By: Grace Kuang
McMaster president Patrick Deane is approaching the end of his second five year-term in his role as president at the university. Over the past nine years, Deane oversaw significant changes at McMaster, such as the addition of new infrastructural developments and interdisciplinary programs at the university.
“It will be extremely difficult to leave McMaster,” said Deane. “I was welcomed here nine years ago and from that first day to this, I have been amazed at the ground-breaking work of our researchers, the commitment of our students to making a difference, and the dedication of the staff, alumni and friends of the university to expanding McMaster’s impact on our community and our world.”
In 2011, Deane penned a letter addressing the McMaster community titled “Forward with Integrity: A Letter to the McMaster Community.” In the letter, Deane emphasized that all of McMaster’s continued success will depend on the cultivation of integrity.
The letter advocated for integrity in four key and interconnected areas: student experience, specifically experiential learning, self-directed learning and interdisciplinary education, research, McMaster’s relationship with the surrounding community and the university’s dedication to internationalization.
“At McMaster, the evidence is that in the category of ‘Enriching Educational Experiences,’ which includes experiential activities, we fare a little better than our sister institutions in Ontario, but not as well as comparable U.S. Peers,” reads part of the letter.
Over the last few years, McMaster has focused heavily on experiential learning, most recently developing an innovation minor for students and partnering with Riipen Networks to create a continuing education project-based learning course.
Another one of Deane’s priorities concerned interdisciplinary education. During Deane’s term, interdisciplinary programs such as the justice, political philosophy and law program and the integrated business and humanities program were created.
In his letter, Deane also stressed his goals for internationalization.
“Internationalization of the university by the presence of foreign students, by faculty involvement in a network of research alliances abroad, by faculty and student travel for research and development purposes, and above all by the adoption of an internationalized perspective in curriculum and program design on our campus: this is not only desirable and appropriate to present circumstances, it is urgently needed,” reads part of the letter.
McMaster’s model for global engagement was solidified in 2017. In addition, last year, tuition was reduced for international PhD students.
As such, it appears that some of Deane’s largest and most controversial initiatives were implemented within the last year.
One of these was the smoke and tobacco-free campus policy, which entailed the university becoming the first one in the province to claim to be 100 per cent spoke-free.
While the policy was praised by some, other students and groups, particularly the McMaster Students Union Student Representative Assembly, cautioned against the policy in an effort to prioritize “considerations of student safety, accessibility and comprehensive access to McMaster University when considering implementation.”
This past year, Deane also helped create and implement McMaster’s free expression guidelines, which evoked mixed reactions from the campus community. The guidelines sought to strike a balance between protecting free speech and the right to protest.
However, a number of students, specifically student activists, expressed concern that the guidelines would stifle dissension and silence marginalized voices.
Deane will be departing for Queen’s University in July 2019. Currently, it is uncertain who will replace Deane as McMaster’s next president.
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On Nov. 5, it was announced that Patrick Deane, our seventh and current president of McMaster University, would be leaving his position to assume the role of the 21st principal at Queen’s University, effective July 2019.
Commencing July 1, 2019, Patrick Deane will serve as 21st Principal and Vice-Chancellor of #queensu https://t.co/2BRBQx6nsj pic.twitter.com/2DJ2DD7ggK
— Queen's University (@queensu) November 5, 2018
Deane has been serving as McMaster’s president and vice-chancellor for nearly nine years. Prior to his two terms spent at McMaster, he was Queen’s vice principal of academics from 2005 to 2010 and also served as acting president of the University of Winnipeg in 2003.
The news of Deane’s departure has been met with mixed responses: some students are happy to see a change in leadership while others are opposed to him leaving for Queen’s. Most, however, are indifferent to the news. When nearby students were asked for their thoughts, they responded with “what does the president even do?”
McMaster University's President Deane to lead Queen's University. Sad to see Patrick Deane go. He seemed like an all-round good guy. I took to heart his "engage the community" message, although doing so had more impact on my personal life than my work life. Good leaders do that. pic.twitter.com/vJc8PRhUVB
— David Kemper 🎧😌🤙 (@dkemper) November 6, 2018
This is a fair question. Students often only see the president during a speech made at Welcome Week and then again, four years later, at convocation. Patrick Deane, at the least, has managed to maintain a neutral profile. There have been no publicized scandals or rumours that have made him well-known by the student body. But for someone earning an annual salary of nearly $400,000, there ought to be more accountability.
It is not enough for students to be indifferent towards their president. Surely, Deane must have accomplished something in those nine years which afforded him the offer at Queen’s. He has been credited toward improving student learning experience, improving the university’s relations with the local Hamilton community and strengthening McMaster’s national and international research reputation.
Perhaps that is the foil of good leaders; that their good work remains unnoticed. I would argue though that it is the responsibility of such leaders to make themselves known. The office of the president does publish the president’s goals but this document should be better advertised to students. Students should be able to remember more about their president than his affinity towards Pizza Pizza and his South African accent.
In fact, it may even be worse that students remember their president by his omissions as opposed to his actions. Whenever controversial discussions occurred on campus, for example with the current talks of free speech, where was our president? While taking a centrist stance on these issues may have maintained Deane’s reputation among the majority of students, it ultimately doesn’t help anyone.
Starting June 30, the current provost David Farrar will serve as acting president of McMaster for one year. Following Farrar, it is unknown who will be McMaster’s next president. As Patrick Deane would say, here’s hoping for a #brighterfuture.
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By: Alexander Sallas
"Universities have a fundamental obligation to oppose bigotry and closed-mindedness in all its forms."
I fear that this quotation, extracted from context and posted by the McMaster Facebook page as an accompaniment to Patrick Deane's monthly address, will be appropriated by misguided left-of-centre activists to license censorial behaviour.
Deane is referring to President Trump's travel ban and its detrimental impact on the historically inclusive university. He rightly asserts the necessity of and historical precedent for academic inclusion and openness, describing Frederick Barbarossa's valiant protection of foreign students in the 12th century. However, stripped of this framework, the quotation appears borderline Orwellian.
Can, and should, the university dictate the line between closed and open mindedness? No. Freedom of expression, after all, must include the right to offend. The poisonously regressive antithesis to this attitude currently infects not only our campus, but campuses across the continent. California's Higher Education Research Institute reported last year that 71 per cent of freshmen agree that colleges should prohibit racist and sexist speech on campus. The same study found 43 per cent of respondents believe colleges have the right to ban extreme speakers from campus.
The proclamation of the anti-alt right posters that tattooed the walls of our campus last November stated, "Any attempt to legitimize right-wing racist and fascist views in politics and society will not be debated," is wrong-headed and capitulationist. Opposition to expression is inherent close-mindedness.
The act of refusing to discuss plays into the opposition's hands. We must tackle opponents directly. We must prove flaws to destroy destructive movements, and we cannot do that if we ignore them. We cannot and should not claim the right to be censors. To deny another the right to speak, no matter how absurd their opinion may seem, is to stunt the development of your own perspective and argument by being closed-minded.
This leads to the question always dodged by those who would restrict free expression. Who should be the anointed moral arbiter? Who shall deem what expressions are bigoted and close-minded? The answer is that no person so qualified exists. The university exists not to oppose. Rather, it exists to provide a platform for discourse and facilitate conflict resolution through more speech, not enforced silence.
Deane's article argues, “Our universities, like our society, are only enriched and strengthened by diversity of opinions." I only hope his full article attracts as much attention as the easy to misinterpret quotation used by the powers behind the Facebook page.
As Deane writes, the travel ban was wrong-headed. Equally deplorable is any attempt to stifle free expression. I implore readers to read deeper than the social media quote presented and exercise their right to retort.
Patrick Deane, President of McMaster University, highlighted several trends McMaster and higher education will encounter over the next ten years in his talk on Nov. 5 as part of the McMaster Seminar on Higher Education series.
McMaster’s top three priorities over the next few years are to focus on research, specifically integrating research into academia, creating an excellent student experience, and fostering connections both locally and internationally.
However, several trends in higher education will act as barriers that McMaster must overcome to achieve these goals.
The commodification of education and research was among the most troubling of these trends.
“I [do not] dispute that universities have an obligation to contribute to economic growth,” said Deane. “I’m merely trying to draw attention to the fact that as universities have become more central they are held to a model – an economic model – for their operation that is fundamentally hostile to what they’re suppose to do.”
Deane reflected on the founding values of universities, including learning, curiosity-driven research, and a high quality education rather than economic objectives.
For students, this focus on economic profitability translates to their ability to gain employment after graduation.
“It is absurd to think of a young woman in first year, with a life expectancy of probably 86, being under tremendous pressure to make all those career decisions by the age of 21,” said Deane.
Continually, students are attending university for economic benefits rather than intellectual ones.
“It’s very hard for students to do an undergraduate degree now, outside of this framework, and be excited about what the potential for learning is, or what the social impact is that they could have. It is very difficult in a time where all that’s being said to you is career contribution to the GDP.”
While not providing a direct solution to this issue, Deane did offer some solutions to the issue that universities are now mainly pursuing research that benefits governmental or commercial objectives. This can be combated by funding more curiosity-drive research, called basic research. This type of research is exploratory and does not have a specific end goal.
Basic research can be a major contributor to innovation. Deane recalls a conference on the topic of innovation that examined Israel’s investment in basic research in the 1970s, which has now made them a world leader in innovation.
Deane notes that although that specific model may not be perfect for Canada, more emphasis should be placed on basic research.
“What you have to do in Canada is continue to nurture the curiosity driven research, just as well as providing support to applied research,” he said.
Another challenge McMaster and universities in Canada are facing is the growth of the student population. The number of students in Ontario is projected to grow by 60,000 by the year 2020.
As the student experience is one of McMaster’s main strategic goals, these figures will have to be taken into account when planning over the next five years.
“We did remarkable work on the student experience, I think there’s a lot still to be done,” said Deane. “Things like the learning portfolio are I think gaining ground and becoming increasingly widely used.”
He also mentioned the Forward With Integrity fund, increases in community engagement, and the investment in the McMaster Institute for Innovation and Excellence in Teaching and Learning as contributors to an excellent student experience.
“We are at the centre of a national preoccupation or anxiety about our economic future, a national anxiety of our social future,” said Deane.
It seems as though McMaster is ready to face these challenges head on.
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McMaster University’s fine arts program has been given three million dollars—the largest donation ever made to the program—to renovate and expand existing studio space.
The benefactor is Robert Fitzhenry, a McMaster alumnus and philanthropist, who made the donation in honour of his late wife Andrée, who was a painter specializing in landscapes.
The announcement was made at an emotional ceremony, on Wednesday-the same day of Andrée's birthday-with administrators and art students in attendance.
“I believe that art is an essential component of a complete life. My wife Andrée’s devotion to art was a beacon for us, and continues to be an inspiration for sharing with others the value of art in all its forms,” said Fitzhenry.
Livia Tsang, a fourth-year honours art student, was at the celebration ceremony.
"He dedicated it to his wife and it was her birthday today. It was super emotional," said Tsang.
She continued, "It's just so generous the fact that he's donating so much money. We heard that he was giving something, but we weren't thinking anything so big. It is so exciting."
The gift will establish the Dr. Robert and Andrée Rhéaume Fitzhenry Studios and Atrium, an open space filled with natural light, set aside for painting, sculpting and other media.
The atrium will face Stearn Drive near the David Braley Athletic Centre and will act as a reception area allowing visitors, students, faculty and staff to view completed art as well as works in progress.
McMaster’s fine arts studios were first built in the 1960s in Togo Salmon Hall and were originally intended to house only 15 artists at a time. Since then, the program has expanded and the need for space has grown.
"The space does get cramped. Having an expansion will be helpful," said Lydia Santia, a second-year studio art student."
"The studio here has its own charm, and the tight quarters mean that we do often get close to each other, but at the same time, having not enough space can cause tensions," said Tsang.
In her first year, Tsang was one of 22 artists who entered the program. Current first-years entered into a class of 30.
Tsang said that, due to the cramped space, many artists have to work from home.
"The people who do work in the studio, they take over certain areas and other people get irritated when their space is impeded or when people use their things without permission,” she said.
The new atrium will cover a courtyard workspace, adding 1,700 square feet to the lower level of Togo Salmon Hall.
"They're going to bring in a lot of light. We're all stuck in a basement [now] all day and in the winter it gets kind of drab. Obviously natural light is optimal for when you're working with paintings and drawings and colour," she said. "Being in a basement can be tough. Especially in the winter when it's dark and it's cold."
Nikkie To, a fourth-year fine arts student, said she feels that space is integral to the artistic process.
“It allows us to present art properly and express our ideas. We can talk to one another, receive feedback and get help from our peers,” To said.
Second-year studio art student Mary Duncan could only think of "dingy" when asked to describe fourth-year studios upstairs.
"Most of them don't have indies and only have of them has a sink. They're essentially closets," she said. "There's no light up there. Having some natural light up there will be amazing."
McMaster president Patrick Deane expressed gratitude for Fitzhenry’s donation to the program.
“This critical investment will have an impact on the entire campus, altering the way our students learn and creating an environment that can support all their artistic endeavours,” Deane generic viagra price said.
Robert Fitzhenry grew up in West Hamilton and graduated McMaster in 1954 with an honours B.A. in political economy. As a student, he played football and served on the Board of Publications.
He holds an honourary doctorate from McMaster and has been a member of the McMaster Alumni Association board of directors.
Construction on the site will begin in 2014.
This article was originally published online Nov. 13 and was updated for Nov. 14.
Photo: An artistic rendering of new studio space planned for the fine arts program. C/O McMaster University.
A day that celebrated the achievements of Forward with Integrity initiatives left the overall state of the academy largely undefined.
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David Wilkinson, Provost and Vice-President (Academic), gave his State of the Academy address on Oct. 10 after presentations and receptions of various Forward with Integrity had taken place throughout the day.
"Forward with Integrity," an open letter by McMaster President Patrick Deane in 2011 was turned into an initiative allowing students to apply for funding to complete projects that would make Deane's vision a reality. 78 projects have been funded since, including the Learning Portfolio on Avenue and a psychology project studying how people can be perceived differently when conducting job interviews over Skype.
Beginning at 11:30a.m., presentations of numerous FWI projects filled the schedule at CIBC Hall, leading up to the State of the Academy. Wilkinson called his own address “window dressing” to a day of celebration.
“We decided this year’s State of the Academy Address, as it was originally called, to turn it into a whole day event of celebration,” said Wilkinson.
Wilkinson’s address, to a room filled with faculty and staff, highlighted academic research issues and remained vague regarding the overall state of McMaster University.
The Provost highlighted a few FWI projects with positive fanfare and video presentations. The Learning Portfolio received strong attention and was touted as a growing success.
“It really is an opportunity for students to integrate their learning into one place,” said Wilkinson.
With the address, Wilkinson said that he hoped to develop an identity for McMaster as both a research-intensive and student-centred school.
“Strong linkage between student centered-ness and research focus is really how we intend to define ourselves as an institution," Wilkinson said.
When it came to more technical matters, Wilkinson left a few questions unanswered.
He chose not to speak to the school’s budget in his address, instead referring the audience to the University Factbook for details.
“The State of the Academy can be all about budgets and numbers. I didn't want to do that last year and I’m not going to do it this year either. So we won’t talk a lot of budgetary situations,” said Wilkinson.
“The University Factbook…was released a couple days ago. It has an update of all of the numbers.” The document is available on the Office of Institutional Research and Analysis website.
Wilkinson was also vague with when it came the Ontario government’s push to have post-secondary institutions specialize further.
On the matter, he said “The government pays the freight, and when they want to change something, we have to pay attention to that.”
Wilkinson explained that McMaster will have to negotiate with the provincial government over the course of this academic year.
He was relatively unclear in what the school will be doing to prepare for this, saying, “One of the key things for us to do as an institution is to get our ducks in order and be prepared to state how we wish to be seen as a differentiated organization compared to other universities in the province.”
“I think, actually, we’re in pretty good shape to develop that process.”
With regards to McMaster’s internationalization, Wilkinson said, “This is the one area of Forward with Integrity that hasn't received the attention it deserves.”
In the midst of a large research university, some disciplines may get lost in the shuffle. But this year is the time for Mac’s arts to be in the spotlight.
McMaster’s School of the Arts is launching a yearlong festival designed to highlight the arts and their role in the university. The Spotlight on the Arts festival will see eight months of events, including lectures, exhibitions, and theatre productions.
Virginia Aksan, former Acting Director of the School of the Arts and one of the main coordinators of the festival, sees it as an opportunity for the department to be more vocal on campus.
“My vision was to promote the [image] of School of the Arts —which surprisingly, very few people know about,” she said of the reasoning for the event.
School of the Arts was created in 2001 to amalgamate the departments of Art and Art History, Music, and Theatre and Film Studies, a move Aksan considers to be primarily economically driven. But she also believes they hold a further connection.
“They share a vision about human creativity that I think is so much part of downtown Hamilton now,” she explained.
And it’s this vision that she has seen flourish under the leadership of current university president Patrick Deane, whom she describes as a “huge fan of the arts.”
Aksan felt that the leadership of Peter George, president previous to Deane, left something to be desired when it came to arts education. Deane began his role as president in 2010.
“What Peter George did was to create a university that was internationally renowned in heart research or in health studies,” she said.
“[But] the humanities… are the continuity of intellectual life of the human, and we kind of take it for granted. We’re in an age when we can’t have that happen anymore.” She added that she hopes to remind people “Mac does things besides what it’s renowned for.”
While the purpose of the Spotlight festival is chiefly to promote the work of School of the Arts, the project has been “building and growing from the original purpose to stimulate more arts based activity,” said Beth Marquis, another of the lead coordinators of the festival.
Marquis serves as a professor in the Arts and Science program, in the School of the Arts, and works at the McMaster Institute for Innovation and Excellence in Teaching and Learning (MIIETL). She sees the festival as an opportunity to create more connections within the McMaster community, between disciplines and departments, especially considering the size of the university.
“It’s such a big and complex place,” she said of McMaster. “Sometimes you miss a lot of great opportunities that are happening…I think it’s just the nature of a place like this.”
The festival, with its variety of events, will be organized into four different clusters: connect (September), activate (November), empower (January), and integrate (March). Through the different themes, Marquis hopes to encourage people to think about the role of art differently.
“[We want people] not only to approach the arts as entertainment…but also [to understand] that the sense of social work while we’re being entertained.”
Photo: Studio art students printing their original T-shirt designs last year in Arts Quad. They will do the same this year at Supercrawl. C/O Anqi Shen.
On Thursday, McMaster University released its 2013 "sunshine list" [link], which publicly discloses the reported salaries of its employees that made at least $100,000 in 2012.
Top earners included:
Also on the list was former McMaster Association of Part-time Students executive director Sam Minniti with earnings of $124,429.20. MAPS ended its relationship with Minniti and promised to elect an entirely new board in January following an investigation by McMaster University into the Association's spending practices. In addition to Minniti’s reported income of $126,152 2011, he was paid $101,117 that year in "retroactive pay." He was listed because the University processed his income.
Nearly 30 ‘forward with integrity’ projects have been funded by McMaster University, with a total of $122,245 awarded to successful applicants.
In September, a call for proposals went out for projects that would enhance the student experience. The call was answered by 54 applicants, which included students, staff and faculty from a number of departments.
“We wanted to encourage students, faculty and staff to think about what we can do to improve and how we could work together,” said Laura Harrington, Forward with Integrity project director.
The budget for the projects was originally $100,000, but was increased after the proposals were received.
Harrington said each of the 54 proposals was reviewed by three different members of an advisory group, which commented on each proposal and made funding recommendations.
After the first round, 27 projects have been funded primarily by the President's Fund. Two were endorsed and will seek funding from other sources.
While some projects will start immediately, some will take a bit of time to get started while the applicants conduct research and search for participants.
Later this month, a call will go out for proposals for the second wave of projects, which will focus on interdisciplinary research and development.
“There are a lot of people out there with great ideas. This is one way to stimulate those conversations,” said Harrington.
Forward With Integrity projects endorsed or funded (December 2012):
Title: iMMERSE (Integrated McMaster Engineering Real‐world Supplementary Experience)
Applicant: Kelton Friedrich Faculty/Area: Engineering
Summary: iMMERSE is intended to facilitate unpaid extra‐curricular activities for students who do not participate in co‐op experiences. Students would work independently or in groups on a project defined by local or global partners. A cohort of Engineering alumni will serve as mentors. Funding will support the development of this initiative through research conducted by a summer student
Title: Validation of Reflection: A proposal to investigate how to enhance an Engineering student’s Learning Portfolio
Applicant: Lynn Stewart Faculty/Area: Engineering
Summary: The project will investigate ways to create opportunities for reflection among Engineering students, particularly those who are not part of a structured co‐op experience. The project will also consider how reflection can address the specific learning requirements of an Engineering education. Funding will go toward research existing tools and rubrics to support reflection in Engineering, as well as means to validate reflection and to demonstrate the value of reflection to the students.
Title: Neighborhood Action Plans Informing Campus‐Community Engaged Scholarship
Applicant: Catherine Tompkins Faculty/Area: School of Nursing
Summary: The applicant will organize a three‐day “think tank” with community partners that will explore ways for the University to engage and foster collaboration with priority Hamilton neighborhoods. The aim is to identify opportunities for enhancing the student experience through participating in community‐engaged education and research, with a particular focus on the Neighborhood Action Plans.
Title: CreativeEnterprise and the Social Entrepreneur
Applicant: John Ford Faculty/Area: School of the Arts/Humanities
Summary: The project focuses on the establishment of an International Artist/Designer in Residence, beginning with Jennifer Price fromEngland. The Artist will engage students at all levels in the School of the Art, and participation will also be sought from other Departments/Faculties. She will work with students and staff to create a large‐scale participatory project, and public events will be held in collaboration with Hamilton Artists Inc. and other partners. The start date for this project is not yet determined.
Title: Pilot Performance Cycle on Student Success
Applicant: Catherine Graham Faculty/Area: School of the Arts, Student Success Centre
Summary: The proposal builds on an existing collaboration between the SOTA and SSC which supports the creation of a dramatic production intended to welcome first year students to campus and facilitate their thinking on student success. A series of workshops will be held with students to learn about the varying definitions of success at the University. The results will provide material for use in the next cycle of dramatic productions. Funding will be used to hire a research assistant to help in the development of the program.
Title: MappingParadise: an Environmentally Responsible Art Initiative
Applicant: Judy Major‐Girardin Faculty/Area: School of the Arts
Summary: The project supports student creativity in collaboration with the Cootes to Escarpment ParkSystem Initiative. Students will be exposed to leaders from the Arts, Engineering, History and from within the community (RBG). Students will be preparing a map that is linked to a focus on environmentally responsible art practices which will be displayed during an exhibition and public reception in February. Funding will support an undergraduate assistant and the workshop/reception.
Title: Student Activism Projects in Women’s Studies 1AA3: Women Transforming the World
Applicant: Karen Balcom Faculty/Area: Humanities
Summary: Students registered in the course can choose to participate in activism projects related to what they learn in the classroom. The projects are designed in collaboration with stakeholders such as the Anti‐Violence Network, OPIRG and community partners, and students are involved in the design. Funding will support a research project that will enhance the connections between the projects and course components and to develop a more sustainable and efficient model for coordinating the projects themselves.
Title: A Framework for Supporting Experiential Learning atMcMasterUniversity
Applicants: Elkafi Hassini, Jeannie An, Mandeep Malik Faculty/Area: Business
Summary: This project involves developing a web presence that will facilitate communication about existing and potential experiential opportunities for students. This group will coordinate with other University stakeholders to compile and share information about the opportunities that are available.
Title: Sustainability Office Strategy
Applicant: Kate Whalen Faculty/Area: VP Administration
Summary: The project is a continuation of the work performed by the Sustainability Office. This group has developed a range of opportunities for students to learn about and participate in projects related to sustainability at the University and elsewhere. The funds will be used to support the salary of a manager who will oversee an expanded Internship Program and foster the incorporation of sustainability issues and challenges into teaching and learning.
Title: Undergraduate Research Mentorship Program (Endorsed, not funded)
Applicant: Allison Sekuler Faculty/Area: Graduate Studies
Summary: The proposal outlines a mentorship program in which a graduate student will serve as a mentor to the undergraduate students that are participating in Undergraduate Student Research Award (USRA) projects during the summer. The students will use the learning portfolio to track their progress and this pilot will compare the experiences of the mentored students with those that did not participate in the mentorship.
*The project was endorsed by the advisory group but will be supported through other funds.
Title: A multi‐phase proposal to introduce an academic learning portfolio into the life sciences program
Applicants: Kimberly Dej, Lori Goff Faculty/Area: Science/CLL
Summary: The project will introduce an e‐portfolio to students in the Life Sciences program in order to help the students demonstrate skill development (including degree level expectations), develop an academic plan and learning goals as well as reflect on experiences. The implementation will occur gradually over several terms. Funding will be used to hire students who will develop and test the online learning materials that will be used, and to evaluate the success of the project through interviews and surveys.
Title: Learning Portfolio Pilot Project
Applicants: Philippa Carter, Jennifer Nettleton, Robert Revington Faculty/Area: Social Sciences
Summary: The applicants propose to develop an interdisciplinary course that will involve using a learning portfolio. The students will assess the suitability of the existing e‐portfolio in Avenue and cultivate mentorship and reflective capabilities. Funding will be used to hire a student to assist in launching of the course, tracking the results and evaluating success.
Title: Ethnography of the McMaster Community and University
Applicant: Petra Rethmann Faculty/Area: Social Sciences
Summary: The project involves developing a course that will assist students in carrying out projects on the ethnography of the larger McMaster community. The projects will involve participant observation and hands‐on engagement with the community. Students will develop the project, conduct the study, and share the results. The applicant intends to submit an application to SSHRC following the project. Funding will be used to hire a student to develop the course, and for a video camera and other resources for the students to carry out their projects.
Title: Laying the Groundwork for Student Portfolios in Economics
Applicant: Bridget O’Shaughnessy Faculty/Area: Social Sciences
Summary: The project will fund the hiring of a summer student to investigate the potential use of the learning portfolio in Economics, which tends to utilize traditional teaching techniques and relies heavily on empirical evidence. The study will consider ways to market the portfolio to economics students, how it would be valued by students and future employers, and how it could enable continued dialogue with graduates of the program.
Title: Collaborative, Interdisciplinary Health Professions Education Research
Applicants: James Lyons, Lawrence Grierson Faculty/Area: Science & Health Sciences
Summary: The long term goal of the project is to facilitate connections between undergraduate thesis students across the University, and in particular, to build a program of research that will offer broad opportunities in health professions education. The application outlines a pilot project in which Kinesiology students will interact with Health Sciences students; future opportunities could be more widely distributed across the University for students who are interested in applying their knowledge to health professions education.
Title: Building an international undergraduate research network via videoconferenced activities within a student‐led research program
Applicant: Sarah Symons Faculty/Area: Science/iSci
Summary: This proposal requests funds to purchase equipment that will be used to videoconference with students in a similar program in the UK. Students at both sites will participate in a research symposium that spans several days – the equipment will be used to share research and educational experiences and to participate in joint research activities. Funds will also be used to support student leaders who will assist in arranging the symposium, run a trial activity and track participation and feedback.
Title: Creating a fundamental connection between research and undergraduate education
Applicant: David Venus Faculty/Area: Science
Summary: The Department of Physics and Astronomy is considering ways to enhance the research connection with undergraduate education. The project will investigate the design and implementation of project‐based courses in fourth year Physics to replace traditional lecture‐style courses. A test case for two courses will be conducted to determine the feasibility and impact of the initiative.
Title: Student Placement Facilitator for the MacWheelers Program
Applicant: Audrey Hicks Faculty/Area: Science
Summary: MacWheelers provides specialized and individualized exercise programming to individuals with spinal cord injuries and relies on 200 student volunteers to serve its 75 participants each year. The proposal requests funds to support the creation of a part‐time student placement coordinator who will assist with recruitment, training and supervision of the volunteers, and seek ways to improve the experiential learning opportunity for the students. Case management and evaluation systems will be developed, and the coordinator will initiate links between students and current research initiatives.
Title: Experiential Learning Coordinator
Applicant: Lisa Barty Faculty/Area: Science
Summary: The Science Career and Cooperative Education office is seeking opportunities to develop a framework based on best‐practices in experiential learning that will benefit students within the Faculty. Students that choose not to participate in co‐op activities can still participate in experiential opportunities, and there is currently great demand for this type of program.
Funding uses: To support the salary of a coordinator who will facilitate current offerings, develop new opportunities and establish a framework for a formal internship program.
Title: Graduate Student Peer Success Project
Applicant: Nathan Cooper Faculty/Area: Student Wellness Centre
Summary: This project is intended to extend an existing support program for undergraduate students to graduate students. The program focuses on increasing degree completion rates by training a number of peer support facilitators that will run peer support groups in the Faculties to identify and mitigate issues that arise as part of a graduate student’s time at McMaster and could potentially interfere with degree completion.
Title: The McMaster Social Innovation Lab
Applicants: Michael Hewlett & Brianna Smrke Faculty/Area: Arts&Science
Summary: This student proposal focuses on the development of an Innovation Lab that will foster interdisciplinary collaboration and discussion among students. The lab is intended to stimulate creative thinking to find innovative solutions to interesting problems. Funding has been awarded to bring together faculty, local and regional leaders at a workshop to investigate the feasibility and sustainability of such an initiative.
Title: CORE Student Centre for Learning and Research
Applicants: Gina Browne, Patricia Gough, Lindsey George Faculty/Area: Health Sciences
Summary: CORE (Community Organizations Reaching Everyone) is a program focused on helping at‐risk high school students obtain credit for projects involving the arts. University students participate in the program as part of an interdisciplinary practicum or internship by mentoring the high school students. The focus is on strength‐based learning for the students involving creative interventions facilitated by the University mentors.
Funding uses: To help sustain the program, enhance opportunities for student experiential learning and provide sustenance for the high school students who require this support to succeed.
Title: Online Learning Contract: A Pilot Project for PNB
Applicants: David Shore, Joe Kim, Ann Hollingshead, Irina Ghilic, Lisa Barty Faculty/Area: Science
Summary: Many students in Psychology, Neuroscience and Behaviour (PNB) participate in independent study courses both on‐ and off‐campus. This project focuses on developing an online system for administering learning contracts to enhance the experience of the students. The contract will allow students to develop learning goals and allow for feedback and oversight from faculty members. It will also inform the development of the learning portfolio.
Title: Healthy Cognitive Aging: Taking the Laboratory to the Community
Applicants: Karin Humphreys, Scott Walter Faculty/Area: Science
Summary: This proposal requests support to extend the learning experiences of the students beyond the classroom and laboratory into the community. Undergraduate students will travel to retirement residences to conduct research on cognitive development through the lifespan. There is a plan to establish permanent relationships with these residences so that there can be continual exposure of the students to this research environment.
Title: Helping Hamiltonians through Occupational and Physiotherapy Engagement (H2OPE)
Applicants: Sarah Wojkowski, Lori Letts, Vanina Dal Bello Haas, Genevieve Hladysh, Lorie Shimmel, Julie Richardson Faculty/Area: Rehabilitation Science
Summary: The proposal outlines the formation of the Mac H2OPE Clinic which will provide Hamiltonians with direct access to occupational and physical therapy services within the community. Students will gain practical expertise working with community residents, and the Clinic will also foster research partnerships with the YMCA and other community partners. Funding will be used to support the development of e‐Portfolios on Avenue as well as staff training and therapy equipment.
Title: McMaster Conservation Corridor Teaching and Research Facility
Applicants: Susan Dudley, Chad Harvey
Faculty/Area: Science
Summary: The Conservation Corridor is a plot of land owned by McMaster at the corner of Wilson St. E.and Lower Lions Club Rd. The applicants propose to use the land as a site for teaching, research andecologically sensitive recreation. The project will create a spatial grid of the site, and create paths and signage; students will be involved in the implementation of the project plans.
Title: McMaster Capabilities and Collaborations (Endorsed, not funded)
Applicant: Gay Yuyitung, MILO
Faculty/Area: VP Research & International Affairs
Summary: The project involves the creation of a website that will match community/industry needs with expertise at McMaster. The project is supported by community and industry partners, and the overall objective is to make it easier for existing or potential partners to identify relevant expertise at the University, and to build the necessary connections to move forward.
*This project has been endorsed by the advisory group and will be funded through alternative sources.
Title: International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) Competition
Applicants: Ben Scott, Fiona Whelan Faculty/Area: Science
Summary: The proposal describes an international competition for students in synthetic biology. Student groups work together on a research project then present their findings at the competition. The project is intended to be interdisciplinary and collaborative. Funding will be used to support laboratory costs for the student groups.
Title: The Global Health Research Learning Portfolio
Applicant: Lisa Schwartz Faculty/Area: Health Sciences
Summary: The proposal is intended to enhance the learning and participation of students in GlobalHealth Research. The group will conduct research on the use of e‐Portfolios among students in Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, particularly for those participating in global outreach activities.
Project details were provided by the President's Office.
