Top Ten
January 17, 2019
ON government expected to cut tuition fees by 10%
The government of Ontario is expected to announce a 10% cut in tuition fees, reports the Toronto Star. It remains unclear if the government will compensate institutions for the lost revenues, which will amount to $250M for the province’s colleges and universities, the Star adds. Nour Alideeb, Chairperson for the ON chapter of the Canadian Federation of Students, cautioned students to “[w]ait and see if OSAP will be maintained/increased, if institutions will get more funding instead of increasing tuition for international students/students in professional programs, how the funding formula will look.” The Star states that the government is also expected to make changes to the province’s student loans program, including the free tuition framework for low-income students. Hamilton Spectator (Toronto Star) | Ottawa Citizen (CP) (ON)
Funding cuts could worsen MB’s veterinarian shortage
Manitoba-based veterinarian Keri Hudson Reykdal is concerned that potential funding cuts to the Western College of Veterinary Medicine could exacerbate the province’s veterinarian shortage, reports CBC. The province currently earmarks $100K for 60 students to study at the College in Saskatoon—which is jointly funded by Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia—but officials are reportedly considering a 10-15% cut. According to CBC, discussions around the cuts began after Alberta announced in 2017 that it would phase out funding in favour of its own school. Hudson Reykdal stated that Manitoba students who want to study veterinary medicine have few options to do so, as veterinary schools throughout the country tend to prioritize local students while American schools can be prohibitively expensive. CBC (MB)
Journalists for Human Rights releases report on access to ON post-secondary for Indigenous youth
Journalists for Human Rights has released Emerging Voices, a report that investigates access to post-secondary access for Indigenous youth in Ontario as well as the role of journalism schools in implementing TRC Call to Action 86. A release states that the study seeks to better understand the pathways of opportunity and/or barriers facing Indigenous students interested in studying journalism or media at the post-secondary level in ON. The study also examines what journalism and media programs in the province are doing to develop and implement curriculum on coverage of Indigenous stories. Nation Talk |Emerging Voices (report) (ON)
Concordia creates Wikipedian-in-Residence
Concordia University has created a Wikipedian-in-Residence, reports the Montreal Gazette. According to the job posting from the Concordia University Library, “the overarching goal of the residency is the promotion of Wikipedia, digital literacy, and the creation of a long-lasting partnership between the Wikimedia Foundation and Concordia.” The Gazette adds that the Resident will liaise with the campus community about Wikipedia as an open-access information source. “The idea is that the Wikipedian in Residence will sensitize the community and educate them as to what Wikipedia really is and how it came to be and how it really works,” said Lorie Kloda, Concordia’s Associate University Librarian for Planning and Community Relations. Montreal Gazette (QC)
Why scientists should value strong visuals
While university science departments emphasize verbal skills to communicate findings, they neglect to take the power of visual tools such as photographs into account, writes Felice C Frankel. Citing her experiences with graduate and postdoctoral researchers, the author states that young scientists are starting to see the value in photography and graphics as communicative mediums for their work. Frankel adds that scientific photography is at its most powerful when the photographer can capture an arresting image, and concludes by suggesting that science departments could benefit from more explicitly valuing visual media as a research tool. Inside Higher Ed (International)
URegina business school collaborates with Harvard Business School Online
Students at the University of Regina’s Levene Graduate School of Business will now be able to take for-credit courses through Harvard Business School Online, thanks to a new agreement between the two programs. “Providing our students the opportunity to take courses and gain from the global expertise of Harvard Business School faculty members is an exciting addition to our MBA program,” said Gina Grandy, Dean of the Hill and Levene Schools of Business, University of Regina. A URegina release states that students in Levene’s MBA program are eligible for Harvard’s online Economics for Managers and Business Analytics courses. URegina (SK)
UQAM launches new specializations to MSc in Management program
The Univeristé du Québec à Montréal has added three new specializations to its MSc in Management program. The university will offer specializations in social innovation and in organizational development in Fall 2019, as well as a specialization in operations management in Fall 2020. UQAM Department of Organization and Human Resources Professor and Program Director Guylaine Landry noted that the program is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, adding that it was time to offer more options to students interested in pursuing studies at the Master’s level. UQAM (QC)
SLC celebrates grand opening of Centre for Behavioural Studies
St Lawrence College has celebrated the grand opening of the Centre for Behavioural Studies, which is the culmination of the college’s Hello Future Capital Project. The Centre will serve as a hub for researchers, faculty, students, analysts, and community service providers to collaborate on behaviour analysis. “The Centre benefits SLC students in our cluster of behavioural science programs by ensuring all programming provides quality learning opportunities, as well as advanced placement and applied research opportunities,” said SLC President Glenn Vollebregt. “The Centre also serves a need within our community, with direct intervention services offered to individuals and groups in Kingston. We’re thrilled to be unveiling this unique place to the public.” SLC (ON)
BCIT and Microsoft launch technology education program for high schoolers
The British Columbia Institute of Technology has partnered with Microsoft’s Technology Education and Literacy in Schools program to teach foundational computational skills for British Columbia’s secondary and high school students. A BCIT release states that the BC branch of TEALS has launched programs at four secondary schools to date. “We are excited and honoured that BC students and teachers are the first in Canada to be a part of this cutting-edge program,” said Minister of Education Rob Fleming. “Our government will continue to support programs like TEALS to ensure our students have the skills they need to succeed, graduate successfully, and find good jobs in BC’s booming tech sector.” BCIT (BC)
Mohawk signs partnership with Italian technical college
Mohawk College has announced a new student and faculty mobility partnership with Fondazione ITS in Italy. “Canada is a world leader in Technical and Vocational Education and Canada’s Colleges and Institutions greatly contribute to building tomorrow’s workforce. Combining Canada’s know-how with Italy’s renowned talents and its innovative Industry 4.0 agenda, will expose students from Mohawk College and The Job Academy to the best of the two worlds,” said Canadian Ambassador to Italy Alexandra Bugailiski. Mohawk adds that the partnership will support five Jobs Academy students at Mohawk for one semester and provide an opportunity for five Mohawk students to work and live in Italy for eight weeks. Mohawk (ON)
