May 21, 2024

The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council have announced the results of recent funding competitions. NSERC has announced $26M in funding through the Collaborative Research and Training Experience (CREATE) program. The investment will support 16 training programs that will help new researchers improve their job readiness so that they can transition into employment in the science and engineering fields. SSHRC and the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation have invested $6M over five years into six partnership grants through the Reconciliation Network in Response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action 65. The projects will advance Indigenous research, research training, and knowledge mobilization in the social sciences and humanities.

Collège Ahuntsic has reopened after temporarily closing its doors last week due to a potential cyberattack. Last Thursday morning, the college cancelled all teaching and continuing education activities for the day as a precautionary measure after internal IT systems raised an alert about a potential cyberattack. A statement from the college indicates that all computer systems are back to normal. According to La Presse, the Sûreté du Québec has opened an investigation to determine whether this incident has any links to the cyberattack that hit Cégep de Launaudière earlier in May.

Several more institutions have shared updates on their engagements with protest encampment organizers. Last Thursday, McMaster University stated that it would arrange a meeting with its chief financial officer about the institution’s investment strategy, provided that the pro-Palestinian encampment on campus end. According to CBC, the student groups leading the McMaster encampment rejected this offer on the grounds that it was not a firm commitment. Queen’s University held talks with encampment organizers last Wednesday about the protesters’ calls for divestment, though the outcomes of the talks had not been disclosed as of Friday. The Université de Sherbrooke revealed that it has open lines of communication with the pro-Palestinian encampment on its campus and that the protesters will be tolerated if they respect the rules of the institution.

“This is not a joyful era for higher education,” begins David D Perlmutter (Texas Tech University) for the Chronicle of Higher Education, “[b]ut that doesn’t mean we want or need doom-and-gloom leaders.” In a column for administrators, Perlmutter identifies how pessimistic attitudes amongst postsecondary leadership can negatively impact institutions and undermine the causes that they serve. The author asserts that pessimistic leadership styles should be overcome by leading with reason and acknowledging the harsh realities of leadership today. Perlmutter concludes that today’s challenges in postsecondary education can only be solved through rigorous, realist, and level-headed assessments; but just because one is “serious” does not mean they cannot also be optimistic.

As the University of Prince Edward Island’s new medical school begins operation, the medical seats reserved for students from Prince Edward Island at Memorial University and Dalhousie University will wind down. The 10 reserved seats—four of which are at Memorial and six at Dal—will be replaced with seats in the medical program at UPEI, which will ultimately host 20 seats. Saltwire reports that UPEI will need to recruit 92 physicians by 2033 to support the program, with those physicians spending 20% of their time teaching. “We know doctors practise where they train. We know they like to teach,” said UPEI Medicine Dean Preston Smith. “And so this is just an opportunity that we can’t pass up.”

Several postsecondary institutions have announced new or expanded programming. Algoma University has expanded its Gabegendaadowin corporate training program to its Brampton campus. The program focuses on addressing biases to bridge the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities. Humber College is offering professors and students in its Funeral Director Class 1 and Class 2 (Non-Embalming) programs training that helps them build resilience and gives them tools to avoid burnout and psychological injuries. Northwestern Polytechnic is adding a two-year Power Engineering Technology Diploma in Fall 2024, which will give students hands-on experience with the latest technology and tools.

UBC Properties Trust and the City of Kelowna are facing a lawsuit from nearby residents and business owners over the construction of the University of British Columbia Okanagan Development in downtown Kelowna. The lawsuit alleges that the development is not suitable for the conditions of the area and notes that the construction has caused structural issues in several nearby buildings, including a low-income apartment building. Lawyer Polina Furtula, who represents the class action lawsuit, told Castanet that she believes her clients could be in line to share an over $1M settlement.

Cambrian College and the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi celebrated new and newly named spaces on their campus last week. Cambrian renamed its primary electrical engineering lab the Eaton Electric Lab in recognition of its longstanding partnership with the power company Eaton. Eaton also provided funding toward the construction of Cambrian’s electric vehicle research lab. Meanwhile, the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi officially inaugurated its Centre de transformation et de valorisation de bioproduits. This facility will be used to develop products and reuse plant-based extracts.

Confederation College has been accepted into a three-year pre-designation program in the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario’s (RNAO) Best Practice Spotlight Organization (BPSO) program. Over the next three years, Confederation faculty members Dr Michael Scarcello and Jamis Robins will embed RNAO’s best practice guidelines into the college’s curriculum and placements. Confederation attributed part of its entry into the program to its partnership with the Oshki Wenjack – The Wenjack Education Institute. “We are thrilled to partner with Confederation College, the first Indigenous-focused practical nurse academic BPSO,” said RNAO CEO Dr Doris Grinspun.

Ornithologists and bird watchers alike had their eyes on the 23rd floor of a tower on Université de Montréal’s campus last week, as Eve the peregrine falcon welcomed two babies—called eyas—to the world. “It’s always exciting,” said UMontréal research associate Eve Belisle. “They’re going to grow very fast and they’re going to be able to fly at about 45 days of age. After that, they learn to fly and then they learn to hunt.” A livestream of the nest has been monitored closely by the community over the last few weeks in anticipation of the hatching. Belisle explained that the eyas will be out of the nest by the end of the summer.