March 17, 2021
The Government of Canada’s Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR) has announced that it has awarded $274M in research grants to fund 354 health-related projects across Canada through its Fall 2020 competition. CIHR provided over $9.7M in funding to 97 priority announcement grants and $296.5K through 11 supplemental prizes. “This funding will help our researchers advance innovation in research designed to better understand human health and to benefit Canadians,” said Kimberly Woodhouse, Vice-Principal (Research) at Queen’s University.
CIHR (Results) |
Queen’s (National)
The University of Calgary’s UCeed program has received a $2.5M donation from the United Way of Calgary and Area. The donation, which will be given over five years, will support organizations that are focused on solving complex social challenges. “Social innovation offers tremendous potential to improve quality of life with collaborations that renew existing processes and address social needs through new products, services, policies and programs,” said UCalgary President Ed McCauley. “The UCeed Social Impact Fund will spark more innovation and help commercialize new technologies by providing much-needed funding to startup companies promoting social impact.”
UCalgary (AB)
Western University and the London Economic Development Corporation have partnered to create the Social Science Career Apprenticeship pilot program. The program will help Western’s Faculty of Social Science graduates find employment by providing them with paid 12-month, full-time apprenticeships. Employers will receive four months of salary reimbursement if they hire graduates in the program. “It’s critical that students find employment as soon as possible after graduation,” said program sponsor Alan Rottenberg. “We know students who are underemployed or unemployed upon graduation suffer a five-year lag versus students who land their first career-related job right out of university.”
Western (ON)
People supervising graduate or undergraduate students should continue to improve communication with students and to strive to learn more about how they can effectively interact with students in virtual spaces, write Memorial University Associate Professor Meghan Burchell and University of Toronto Lecturer Madeleine Mant. The authors offer 10 tips for effectively supervising students remotely, including valuing healthy working habits and organizational skills, virtual and real time management, and building trust with students. The authors explain that supervisors should also identify student skills and needs in order to provide them with opportunities, pay students for contributions, increase accessibility, and adjust expectations.
University Affairs (National)
As Laurentian University continues to work through its current situation, the community is discussing the impacts on the Université de Sudbury and the Indigenous Studies programs. CBC reports that L'Assemblée de la francophonie de l'Ontario recently stated that it supports USudbury in becoming a French-only school, which has created concerns from some students at the institution. Page Chartrand, a major in Indigenous studies, explained that “it’s a bit of a question of uncertainty in the terms of what happens to the Indigenous studies program,” as this is the institution’s largest program and it is in English. USudbury professor Dr. Mary Ann Corbiere and former USudbury instructor Dr. Darrel Manitowabi wrote in an article for
Anishinabek News that the situation risks losing the “major strides” forward that USudbury and Laurentian have made by offering Indigenous academic programming. Corbiere and Manitowabi add that if Laurentian students no longer enroll in USudbury’s Indigenous Studies courses, USudbury will not be supported through tuition transfers from Laurentian.
CBC |
Anishinabek News (ON)
HEC Montréal has announced the launch of a Scale AI Research Chair in Artificial Intelligence for Urban Mobility and Logistics. The research chair will receive $1M over the course of five years and is co-funded by HEC Montréal and Scale AI. The chair has been conferred to Carolina Osorio, who will focus on the optimization and modelling of urban logistics and mobility systems with a focus on providing solutions to issues with transporting people or goods.
HEC Montréal (QC)
Durham College and Ontario Power Generation (OPG) have renewed a partnership that will support skilled trades development and training. OPG’s Centre for Canadian Nuclear Sustainability has provided $500K to support the college’s Whitby Campus Expansion project, and Durham will train OPG employees in return. “In choosing to direct funds to the college’s latest capital project, which will see an additional 750 seats added at the Whitby campus, they are helping DC continue our tradition of educational excellence,” said Durham President Don Lovisa, “while also ensuring there is a pipeline of qualified graduates to support the success of the nuclear industry as a whole and help OPG achieve their organizational goals.”
Durham (ON)
The First Nations University of Canada’s Master of Indigenous Social Work (MISW) Program has been granted a four-year reaccreditation by the Commission on Accreditation and the Canadian Association for Social Work Education. FNUniv states that the program met the accreditation standards with two conditions that must be addressed within the term. “The INSW Faculty takes great pride in receiving an additional 4yrs of accreditation for the MISW program,” said Dr Jason Albert, Indigenous Social Work Program Chair at FNUniv. “The MISW is in a great position and this can be attributed to all the hard work from everyone involved.”
Nation Talk (SK)
Students, instructors, and community members at the University of Alberta have released an open letter calling for the end to UAlberta’s police liaison officer program. The letter argues that the program, which is a collaboration between Edmonton Police Service (EPS) and the University of Alberta Protective Services, does not increase student safety. UAlberta student Shima Robinson argued that “[t]he officialized relationship between the university and EPS is inconsistent with the claims the university has made to being an institution that uplifts the whole people.” “We will create ways to effectively engage with and hear from our community about how to achieve safety, support, and inclusivity,” said UAlberta Deputy Provost Wendy Rodgers and Safety and Security Committee Chair James Allen in a joint statement.
The Gateway Online (AB)
The Government of Canada needs to invest in the infrastructure of universities, writes Paul Davidson, president of Universities Canada. Canadian postsecondary institutions often have buildings and infrastructure that was built during the 60s and 70s, and now needs repair or upgrading. Furthermore, institutions require support from the government on green infrastructure initiatives, as Davidson notes that half of the “shovel-ready” projects are focused on green infrastructure and energy efficiency. He also emphasizes that projects must keep accessibility in mind to ensure that in-class learning is accessible for all students. “With the right support to improve infrastructure, universities could deliver tangible economic and environmental results in every region of Canada,” concludes Davidson.
Universities Canada (National)
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