July 25, 2024

Students across Canada are showing their support for student protesters in Bangladesh, who are reportedly demonstrating against the Bangladeshi government’s allocation of government jobs. Peaceful demonstrations were held at Memorial University, the University of Windsor, and the University of Manitoba to show solidarity with protesters in Bangladesh. Bangladeshi students at Memorial also highlighted how the internet outage in Bangladesh has made it impossible for many international students to access their bank accounts, leaving them unable to pay for their education. These students have requested that Memorial grant them flexibility with assignment deadlines, final exams, and upcoming tuition fees due to the circumstances.

The City of Calgary is considering ways that it can encourage postsecondary institutions to move into the city’s downtown core. Members of Calgary’s executive committee unanimously endorsed a recommendation to revise the Downtown Post-Secondary Institution Incentive Program’s terms of reference. The recommended revisions include updating the review and evaluation process, providing incentives to the postsecondary institution rather than the building owner, decreasing the minimum occupancy requirement, and allocating funding only to publicly funded institutions. Steven Sinclair, the acting manager of investment and marketing for the city’s downtown strategy, said that the changes will improve the incentive program’s governance structure and clarify the decision-making process.

The Government of Ontario is supporting 74 projects across the province that are focused on the provision of services in French and the recruitment and training of bilingual Francophone staff. Funding for these projects is being delivered through the Francophone Community Grants Program, with each project receiving between $8K to $50K. Several of the project leaders are partnering with Ontario colleges and universities to deliver on these services, such as Brock University, Collège Boréal, St Lawrence College, and the Université de l’Ontario français. Some of the selected projects include a three-day event to celebrate Franco-Ontarian authors and a series of workshops to improve services for Francophone refugees.

The Dobson-Lagassé Entrepreneurship Centre is officially being integrated into Bishop’s University. According to La Tribune, the centre is giving up its independence in a bid to reduce administrative costs. As part of this move, it will consolidate its entrepreneurship courses with those offered at Bishop’s. The centre will also consider the possibility of a name change. Dobson-Lagassé directeur general John Aylen said that the centre will not be operational while the integration process is underway and until after Bishop’s Williams School of Business appoints a new dean.

In an article for the Chronicle of Higher Ed, Adrienne Lu documents the widespread presence of interim hires for postsecondary administration positions, arguing that this is an “age of interims.” The author states that the number of interim positions at US institutions has exponentially increased, partly because institutions are taking their time to search for candidates to fill high-level permanent positions who can navigate the sector’s pressing issues. Lu notes that having an overabundance of interim leaders brings unique challenges that can have negative implications for both the institutions and the interim administrators. While interim administrators can create “inconvenient bureaucratic snafus” for their institutions, the interim leaders themselves are often faced with tackling longstanding problems in a short timeframe without the adequate resources to do so.

Portage College and the City of Cold Lake are advancing their efforts to develop an Aircraft Maintenance Engineering School in the region. As part of this ongoing collaboration, the city recently purchased a hangar at the Cold Lake regional airport that will be turned into an instructional space for the school. “This collaboration addresses the provincial and national demand for skilled aircraft maintenance engineers, and by leveraging our combined strengths and resources we can benefit industry, community, and the broader economy,” said Portage President Nancy Broadbent.

Thompson Rivers University and the Foundry Cariboo Chilcotin have established a two-year partnership to provide youth with access to more health services in Williams Lake. As part of the partnership, the Foundry has opened a location on TRU’s campus to provide supports and information for physical, mental, and sexual health, including birth control information, basic wound and injury assessment, and information on medications. TRU students and new and existing Foundry clients can access the Foundry twice a week.

Concordia University and the École de technologie supérieure have created a new scholarship program that aims to create a mutually beneficial network of art and engineering. Each year, the Daniel Forgues Art, Engineering and Environmental scholarship program will support two students—one from each school—who will collaborate on a temporary public art installation that raises awareness about or reduces humanity’s environmental footprint. “I think it’s extremely meaningful for the students to get this experiential learning opportunity outside of the classroom,” said Concordia Assistant Professor Juan Ortiz-Apuy. “It involves a certain responsibility, which is one of the reasons that it’s important for public art to be part of the curriculum.”

In a recent article for Nature, Max Kozlov discusses the difficulty of getting a study with a null result published. Kozlov writes that many publications have shown a bias towards publishing positive results, which can lead researchers with null results to misrepresent their findings. In response to this issue, journals have launched initiatives such as encouraging teams to register their study plans and protocols before they begin. Kozlov discusses a preliminary look at the effectiveness of the preregistration model, as well as the practical concerns that it this model brings with it.

Algoma University and Altitude Accelerator have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to bolster student innovation. This partnership will enhance experiential learning opportunities for AlgomaU students, including through cooperative education, internships, work-integrated learning, and placements. “By combining the expertise and resources of Algoma University’s FoBE and SCST with the robust support services of Altitude Accelerator, students will have amazing opportunities to bring their tech innovations to market and drive new business growth, positioning themselves as leaders in Ontario’s entrepreneurial landscape,” said AlgomaU Director of Strategic Initiatives and Partnerships David Marasco.