university-owned land. “We are excited to work with a private partner to make effective use of some of the university’s land to fill a need for the university and surrounding community in an effective and collaborative way,” said uSask President Peter Stoicheff. “Ultimately, the goal is to bring benefit to our students, to the university, and to the community.” uSask
Canadore receives funding for Village Living–Wellness and Learning Centre
Canadore College will be able to build a fully integrated Village Living–Wellness and Learning Centre thanks to a $6.4M combined investment from the federal and Ontario governments, as well as $6.1M from Canadore. “Canadore College is very grateful for the federal government’s leadership in creating the conditions for advancing innovation, entrepreneurship and talent through its support of applied education,” stated Canadore President George Burton. “We also acknowledge the government’s unwavering support towards developing a multi-disciplinary approach to health, human care and wellness. Our holistic approach to combine Indigenous, Eastern and Western practices in a single setting would not be possible without its contributions.” The Centre will reportedly house the School of Health, Human Care and Wellness, Student Success and Support Services. ON | NationTalk
