Daily News

May 15, 2001

An online election is being held this week for a teaching staff representative on the Board of Governors. The candidates in this election are: Richard Butler, Department of Pathology & Molecular Medicine Barbara Carroll, Department of Political Science Ian Hambleton, Department of Mathematics & Statistics The elected candidate will serve a term commencing July 1, 2001 and continuing until June 30, 2004. Complete information on this election and the candidates may be found at the Board of Governors Web site: http://www.mcmaster.ca/bog/elections, then go to the section on Teaching Staff Election. You may cast your ballot in this election any time between 9 a.m., Monday, May 14, 2001 and 4:30 p.m., Friday, May 18, 2001. Eligible voters who do not have access to the Web site may come to the Board of Governors office (Room 115, University Hall), between 9 a.m. and 12 noon and between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m., during the election period. (End of story)

May 14, 2001

Hamilton firefighter Peter DeBoer visited campus last week to remind employees of the importance of fire safety. His visit coincided with North America Health and Safety Week. "Everyone should be familiar with the evacuation procedures for their particular building," said DeBoer, who is with the department's fire prevention division. "And everyone should be on the lookout for fire hazards. If you see something dangerous then you should act." These are the hazards to watch for: Self-closing doors which have been propped open or have had their pins removed. A self-closing door will contain a fire, keeping the fire away from corridors and other people. If the door is disabled it won't serve its purpose. DeBoer says if you see that the door has been propped open with a wooden door stop, you should throw the door stop away. If the door doesn't latch properly, you should report it. Blocked exits. If you see anything that is blocking an exit you should either move it yourself or report it. Exit signs which no longer light up. "They should be lit at all times," says DeBoer. "You should report a sign which no longer works properly." Corridors with boxes or goods stored in them. "Maintaining the width of a corridor is important," he says. If the corridor is blocked it could stop people from getting out of a building in case of an emergency evacuation. "Every bit of the system is important, says DeBoer. "A fire safety plan relies on everything in the system working as planned." DeBoer's talk was a part of a three-day agenda of health and safety activities presented by Risk Management Services. (End of story)

May 14, 2001

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/Mayopenhousefood.jpg”]They came. They ate. They saw McMaster in all its spring glory. Prospective students and their families packed Saturday's open house, checking out . . .

May 14, 2001

Hours of operation for the McMaster Museum of Art have been irregular lately while physical plant and risk management services staff investigate reports of a . . .

May 11, 2001

The Faculty of Health Sciences will confer 239 degrees to undergraduate and graduate students at its Convocation this afternoon (2:30 p.m.)at Hamilton Place. Degrees will be conferred for Doctor of Philosophy(4), Master of Science(18), Doctor of Medicine(92), Bachelor of Science in Nursing(88) and Bachelor of Health Sciences in Midwifery (8). Diplomas will be awarded in Advanced Neonatal Nursing(3), Child Life Studies(11), Environmental Health(5) and Occupational Health and Safety (8). Two Nurse Practitioner Certificates will also be awarded. Honorary Doctor of Laws (LLD) degrees will be awarded to McMaster MD graduates Richard Heinzl and James Orbinski and professor emeritus John V. Basmajian will be awarded an honorary Doctor of Science (D.Sc.). Honorary Degree Recipients Richard Heinzl (LLD) '87 is a distinguished humanitarian and leader at a national and international level. He is the founder of the Canadian chapter of Midecins Sans Frontihres/Doctors Without Borders. Heinzl provided humanitarian health care to people in Iraq, Cambodia and with the first Canadian mission of Doctors Without Borders in Mozambique. He co-founded an internet company called medispecialist.com designed to make consultations with medical specialists more readily available to people in remote locations in the world. Heinzl was named one of the "People Who Make A Difference" in Canada in 1995 and was named mone of Canada's Top 40 Under 40 in 2000. Distinguished humanitarian and leader James Orbinski (LLD) '89 is a founding member of the Canadian chapter of Midecins Sans Frontihres/Dcotors Without Borders. In 1999 Orbinski, as president of the humanitarian group's international council, accepted the Nobel Peace Prize for group's work. Orbinski worked in Somalia, Afghanistan and Rwanda in the 1990s, providing care to thousands during the civil wars, famine and genocides that occurred in these countries. He was recognized for his work by the Governor General with the Meritorious Service Cross in 1998. John Basmajian's (D.Sc.) resume reflects a distinguished career in rehabilitation medicine that has taken him around the world. The professor emeritus of medicine and anatomy at McMaster and director-emeritus of the Rehabilitation Centre, Chedoke-McMaster Hospitals, has received several awards including the Order of Canada. He has authored or edited more than 380 scientific articles and 66 books, and is the series editor of the 26-volume Rehabilitation Medicine Library. He has also produced several films and invented several widely used scientific or medical devices and techniques. (End of story)

May 11, 2001

A structure for the mediation phase of the mediation/arbitration process was determined yesterday when negotiators for the University and the McMaster University Staff Association met . . .

May 11, 2001

Master the mystery and magic of molecules. Meet “Adam” an interactive “body” used to learn about anatomy. Have your jewelry tested for lead content. Kick . . .

May 10, 2001

The Society of Management Accountants of Ontario has notified McMaster University that it is one of nine universities to be granted accreditation toward the Certified . . .

May 10, 2001

The Ontario government's commitment to new funding for universities is welcome news for McMaster, President Peter George says. "The three-year commitment to increased operating grants will allow us to better prepare for the fiscal challenges that we will face over the next few years," George said. "It also provides assurance to students and parents that university places will be available at a time when the double cohort and other demographic factors mean substantially higher demands for access to university." George was commenting on the Ontario budget released yesterday in the legislature. The government promised to "increase operating grants to colleges and universities by an estimated $293 million by 2003-04, directly proportional to the projected enrolment growth." McMaster anticipates receiving about a 1.9 per cent increase in the operating money it receives from the government this year based on the budget announcement. The increase is devised to help universities cope with the record number of students, known as the double cohort, who will arrive on campuses in the fall of 2003. However, despite the new funding, George remains concerned that a key issue -- the lack of government funding for some student places -- was not dealt with in the budget. "Because McMaster has tried to maintain accessibility, the University currently has more than 1,000 students for whom we receive no provincial funding. The only money we receive for these students is from their tuition which covers only a small portion of the expense the University incurs. This is our highest priority with the province and we look forward to working with the minister to seeing it addressed successfully."

May 10, 2001

More than $14 million in new federal research money has been awarded to 111 McMaster professors. The research grants from the Natural Sciences and Engineering . . .

May 9, 2001

The Board of Governors is holding an online election next week to fill a three-year teaching staff position on the Board. The candidates nominated for the position are: Richard Butler, Department of Pathology & Molecular Medicine Barbara Carroll, Department of Political Science Ian Hambleton, Department of Mathematics & Statistics. The candidates' resumes may be viewed online at the Board's election Web site, http://www.mcmaster.ca/bog/elections. The elected member will serve on the Board from July 1, 2001 until June 30, 2004. The election voting period will run from 9 a.m. Monday, May 14 until 4:30 p.m. Friday, May 18. The election will only be conducted online. Voters may cast their ballots one of two ways: If you have a personal identification number (PIN) issued by the human resources department you can use it to cast a ballot electronically. If you do not have a PIN you can request one by sending an e-mail to pinreset@mcmaster.ca and including your employee ID number, surname, given names and birth date (month,day,year). If you do not have access to e-mail, you may go to the human resources department to obtain one. If you do not wish to obtain a PIN you can still vote by entering the following information at the time of casting your ballot: your McMaster employee number, your surname and your date of birth. Voters who obtained PINs in the past but who have forgotten them may either apply again to the human resources department or enter their employee number, surname and date of birth at the time of voting. Eligible voters who do not have access to the Board's Web site can go to the Board of Governors' office, Room 115, University Hall, between 9 a.m. and noon and 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. during the election period to cast ballots. (END OF STORY)

May 7, 2001

Divinity College will confer degrees to 34 new graduates at its Convocation this evening at 8 p.m. in Convocation Hall. The ceremony is the first of eight Convocations that McMaster will hold this spring. Degrees will be conferred for Doctor of Ministry, Master of Divinity, Master of Religious Education, Master of Theological Studies and Master of Theology. Certificates will be awarded for the Diploma in Ministry and Certificate in Christian Studies. Honorary Doctor of Divinity (DD)degrees will be awarded to Theodor Angelov and Rick Tobias. Theodor Angelov (DD) is a biochemist who has been general secretary of the European Baptist Federation since 1999. Prior to his appointment, he was the president of the federation. Since 1992 he has been pastor of Sofia Baptist Church and president of the Bulgarian Baptist Union. From 1970 until 1992, Angelov was a research scientist at the Institute of Microbiology and then the Institute of Biotechnology. Rick Tobias(DD) has plenty of international experience but he is equally well known at home for his extensive lectures on the issue of poverty in Canada, the urban ministry and youth at risk. Tobias was the first chair of the Street Level conference for Christian street workers, which drew national attention to issues of life on the street. In 1983 he came to Toronto as co-ordinator of Evergreen at Yonge Street Mission, which he refoucsed on street youth. In 1989 he became the mission's executive director. (END OF STORY)

May 4, 2001

Negotiators for the University and the McMaster University Staff Association have taken the first steps toward a mediated/arbitrated collective agreement. The two parties met with . . .

May 3, 2001

Family, friends, colleagues and former students have honoured the late professor David Kinsley by establishing a bursary in his name for mature part-time students. To . . .

May 3, 2001

The Board of Governors met April 26 and discussed the following items: President's report President Peter George said he has "guarded optimism" the provincial government will solve the dilemma of providing universities with adequate operating funds when revenues are decreasing. There are no signs yet as to what the federal government plans are for university funding although the University is hopeful Ottawa will address the indirect costs of research. George said he was delighted the University and the McMaster University Staff Association agreed to voluntary arbitration to solve the recent labour dispute. He said he had been "very frustrated" because he could not speak about the situation. "The overriding concern that I have and that we not lose sight of is that this is not just about a disagreement between the university and the union, it is also about people. The cost and pain of this is significant. There is no doubt that tensions exist. An early resolution can only help us." George said he wanted advice from the University community on how to establish a "better code of civil and courteous debate" and expect a higher standard for discussion. He noted some members of the University's bargaining team were subjected to "extremely unfortunate, distasteful personalization of the issues" during the strike. He said, under pressure, some people "denigrated into blaming, fingerpointing and discourteous behaviour that has no place at a university.'' He added, "There are bridges to be rebuilt. I am committed to making this happen." The McMaster University Faculty Association (MUFA) provided a letter to the Board asking that the University consider not using the services of "strike circumvention companies such as Accu-Fax in the future." Mark Haley, assistant vice-president human resources, said the Hamilton-Wentworth regional police advised the University to use a security services and surveillance during the strike. MUFA president Bernadette Lynn, responding to a Board member's question, said the association is opposed to the University using firms that bill themselves as "strike breaking organizations." Debbie Nifakis, a non-teaching staff representative, told Board members she was asked to convey some staff's concerns about the University's actions during the McMaster University Staff Association strike. "They have felt very disillusioned and dissatisfied," she said, adding she had met with President George earlier in the week and returned gifts from about 30 people that had been given to them by the University over the years. Risk Management Services report Department director Ron Angus reported there is an air quality study going on in the Arthur Bourns Building (ABB). Environmental monitoring results for ABB were reviewed, confirming there are no unusual levels of biological contamination in the air handling system. The results also confirmed there is no asbestos in the samples. Angus said work responding to the air quality study in the John Hodgins Engineering building continues. New filtration equipment, humidification equipment and steam supply coils are ordered. Angus said the Ministry of Labour visited campus in March in response to anonymous complaints about ergonomic conditions at a food serving station and ventilation in the kitchen and washrooms in the Commons food service areas. He said ministry officials did not issue any orders and concluded the issues should be dealt with by the University's Joint Health and Safety Committee and Risk Management Services (RMS). The ventilation systems were inspected and were functioning as designed and not obstructed. RMS is studying the ergonomic issue. Changing Tomorrow Today Campaign report University Advancement executive director Roger Trull said the campaign has raised just under $112 million to date, adding "We're quite pleased." He said about $84.5 million of the total has been received in cash which is a much larger percentage than was expected. The campaign officially ends June 30.

May 3, 2001

The McMaster Students Union's new president pronounces bruschetta, prosciutto and bocconcini with the flair of someone who grew up speaking Italian and who loves to cook. "I'm not the typical MSU president, I don't really fit the mould," says Sam Minniti, who received more than twice the votes the other candidates garnered in the February election. Minniti, formerly MSU vice-president administration, took office on May 1. Born in Welland, Minniti grew up in Fort Erie, Ont. He is an only child and has a close relationship with his parents who immigrated to Canada from southern Italy. When he started university four years ago his parents would visit him once a week and he'd return to Fort Erie every month to play the piano at his father's Italian Pentecostal church and interpret his father's sermons into Italian or English. His parents still visit regularly and, when he can, he goes home to play the piano and to interpret at the church.

May 3, 2001

Undergraduate tuition is going up two per cent for the 2001-02 academic year. The increase of $74.70 will mean full-time undergraduate tuition in the Faculties of Humanities, Science, Social Sciences and the Arts & Science program will be $3,931.50. The two per cent increase will put full-time undergraduate tuition in the School of Business at $4,305.60 and the Faculty of Engineering at $4,675.77. In the Faculty of Health Sciences the increase will put tuition for nursing students at $3,931.50. The fee for medicine students is unchanged at $13,500. Last year the Board of Governors approved a government-mandated tuition increase over a five-year period for most undergraduate programs. "McMaster continues to offer tuition fees that are lower than most universities in the province," said Fred Hall, associate vice-president academic. The tuition increase revenues will be divided with 40 per cent going to the Faculties for programming, 30 per cent to bursaries and 30 per cent for allocation by the Board's budget committee. The University will continue to charge a student levy (the amount ranges from $26.10 to $31.02 depending on the Faculty) for the Quality Enhancement Fund. This fund, established last year for a five-year period, supports improvements to facilities that directly affect the quality of academic programs. For example, last year the funds were directed to the University Library and associated learning technologies such as LearnLink. Graduate tuition fees are frozen at 2000-01 levels, $4,422 annually, except for the School of Business' MBA program. The Board of Governors approved a 25 per cent fee increase for the MBA program to $3,350 per term at its April 26 meeting. Vishwanath Baba, dean of the School of Business, said the increase in the MBA program fee will be used for a variety of purposes including a faculty hiring initiative devised to increase full-time faculty by 15 to 20 during the next four years to maintain effective student to faculty ratios. As well, the tuition increase will go towards increasing sessional teaching fees to attract high quality instructors and will aid the school in supporting information technology infrastructure projects and initiatives such as the Educational Trading Centre and the e-commerce annex. In addition to tuition fee increases, some students will see an increase in the miscellaneous fees they pay depending on the Faculty they belong to and whether they are enrolled full-time or part-time. For example, full-time undergraduate students will pay about 2.5 per cent more in mandatory supplementary fees for various McMaster Students Union items including the organization fee, the health insurance plan and the University Centre building fee as well as the Ontario Public Interest Research Group fee. The University collects these fees on behalf of student organizations and student societies and remits the money to them.

May 3, 2001

McMaster University's Undergraduate Council Awards Committee has awarded travel scholarships to 10 students to enhance their educational experience with travel abroad: Nisha Thampi, honours Arts & Science (biology), received the Russell T. Wilkins Travel Scholarship of $6,000 to travel to Zambia. Thampi plans to study the psychological problems facing orphans whose parents have died from AIDS. Thampi will work in four orphanages in the capital city of Lusaka and will live in one of the orphanages. Her work with the orphans will be considered fieldwork for her undergraduate thesis. Tania Wong, honours biology and psychology, was awarded the Russell T. Wilkins Travel Scholarship of $6,000 to travel to the Mount Everest region of Nepal. She will spend a month with Envirotreks Canada giving environmental workshops to elementary school children in the region and helping to clean up the Everest base camp. When she returns to McMaster in the fall she has volunteered to present her Mount Everest experiences to the university community. Aimie Johnson, honours French and modern languages, was granted the A. G. Alexander Travel Scholarship of $5,500 to study in Paris, France. She plans to pursue her interest in Blaise Pascal, in addition to attending language classes and volunteering at the Paris YMCA. She also will live with a family to improve her conversational skills. Johnson hopes her experiences in France will help her prepare for her chosen career as a French teacher. Claire Knight, honours history, was awarded the A. G. Alexander Travel Scholarship of $5,500 to study at Oxford University in England. She plans to take part in Oxford's Summer Program in History, Politics and Society and take courses entitled "Modern Russian Politics" and "The Fall of the British Empire, 1945-1997." Her long-term academic goal is to pursue graduate work in international relations. Elena Mallard, honours modern languages and linguistics, received the A. G. Alexander Travel Scholarship of $5,500 to study in Paris, France and Rome, Italy. She plans to study the Italian language and literature at Studioitalia in Rome for six weeks and then to travel to Paris, France to spend four weeks studying French at the University of Paris-Sorbonne. Upon graduation, Mallard plans to complete an International Master's of Business Administration. Angelika Sellick, honours English and history, was granted the Joan Jackson Dunbar Travel Scholarship of $3,500 to study Shakespeare at the University of Cambridge in England. She will attend Cambridge's Shakespeare Summer School during the month of July. Sellick plans to pursue a master's degree in history after graduating from McMaster.

May 2, 2001

Captains of industry, humanitarians, scientists, scholars, a tenor and comedian Martin Short -- McMaster University will honour a diverse and distinguished group of individuals at this year's Spring Convocation. The University will present honorary degrees to the following at eight Convocation ceremonies this spring: Divinity College (May 8, 8 p.m., Convocation Hall) Theodor Angelov, president, Bulgarian Baptist Union (Doctor of Divinity)** Rick Tobias, executive director, Evergreen Mission (Doctor of Divinity) Faculty of Health Sciences (May 11, 2:30 p.m., Hamilton Place) John V. Basmajian, McMaster professor emeritus, rehabilitation medicine (Doctor of Science) Richard Heinzl, MD, founder of the Canadian chapter, Midecins Sans Frontihres/Doctors Without Borders (Doctor of Laws) James Orbinski, MD, founding member of the Canadian chapter, Midecins Sans Frontihres/Doctors Without Borders (Doctor of Laws)** School of Business (May 30, 9:30 a.m. Hamilton Place) Anthony Fell, chair and chief executive officer, RBC Dominion Securities (Doctor of Laws) Ron Foxcroft, president, Fluke Transport**(Doctor of Laws) Faculty of Humanities and Arts & Science Program(May 30, 2:30 p.m. Hamilton Place) Pierre Conlon, McMaster professor emeritus, 18th-century French scholar(Doctor of Letters) Richard Margison, world-renowned tenor (Doctor of Letters) Martin Short, comedian and actor (Doctor of Letters) ** Faculty of Social Sciences (May 31, 9:30 a.m., Hamilton Place) Robert Giroux, president and CEO, AUCC (Doctor of Laws) ** Colin Millar, law enforcement educator and Hamilton's former chief of police (Doctor of Laws) Faculty of Social Sciences (May 31, 2:30 p.m., Hamilton Place) Mary Buzzell, teacher, scholar, clinician and advocate for the elderly (Doctor of Laws) Jack Pelech, lawyer, inductee McMaster Sports Hall of Fame (Doctor of Laws) ** Faculty of Engineering (June 1, 9:30 a.m., Hamilton Place) William Sinclair, co-founder JDS Optics (now JDS Uniphase)(Doctor of Science) Joseph Wright, president and CEO Pulp and Paper Research Institute (Doctor of Science) ** Faculty of Science(June 1, 2:30 p.m., Hamilton Place) James Bruce, meteorologist, senior associate, Global Change Strategies (Doctor of Science) David Strangway, president, Canada Foundation for Innovation (Doctor of Science) ** ** will give the Convocation address.

May 1, 2001

The employment market looks good for McMaster's graduates and for students seeking summer employment. "Overall the job outlook for students is really positive", says Karen Johnson, manager of McMaster's Career Planning and Employment Centre(CPEC). "Summer jobs look good, full-time and part-time jobs also look good An economic downturn may affect graduates in the future but we haven't experienced it yet." The campus employment centre posted 4,313 jobs from May 2000 through March 2001, almost 1,000 more than last year and not all of this year's job postings have yet been counted. Summer job postings have doubled over last year and full-time job postings are up by 400 positions. "Everything has increased," says Gisella Oliviera, employment operations co-ordinator, who keeps track of the statistics for the career centre. Oliviera predicts the rosy outlook will persist because she already has employers booking now to come to campus in the fall to interview future graduates. "They have new positions to fill and they want to hold information sessions," says Oliviera. Photo(l-r):Edward Baker,political science; Nicole Frocking,commerce, and career counsellor David Lawson review job postings in the CPEC office. Photo by Ron Scheffler.