Various Asian cultural clubs came together to bring the Collab Formal back for its eighth year anniversary

The McMaster Collab Formal took place at the Grand Olympia on Mar. 8 from 6:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. The formal was a collaboration between McMaster Asian Federation of Charitable University Students , McMaster Chinese Students Association, Filipino McMaster Student Association and McMaster Vietnamese Students’ Association.

Their giveaway was sponsored by Sushi on Fennel, Swing Zone Golf, Allure Fitness, Hawk & Sparrow, Diced Ice, Shijia Fitness, Chung Chun, WingsUp! and Westdale Cupcakes. Their food sponsors for their snack bar were Diced Ice, Westdale Cupcakes and Tea Hut. The McMaster Alumni Association and Matamak were also sponsors of the formal

They were previously known as the Asian Formal, but they rebranded themselves as the Collab Formal to be more inclusive. They wanted to use the formal as an opportunity to showcase all the different cultures that their clubs represent in addition to everyone else's cultures at McMaster. Not only was the formal open to current McMaster students, but alumni and other non-McMaster students were welcome as well.

The theme of the formal this year was Moonlight Soirée. During the interview, Visali Manimaran, the Committee Head of the Collab Formal stated that the moon is an important symbol in most of the cultures represented by the formal, and the formal planners wanted the theme to something that unites them all. This year, the formal featured seven performances from students to showcase their cultures.

The formal committee hopes that the Collab Formal brought people together again, especially after the isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We're hoping to further community engagement by fostering an environment where people can eat together. . .We strive to keep increasing the amount of cultures that we have at our events and the diversity overall, on campus,” said Jordan So, the Finance Head of the Collab formal and VP Finance at AF.

We're hoping to further community engagement by fostering an environment where people can eat together. . .We strive to keep increasing the amount of cultures that we have at our events and the diversity overall, on campus.

Jordan So, the Finance Head of the Collab formal and VP Finance at AF

This year, the formal planners particularly wanted to emphasize the importance of community, letting students know that they can always be there for each other.

“Just because we're [on] separate teams doesn't mean that we're separate. We can always come together, collaborate, grow together and emphasize the community aspect. I think that's the biggest thing that we want to do, because we're just doing this for the community,” Visali Manimaran, the Committee Head of the Collab Formal and the Co-President of MVSA.

Just because we're [on] separate teams doesn't mean that we're separate. We can always come together, collaborate, grow together and emphasize the community aspect. I think that's the biggest thing that we want to do, because we're just doing this for the community.

Visali Manimaran, the Committee Head of the Collab Formal and the Co-President of MVSA

Once again, the Collab Formal continues to showcase the Asian community at McMaster while emphasizing the importance of diverse student communities supporting each other and celebrating diversity.

Although collaborative work is promoted as a way to practice real-world teamwork, these assignments, more often than not, fail to do so

I have never been a huge fan of group work, especially when I was randomly assigned members to work with. I'm sure many students also feel the same about group assessments. Although unpleasant, they were more manageable in high school as if need be, we as individuals had the time to carry an entire assignment and avoid facing the consequences of working with others who may not meet the work ethic of others.

However, in university, there is truly no time to carry out an entire project without it impacting your performance in other courses. In university, group projects are intended to be completed through collaboration between students because they are often weighted heavily and are too large to manage on your own. Group projects are also typically high-stakes assessments, which forces students to rely on their peers even when the quality of work produced can be a hit or miss.

The most common reason behind implementing group projects to a high degree within university courses is that it prepares us for collaborative efforts in the workforce. Although the reasoning behind this may have good intentions, the execution of group work is done poorly.

I will admit that some courses have a better way of implementing group projects than others but they all have their flaws. As a result, group projects in university fail to provide an accurate representation of what collaboration looks like in the workforce, defeating the purpose of group work altogether.

For example, you may be putting in a certain level of effort compared to your groupmates because you're working toward a particular goal. However, because their goals for the project don't match yours, you could find yourself doing more work to achieve this goal.

You may also start completing the work earlier on to seek feedback for improvement and often find yourself prompting your groupmates to contribute their fair share. It can be very tricky to navigate this in an academic setting.

Within the workforce, collaboration seems to be much easier as there is more to risk when not contributing your fair share. For example, you may have meetings with human resources, miss the deadline, causing repercussions for the company, lose privileges and in extreme cases, get fired from your job.

Collaboration in the workforce puts forth real consequences aside from the poor grade you might assigned in university; you can even lose potential references for future jobs. However, the challenges of working toward a common goal are lessened in the workforce because everyone has signed up for the same job and is working to accomplish the same goal.

Unfortunately, this is not the case with group projects at university. Many individuals have varying goals and work ethics which make it difficult to create harmony and success. Everyone working at their own pace to achieve their unique goals can be especially difficult when you aren't familiar with your other members and don't have adequate ways to contact them, which is not something that happens in the workplace.

The aim of group work in university is well intended, but the execution of it in courses requires rethinking. We need to find new ways to truly mirror collaboration in the workforce, without hurting student grades in the process.

Perhaps individuals should always be able to choose their groupmates as individuals are more likely to work with others who share similar goals and work ethics. These shared similarities also exist in the workplace, as you often work with co-workers you know on a project.

Another modification could be to have the project adjusted based on the peer evaluations students anonymously provide each other. This method may not be implemented in the workplace. However, the credit for doing a certain aspect of the collaborative work, especially when helping others, usually does not go unnoticed.

Overall, the current framework of group projects is not reflective of collaboration in the real world, causing frustration and an unequal division of work. Instructors need to rethink current group project assessment methods to better prepare students for the real world.

Photo C/O @vinestmarket

When partners and food and beverage producers Ryan Chelak and Jules Lieff went looking for a production space, they came across a building at 98 Vine Street. While the space was larger than they required for their businesses, they decided to take it. Now they are sharing the extra space with Hamilton makers with their first Vine Street Makers’ Market set to take place on March 30.

The two-storey red-brick building was once the home of Hamilton Pure Dairy, which opened in 1907 to provide healthy, safe and pure milk to the community. It has been home to other businesses over the year and now houses Vibe Kombucha and FitOrganiX.

Chelak is the founder of Vibe Kombucha, a craft brewer of raw, organic kombucha tea. Lieff founded FitOrganiX, a daily meal delivery system that uses local, organic ingredients. They will be using the second floor of the building for production.

The main floor will be open to the community as studio and event space. While Chelak and Lieff are still determining exactly how they will use the space, they know they want it to cater to creatives in Hamilton.

“In talking to a number of artists in the community, in Hamilton, there seems to be a need, particularly where we are downtown, for creative space. All of the workshop, event spaces, they're all pricing a lot of these people out of the market,” Chelak explained.

The desire for space can be seen in how the market sold out of vendor space within a day and a half. By providing space at an accessible price point, Vine Street Market is allowing emerging makers the chance to bring their product to the public.

The markets are currently slated to be monthly, but Chelak said that they may change depending on the demand. Starting in May, they will also host a bimonthly thrifted, vintage market.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bu42tl9h5S4/

However, the main floor will be more than just market space. At the back of the main floor, there will be collaborative work space for artists to work out of. This would also allow artists to have wall space in order to display their work for clients.

Vibe Kombucha and FitOrganiX will also be selling their products at 98 Vine Street. Chelak and Lieff hope to have a cafe counter where people can buy their products, along with food and beverages from other local producers.

Another important use for the space will be the workshops that makers can host. Having gotten into kombucha by giving workshops, Chelak appreciates the opportunity to share skills with others.

“You know sharing that knowledge is really what community is all about, whether it's making something to eat or drink or making… music or arts. People need outlets like that, maybe now more than ever when everything is fast-paced and we're so immersed in technology and our work… [T]hat time to create it is important,” Chelak said.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BvB-lIDgl-h/

The market will provide an opportunity for Hamiltonians to interact with and buy from local makers. While there is no restriction on where the makers hail from, the market will primarily host local creatives.

Chelak believes that the local creatives are leaders in Hamilton’s resurgence. However, more than helping to grow the city, Hamilton artists are also providing a welcoming and collaborative space for emerging artists to develop.

“Hamilton seems to be, from my perspective…, a city that is collaboration over competition… And I think when you have that mindset where you're looking to promote each other and/or share information or opportunities… then people are more apt to do the same back in return and the adage that when you first give and then you'll receive, it's really what it's all about,” Chelak said.

By creating an environment where artists can work together, Vine Street Market is joining the tradition of collaboration within Hamilton’s artistic community. Having this new space for makers to make and sell their art will allow more individuals with small businesses to flourish in this rapidly changing city. In turn, Vine Street Market will grow as well.

 

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