June 28, 2023

Collège La Cité and Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan) will receive over $10.5M from the Government of Canada to provide pre-arrival services for newcomers to the country. This funding will support the two organizations’ ongoing efforts to deliver online and in-person services abroad to new immigrants before they come to Canada. This includes services that supply information about the Canadian workplace, foster soft-skills development, provide employment counselling, and support newcomers connect to their new communities. “I am delighted that La Cité can actively contribute to the socio-economic integration of French-speaking immigrants,” said La Cité President Lise Bourgeois.

The University of Saskatchewan’s College of Medicine is increasing its medical school seats as part of the ongoing effort to address Saskatchewan’s shortage of doctors. The undergraduate program will add four seats to the Fall 2023 intake of medical students, and another four to the Fall 2024 intake. The USask College of Medicine also recently announced that it will increase the number of postgraduate residency positions from 120 to 128 seats. “Our team is working hard to ensure we are well-positioned to provide the high standard of medical education we already deliver here to these additional and very welcome learners in our program,” said USask College of Medicine Dean Dr Preston Smith.

Humber College will expand its personal support worker (PSW) training program for long-term care, thanks to a $16.5M investment over three years from the Government of Ontario. Humber’s Learn and Earn Accelerated Program for PSWs in Long-Term Care (LEAP LTC) was first launched in 2022 with the goal of upskilling employees at long-term care homes to become PSWs. The new funding will enable Humber to train up to 600 new PSWs over the next three years under this program. “By helping people become certified PSWs while working, and enabling employers to fill existing PSW vacancies, we can strengthen the healthcare workforce and make a positive impact on the lives of Ontarians,” said Humber President Ann Marie Vaughan.

In an editorial for the evoLLLution, Stephanie Geyer (University of Montana) discusses the importance of a postsecondary institution’s website to the overall student experience. Geyer maintains that making the website easy to navigate and accessible is important, but so too is ensuring that the website is personalized to the main users’ needs and expectations. Since the typical primary user of an institutional website is a prospective student, the website should accordingly be tailored to their specific needs and ensure the digital resources they search for are readily available. The writer adds that those website developers for postsecondary institutions should focus on using data ethically to personalize user experiences.

The University of British Columbia’s Veterans Transition Program and the White Rock Rotary Club have partnered on the Ukraine Trauma Support Initiative. The project will send personnel–including counsellors, Canadian veterans and others trained in mental health–to Ukraine to help people navigate war-related mental health challenges. “By combining our expertise and resources, we aim to create sustainable solutions and make a significant difference in the lives of individuals in need,” said Tim Laidler, Network Coordinator and Advisor for Veterans Research at UBC’s Institute for Veterans Education and Transition.

Trent University has received a $500K gift from RBC Royal Bank to support experiential learning opportunities for students in the Jarislowsky Chair in Trust and Political Leadership program. Over the next five years, the funding will support marginalized and equity-seeking students; prepare professional certificate programs; and enhance opportunities for seminars, conferences, networking, co-op education, and work placements. “Experiential elements are integral to the success of the groundbreaking Jarislowsky program, and this funding will provide Trent students with an even richer experience when studying politics, fiduciary policy and responsible governance,” said Trent Director of Co-op, Careers, & Experiential Learning Kevin Whitmore.

In an age of artificial intelligence (AI), the process of academic writing has changed, writes Andrew Moore (St. Thomas University) for Times Higher Education. Increasingly, students can dictate their draft ideas into AI writing assistants like ChatGPT, which then translates these loose thoughts into intelligible prose. Moore argues that postsecondary instructors should reassess their pedagogies and suggests that writing courses could emphasize proofreading processes more to help students meaningfully work alongside AI. The author also proposes that writing assignments should be updated to reflect the ongoing reality. Moore concludes that the AI age presents challenges, but also opportunities for teachers to “recommit to developing excellence, originality, and even style in student writing.”

Queen’s University has restructured its financial aid for first-year students as part of a broader effort to prioritize improved access to higher education. Previously, $9M was disbursed to about 70% of the incoming class in the form of one-year awards of up to $4K each. Beginning in the Fall, $2M will be distributed to the top 5% of each program, based on secondary school grades, in the form of $7K scholarship awards, while the remaining $7M will be allocated to need-based aid. “We are providing significant and sustained funding to our highest-need students because we know that large, predictable, and renewable support is what enables them to accept their invitation to join our community,” explained Queen’s Registrar Tracy Al-idrissi.

Student teams from Dalhousie University and Polytechnique Montréal are in Topeka, Kansas this week to compete in the Electrek Formula Sun Grand Prix. The student teams were tasked with building solar race cars, which will undergo a thorough scrutineering process before taking to the road course track for a combined 24 hours of driving over three days. Drivers must strategize their pit stops, monitor the weather, and manage the car’s energy from the sun as they seek to complete the most laps over the three-day period. The Dalhousie Solar Car Team will run its NOVA solar vehicle, while Polytech MTL’s Esteban team will run its Esteban 10.

Capilano University has released an update on the ongoing strike action. Capilano has announced that all collective agreement items have been resolved and that discussions are now focused on the return-to-work protocol document. The university expects discussions about the return-to-work protocol to continue, and noted that there are several remaining issues. The release adds that the university “remains committed to resolving the strike so students can return to classes and have the university experience they deserve.”