October 25, 2023

A new study conducted by St Francis Xavier University Associate Professor Dr Kara Thompson has found that universities in Atlantic Canada are falling short when it comes to campus alcohol policies. The Campus Alcohol Policy Project evaluated the alcohol policies of 12 Atlantic Canadian universities against the current best practices in 10 policy domains, such as Availability and Access, Harm Reduction, and Leadership and Surveillance. The average campus alcohol policy scored only 33% out of 100%, with individual institutions ranging between 15% and 49%. Thompson told that certain changes to each campus policy could improve their respective scores significantly.

Students and staff at the University of Manitoba and University of Ottawa are offering free, specialized law clinics to support groups and individuals in their communities. At UManitoba, lawyers and law students have launched the Manitoba Legal Clinic for the Arts, a virtual service that offers free information to artists and art organizations. At UOttawa, a team of students have launched a mobile clinic for the Clinique interdisciplinaire en droit social de l’Outaouais, a social law clinic that offers information, legal advice, and support to marginalized groups. The mobile clinic will allow students to bring services directly to people experiencing homelessness.

The Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, University of Calgary, and University of Lethbridge will benefit from a newly established Legacy Program from the Canadian non-profit TECTERRA. TECTERRA will invest a total of $5.2M through this program to support geomatics students and programing at these institutions. The funding will provide financial aid for geomatics undergraduates, help geomatics graduates commercialize technologies, attract aspiring geomatics professionals, offer co-op placements and internship opportunities, and invest in advanced technology to enhance geomatics programming.

Drawing on a recent study, Linda Nordling discusses the impact of challenges such as temporary contracts, low salaries, and cost of living on postdoctoral fellows. Nordling writes that while postdocs under age 30 are often initially excited about a career in academia, those who were 31-to-40 years old had a more negative outlook. Career dissatisfaction was higher among those who were completing their third or fourth postdoc (34%) than for those completing their first (24%). Nordling writes that the older postdocs often had changing priorities and personal goals that are not compatible with postdoc hours and pay, such as wanting to settle more permanently and raise a family. “When you see your contemporaries doing regular jobs that didn’t require much studying, and they’re earning more and seeming happier, you can imagine that the enthusiasm for this career path dwindles very fast,” commented postdoc Marc Van Goethem.

The University of Prince Edward Island’s Atlantic Veterinary College (AVC) has announced a new strategic partnership with the Coastal Care Veterinary Emergency and Referral Hospital (Coastal Care) in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Under this collaboration, Coastal Care will provide external placements and rotation opportunities for AVC’s Doctor of Veterinary Medicine students, allowing them to specialize in areas such as surgery, cardiology, internal medicine, anesthesia, and radiology. “We are happy to have additional educational opportunities for AVC students in Atlantic Canada,” said UPEI AVC interim dean Dr John VanLeeuwen. “Additional specialty care in the Atlantic region will also help to provide educational opportunities for the public and veterinary community.”

The Government of Ontario will provide $2.5M for two scholarship programs that aim to help victims of international tragedies. The Ontario-Ukraine Solidary Scholarship will aid postsecondary students who have relocated to Canada on an emergency basis. ON funding will create four $10K scholarships at every publicly assisted college and university throughout the province, supporting a total of 188 scholarships. The Ontario Remembrance Scholarship, which was created in memory of the Canadian victims of the Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 crash, has received renewed funding to support 57 students.

The Université Laval has expelled student athlete Maxime Boivin after he pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography. Police began to investigate the accused while he was a member of Cégep Garneau’s elans de Garneau. ULaval was reportedly not aware of the accusations prior to learning about the guilty plea and that the cégep was not made aware of the nature of the allegations or the proceedings. ULaval Rouge et Or communications director Andreane Girard said that after the case was reviewed, Boivin was expelled from ULaval’s [rogramme d’excellence, effective immediately.

The Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board (SMCDSB) is collaborating with the Town of Wasaga Beach, Lakehead University, Canadore College, and other partners to create an expanded community hub that will bring postsecondary programming to the Wasaga Beach community. SMCDSB has proposed the creation of a campus with a K-12 school next to the twin-pad arena library. Wasaga Beach has partnered with Lakehead and Canadore to work on formalized agreements to offer specialized programming through the library and within the school. The programming would focus on skilled trade professions in childcare, construction, healthcare, and hospitality fields, as well as adult and lifelong learning opportunities.

Ranking one university over another is akin to comparing apples and oranges, argues Chris Brink. Brink contends that university rankings rarely represent reality and that they are normative, rather than descriptive, measures of success. University rankings are often based on often arbitrary or incomparable metrics, he argues, but they continue to influence public perception and student recruitment, which in turn drives some universities to become rank-chasing machines. However, Brink states that the “tide is beginning to turn,” as some institutions are valuing alternatives to the traditional ranking mechanism, prioritizing expert opinions over rankings, and even withdrawing from ranking reports altogether.

The University of Waterloo’s urban forest recently received the national healing forest designation from the David Suzuki Foundation and National Healing Forests Initiative. The designation recognizes how space embodies spiritual connection to the land and provides a place to heal from trauma. The five-hectare area is the largest remaining greenspace on UWaterloo’s campus and features a creek; floodplains; and a forest of maple, ironwood, and black cherry trees. UWaterloo”˜s Faculty of Environment will work with Indigenous Nations and community partners on a shared vision for the forest this year. “From installing art in the space to creating a digital handbook and walking tour of the forest, the possibilities are already starting to bubble up,” said UWaterloo Senior Educational Developer Leslie Wexler.