Top Ten News

Feb 20, 2024 • QC

The Université de Montréal has officially launched the most ambitious giving campaign in its history. L’heure est brave aims to raise $1B and reach 200,000 acts of engagement from alumni. Funds raised in the campaign will contribute to four main pillars at UMontréal: enhancing the student experience; innovating for the common good; promoting the health of all ecosystems; and supporting the development of communities. L’heure est brave is co-chaired by four UMontréal alumni and features 13 other alumni as ambassadors who will give the campaign “a public face.”

UMontréal (1), UMontréal (2)

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Feb 20, 2024 • NS

Acadia University and the Delmore “Buddy” Daye Learning Institute (DBDLI) are partnering to launch an Africentric Bachelor of Education program. The partnership will provide financial support to help people who are currently working as African Nova Scotian student support workers in Nova Scotia schools transition to teaching in the public school system. “Africentric education centers the knowledge, history, culture, values, lived experiences and worldviews of African Peoples, allowing us to offer students a transformative learning experience that can positively influence their communities and the teaching profession,” said Acadia Associate Professor Dr Késa Munroe-Anderson. The program is funded by Nova Scotia’s Department of Education and Early Childhood Development.

Acadia, Saltwire (Acct Req)

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Feb 20, 2024 • ON

The Centre for Research and Applications in Fluidic Technologies (CRAFT)—a partnership between the University of Toronto and the National Research Council of Canada (NRC)—has now expanded to include the academic hospital network Unity Health Toronto and has been extended to 2028. The new agreement includes $21M in new investments and will support U of T trainees who will be working alongside NRC scientists and engineers on bio-fabrication and organ-on-chip systems. Clinicians will also now be able to work with CRAFT scientists on microfluidic research.

U of T, CRAFT Microfluidics

Top Ten News

Feb 20, 2024 • International

Andy Viano of Ed Tech reports that there is a growing phenomenon of ghost students in the US–that is, fraudsters who use aliases to gain admittance into postsecondary institutions. Viano writes that once accepted into an institution, these scammers can abuse institution-provided cloud storage, deploy institution-related email addresses to perpetrate other scams, and even secure financial aid. The recent transition to more online operations has reportedly made it easier for this phenomenon to occur, given that students are sometimes not required to enrol in person. To protect against ghost students, Viano recommends that institutions shore up the security of their networks, including by investing in multifactor authentication and cybersecurity software.

EdTech
Opinion

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Feb 20, 2024 • SK

For the first time, the University of Regina will offer full-year registration this March, allowing undergraduate and graduate students to register for classes across three terms simultaneously: Spring/Summer 2024, Fall 2024, and Winter 2025. This initiative aims to improve student wellbeing and academic success by enabling students to know their courses an entire year in advance, and thereby allowing them to better plan their academic, work, and personal lives. “We are constantly looking for ways to support [students’] well-being and help them lead balanced lives during their university years,” said URegina Executive Director of Strategic Enrolment Management James D’Arcy. “Transforming our scheduling and registration approach was one way we felt we could have an impact.”

URegina

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Feb 20, 2024 • ON

McMaster University is partnering with local libraries to distribute 600,000 safe-viewing glasses to people in Hamilton ahead of the upcoming solar eclipse. On April 8, a total solar eclipse is set to the darken the skies of several Ontario cities, with the best views available in Niagara Falls and Fort Erie. In preparation for the event, McMaster is providing glasses made of aluminized polyester to select public libraries in Brantford, Burlington, Haldimand, Norfolk, and Six Nations.

Global News, The Hamilton Spectator

Top Ten News

Feb 20, 2024 • NS

The Government of Nova Scotia has invested approximately $3.6M to test a new continuing care assistant pilot program. The program is a partnership between the Employment Nova Scotia division of Labour, Skills and Immigration; Nova Scotia Community College; and Shannex. The pilot shortens the program to a six-month duration and features an updated curriculum that better reflects complex care needs. Students will receive wages, benefits, free tuition and books, and other wrap-around supports during their training. Upon graduation, they will be offered full-time employment.

NS

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Feb 20, 2024 • AB, BC, ON

A research article published in the Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering documents the findings of a dialogue on chemical engineering education held between Pranav Chintalapati (University of British Columbia), Greg Evans (University of Toronto), Derek Gladwin (UBC), Marnie Jamieson (University of Alberta), and Naoko Ellis (UBC). The scholars discuss the state of play in chemical engineering education, including the new complexities posed by artificial intelligence and the pressing societal needs related to the energy transition and sustainability. The article concludes that solutions to these issues require more than just one technological innovation and necessitate the blurring of traditional disciplinary boundaries. Still, the article maintains that “while the traditional identity of a chemical engineer may be dissolving […] knowledge and perspectives related to chemical engineering remain essential to technological and societal advancement.”

CJCE

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Feb 20, 2024 • BC

The College of the Rockies has completed a campus expansion at its Invermere campus, which shares space with David Thompson Secondary School (DTSS). As part of the partnership between the two schools, COTR took over the high school’s art room and modernized it to meet the college’s needs for skills training programs. In return, COTR constructed a brand new art room for the high school. “Rocky Mountain School District No. 6 was thrilled with the final project,” said Assistant Superintendent Steve Wyer. “A state-of-the-art space for student creative design will ensure students have ongoing opportunities to explore all of the mediums of art and visual design.” The project received $2.8M from the Government of British Columbia.

COTR

Top Ten News

Feb 20, 2024 • AB

The University of Lethbridge is hosting a powerchair soccer league, which was initiated by graduate student Chase Petruska. Petruska was inspired to start the league after finding that Lethbridge did not have any powerchair sports leagues; ULethbridge subsequently provided the league with funding, discounted gym access, space for powerchair storage, and support toward player recruitment. “I’ve had a lot of players come up to me and tell me how much powerchair sports and how much powerchair soccer means to them, because for them, it’s two hours where they’re no longer just an individual with a physical disability,” said Petruska. “They’re an individual that’s an athlete.” Some players are also helping Petruska with research on mental health and stress faced by people with disabilities.

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