January 13, 2025

The Government of Manitoba is providing $17M in grants and loans to global enterprise Magellan Aerospace, part of which will be used to train students at Red River College Polytechnic. Part of the funds will be used to create new work-integrated learning opportunities that will benefit 150 RRC Polytech students per year. “Together, we’ll immerse our students in experiences–in the classroom, in applied research, in the workplace–that ensure they’re career ready,” said RRC Polytech President Fred Meier. “Through this investment we’ll introduce them to emerging technologies and provide Magellan and others with highly skilled graduates.”

At an upcoming meeting, Algonquin College’s Board of Directors will review a recommendation to close its Perth Campus. In a recent release, Algonquin President Claude Brulé explained that the college is facing a projected $32M loss in the current fiscal year. As part of Algonquin’s mitigation measures, the board will consider closing the Perth Campus by the end of August 2026: If the campus is closed, its programming will be transitioned to the Ottawa Campus after the Spring 2026 term. “These decisions are being carefully considered with a focus on minimizing impacts on employees and learners while maintaining our commitment to providing exceptional learning experiences for years to come,” explained Brulé.

MaKami College has officially transitioned to a not-for-profit public institution. Established as a private vocational institution 21 years ago, MaKami initiated the change in March 2023 and has now met all regulatory and legislative requirements under the Private Vocational Training Act and the Post-Secondary Learning Act. In a statement, MaKami said that this transition signifies its dedication to serving as a community-driven institution devoted to excellence, accessibility, and lifelong learning. “Transitioning to a not-for-profit institution was always part of the vision to becoming a lasting legacy as a college,” said MaKami President Marija Pavkovic-Tovissi. “This move not only aligns us with other provincial institutions but also reflects our commitment to serving the public interest.”

The Government of Canada recently announced new Canada Pension Plan (CPP) benefits for part-time students whose parents are disabled or deceased and contributed to the Canada Pension Plan (CPP). Qualifying part-time students aged 18-24 will receive 50% of the amount paid to the CPP to full-time students; for 2025, this amounts to about $150 per month. “The rising costs of living are affecting us all,” said Canada Minister of Seniors Joanne Thompson. “No child should have to choose between caring for their parents and going to school.” The federal government estimates that the benefit will reach 6,712 beneficiaries this year.

Camosun College has joined other BC postsecondary institutions in signing the BC Common First Year Engineering Curriculum. This will enable students from Camosun’s Engineering Transfer Program to continue their engineering studies at Simon Fraser University, Thompson River University, the University of British Columbia’s Vancouver and Okanagan locations, or the University of Northern British Columbia. “This marks a significant step forward for our future students, as it will expand their options and improve accessibility,” said Camosun Faculty Lead of the Engineering Transfer program Susan Chen. The agreement will be finalized for the Fall 2025 cohort.

Niagara College and Mohawk College have established a partnership focused on training healthcare workers. Through this agreement, each college will reserve seats in health programs that are not offered by the other institution—such as Mohawk’s Cardiovascular Technology program or Niagara’s Dental Hygiene program—for pre-health graduates from the partner institution. Work placements will be primarily be located within each institution’s region to help ensure students are prepared for the needs of their home communities. “The agreement with Niagara College shows how colleges can leverage each other’s strengths to address critical workforce needs in our communities,” said Mohawk VP Academic Cebert Adamson. The articulation agreement has been praised by local health organizations for creating more pathways into in-demand healthcare roles.

Université du Québec à Montréal lecturers will launch an indefinite strike starting on February 3. The Syndicat des professeures et professeur enseignants de UQAM–which represents 2,100 lecturers–has been in negotiations with the university for more than a year. The negotiating parties have reportedly reached an impasse over workload and issues related to the preparation and supervision of online courses. In a statement for Le Devoir, UQAM said that it hopes to reach an agreement soon. In the event of a strike, classes not taught by members of the union will continue as normal.

Capilano University has signed a pathway agreement with The Community Solution Education System that enables CapU students to pursue studies in chiropractic health care. Eligible CapU kinesiology students will be able to enter the Doctor of Chiropractic program at the University of Western States. Students who enroll in this program will receive transfer credits for up to four courses, as well as the opportunity to complete some of their practicums in Canada. This collaboration agreement includes additional opportunities involving materials, faculty and students, professional development, and research.

A team of international scientists—which includes University of Manitoba researcher Dorthe Dahl-Jensen—has drilled an ice core that is believed to be the longest continuous climate record in history. The project included drilling down to the bedrock at a remote site in Antarctica and removing an ice core in pieces to be re-assembled in sequence. The sample will be used to provide information about earth’s atmospheric history. “When we look at the ice core, we have small bubbles from the atmosphere that’s 1.2 million years old,” said Dahl-Jensen. “When we take the air out of these bubbles, we can actually see what the concentration of greenhouse gases were back in time, and that’s really unique.”

In a recent interview with La Presse, Cégep de l’Outaouais professor Karine Cellard discusses the current state of Québec literature courses taught at cégeps. Cellard explains that since the 1990s, these literature classes have followed a standardized curriculum that focuses on analytical writing. Cellard calls for an update to this curriculum that would allow for instructors to also teach more flexible, creative writing styles. Doing so, she argues, would help students to connect more with one another and support their post-graduation journeys as they adapt their writing skills to a changing workforce. However, Cellard underlines that QC’s general education program should be “renovated,” rather than radically transformed given the program’s existing strengths.