Post-Secondary News Digest for October 23, 2009
Canada
University enrolment up across Canada:
(University Affairs) Preliminary enrolment numbers for universities and colleges across the country show 4.1 per cent more full-time undergraduate students are attending classes in 2009-10 compared to last year. Full-time graduate student enrolment increased by 7.2 per cent, according to the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada. The increase is typical of a recession, says association senior adviser Herb O’Heron. He said students may be avoiding the labour market by “investing in themselves” at universities and colleges.
Fourth student president vote for Mount A.:
(CBC.ca) Students at Mount Allison University will be heading back to the polls for a fourth time to elect a student council president. The student council voted Wednesday night to schedule another election. In April the president-elect stepped down before taking office. Another election was held in September, but the ballots were scrapped because of problems and appeals. A third vote in October was also undecided because neither of the two remaining candidates managed to garner more than 50 per cent of the vote.
UBC votes to leave national student group:
(MacLean's) The largest student union in Canada has voted to leave the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations. But the University of British Columbia’s Alma Mater Society was too hasty and failed to consider the mandatory 30-day notice to withdraw from the alliance. Alliance councillors sent the society a memo reminding them of the 30-day notice and saying it could not legally leave the alliance until April 1.
Our secret’s out: Halifax is the ultimate college city:
(Globe Campus) Halifax is a small city of 360,000, but students flock here every fall to attend one of six universities: Dalhousie, Saint Mary’s, Mount St. Vincent, the University of King’s College, NSCAD or the Atlantic School of Theology. According to Globe Campus’ annual report, that’s because Halifax is a city with a small town feel and a large number of pubs and bars. Dalhousie student Aaaron Vomberg adds Halifax has the energy of a large city but with a small town vibe.
33K theses to go online at UBC:
(Globe Campus) Thousands of theses are being liberated from the University of British Columbia’s dusty library shelves this year. The 33,500 titles – about five million pages – will soon be found online. Since 2007, students have been able to upload these documents, but the new ambitious project will add dissertations from as far back as 1919. “You never know what’s going to be of interest to someone somewhere somehow down the road,” said university archivist Christopher Hives.
To tweet or not to tweet:
(Globe Campus) The median age for a Twitter user is now 31, compared to 33 for Facebook. But youth usually at the technological front lines are hesitant to join Twitter. Many think it’s pointless or self-interested. But now more teens and young people are joining for reasons such as peer pressure from a teacher, a boss or a friend. This grudging acceptance of Twitter, a social networking site that allows users to type 140 characters at a time, might be due to a preference for text messaging or Facebook.
U.S.
University prof succumbs to swine flu:
(Humboldt State now) An arts professor at California’s Humbolt State University passed away earlier this week due to complications battling an H1N1 infection. M. Wayne Knight, 60, had been hospitalized for several days before passing away on the morning of Oct. 21. The school’s Health Center director Rebecca Stauffer said Knight’s death serves as an important reminder about the seriousness of the H1N1 virus
D.C. college student posts job opportunity for personal assistant:
(MSNBC) One sophomore from Georgetown University has too much on his plate between being a full-time student, his part-time job and worrying about an illness in the family to get all the little things done. Charley Cooper, 19, decided the only way to get everything done is to hire an assistant. Cooper posted the job on the university’s student employment website, listing duties such as picking him up from work, organizing his closet and even scheduling haircuts.
U.S. gov’t: Teacher colleges fall short:
(USA Today) ducation Secretary Arne Duncan said in a speech delivered Thursday Oct. 22 that college programs that prepare teachers are “cash cows” with large enrolment and not enough hands-on training, leaving teachers unprepared to deal with their students. In his speech, delivered at Columbia University’s Teachers College, Duncan said these programs need to be overhauled. Eighty per cent of teachers in the U.S. are instructed in U.S. education schools.
Today’s grads unprofessional -- study:
(Inside Higher Ed) A study by York College in Pennsylvania says today’s college graduates are performing under par when it comes to showing the level of professionalism employers expect of them. The university commissioned a survey of more than 500 human resources professionals to describe what they think “professionalism” means, and if their newer hires are meeting that standard. The results showed that 37 per cent of employers felt recent graduates they’ve hired showed little professionalism in their first year.
Twins busted selling reefer to pay tuition:
(Recordnet.com) A pair of twins and their parents were busted in Stockton, Calif., for growing, packaging and selling marijuana, with narcotics officers seizing more than 1,000 plants. Richard and David La, both 26, are graduates of the University of California who majored in bio-chemistry and biology. They had paid for their degrees with they money they made selling pot, said the lead investigator, Roy Giorgi.
Alabama colleges to see tuition hike:
(WHNT.com) Two-year colleges in Alabama will see an increase in tuition by next year. This will be the first increase for these two-year colleges in five years. The increase will raise tuition by about 15 per cent, costing the average student about US$420 more per year. Some students are worried that the increase -- which is likely going to keep rising over the next few years -- may force them to cut back their studies to part time.
World
Swedish researchers say abuse stunts growth:
(Reuters) Researchers at Uppsala University in Sweden have furthered a link between family violence and low birth weight. The study found that women who had experienced family violence at some point in their life were more likely to have children with stunted growth. Over 3,000 children were followed for two years and the results seem to confirm previous research from Bangladesh that claims a negative correlation between domestic violence and infant growth.
University reinstates S.A. students involved in race debate:
(CNN) A South African university has reinstated two white students who were kicked out last year for allegedly feeding black housekeepers a stew laced with urine. The vice-chancellor at the University of the Free State says the complaints have been withdrawn but that the students may still face outside criminal and human rights charges. A video of the students preparing and serving the stew to the housekeepers was shot in 2007 when the university was considering integrating its black and white residences.
Malaysia student too fat to teach?:
(New Straits Times) The education ministry in Malaysia is looking into an allegation of discrimination after a student at a teachers’ college says a senior official told her she was “too fat to be a teacher.” The student, who weighs 110kg says she was asked to withdraw from a postgraduate course and to return when she was thinner. She is asking for $92, the cost of her registration fee.
College reform plan under fire – Australia:
(The Canberra Times) The Australian government’s plan to divide the college system into two parts, academic and vocational, is drawing criticism from the opposition. The education minister says the current model spreads resources too thinly but the opposition is worried because a similar model caused unrest and chaos in Tasmania. The vice-chancellor at the University of Canberra worries students might pigeonhole themselves in this two-tiered model and prefers a mix of subjects.
Japanese university plans huge 'manga' library:
(AFP) The Tokyo International Manga Library, which will promote “serious study” of this Japanese pop and art culture is slated to open in 2015 at Meiji University. The library will house “two million comic books, animation drawings, video games and other cartoon industry artifacts,” and will be open to fans and researchers. This library is a reflection to Japan’s ongoing campaign to promote Japanese culture.