VIU researcher explores social media in science education
December 14, 2011
Vancouver Island University professor Dr. Rachel Moll is leading an international study to explore social media use in science education. Moll has received a two-year $50,000 grant from the Social Sciences Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) to study how physics teachers and students in high school and first-year university use social media to teach and learn. “It’s an international... Read more
VIU's Development & Alumni Office launches exclusive new fundraising technology
December 14, 2011
VIU is now the only post-secondary institution in Canada using Mobio Quick Response codes as a fundraising tool. By downloading an app created by Mobio (www.getmobio.com), Smartphone users can scan VIU’s new QR codes and then, in less than a minute, make a donation to VIU for any amount. “We are excited by the possibilities opened up by this new technology,” says Julie Keenan, Director, VIU... Read more
City of Nanaimo calls for Poet Laureate Nominations
December 13, 2011
The City of Nanaimo would like to invite nominations for our city’s first Poet Laureate for a 3 year term beginning in 2012. Nominations will be accepted until 2012-JAN-31, with the selection being made by the end of February, 2012. Self nominations will be accepted. The purpose of a Poet Laureate for Nanaimo is to serve as a “people’s” poet and to raise awareness of poetry and the literary... Read more
Refugee students grateful for support on and off campus
December 13, 2011
Like many of the close to 1,700 international students at Vancouver Island University, Fatuma Hassan Ali and Noor Mohamed Maalim have had to adapt to their new surroundings on Canada’s West Coast. Unlike almost all the other students at VIU, the two Somalia-born students are adjusting to life outside the confines of a refugee camp. Fatuma was an infant when she and her family fled the civil war... Read more
Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) Donates $40,000 to VIU's Aboriginal Construction Program
December 12, 2011
From the VIU Foundation: As part of RBC’s commitment to building relationships and creating opportunities for Canada’s Aboriginal peoples, Moira Jenkins and Mark Lovick of RBC, were on hand at the recent Christmas celebration at Shq’apthut, VIU’s Aboriginal Gathering Place, to announce a donation of $40,000 in support of the university’s Aboriginal Construction Program. “We recognize training... Read more
Green roof sprouts at Nanaimo campus
December 12, 2011
The Gathering Place for First Nations and other students at Vancouver Island University is now covered with native grasses and other species. A crew from Victoria-based Paradise Cityscapes laid a membrane, spread a layer of growing media and planted sedum, fescues and other plants that are well suited to growing conditions on the 3,000-square-foot roof of Shq’apthut: A Gathering Place. Some of... Read more
VIU in the News: Vancouver Island University's newest building gets 'green' roof
December 9, 2011
Project will become the focus of a biology study to measure carbon offsets By Darrell Bellaart, Nanaimo Daily News A layer of topsoil on the roof of the Vancouver Island University's newest building will soon be blanketed with a multi-coloured display of ground-covering foliage. A green roof planned for the aboriginal Gathering Place is finally being installed, two years after construction... Read more
VIU launches new degree program in social work
December 8, 2011
Vancouver Island University is launching a new online Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) degree program. “We’re accepting student applications for this new program immediately,” says Pat Konkin of the Faculty of Health and Human Services. “The first intake starts in August 2012.” The online program will provide social work education that addresses local, national and global needs. “One of our... Read more
Regional partnership enhances business career opportunities for First Nations students
December 7, 2011
There was added reason to celebrate at the First Nations Christmas feast Dec. 7 at Vancouver Island University. The lunch-hour event at Shq’apthut: A Gathering Place marks the beginning of a new partnership between Vancouver Island University and Ch’nook Indigenous Business Education. Ch’nook encourages First Nations students to pursue educational opportunities in business and related fields... Read more
VIU training programs boost employment prospects
December 7, 2011
Vancouver Island University is recruiting eligible students for tuition-free employment training programs which start in the new year. The programs are designed to help unemployed people get back into the workforce, and employed individuals requiring skills-upgrading to improve their job prospects. “VIU has received upwards of $700,000 this year under the provincial Employment Skills Access... Read more