SA gets re-branded

Laurie Callsen – news editor

MacEwan students will soon be noticing the different look of the Students’ Association.

McRobbie Optamedia was approached six months ago to re-create the logo the SA will use on posters, letterheads and buisness cards, as well as merchandise for students such as T-shirts.

The re-design won’t be officially launched until the new year, but executives and councillors were given a sneak peak at the proposed designs at the Nov. 16 student council meeting. The courtesy presentation didn’t go without debate, however.

The designs, presented by Optamedia’s managing director Chris Bolivar, feature several coloured circles within a large circle. Bolivar said the design reflected how the SA is made up of different parts.

While Coun. Ashley Fairall expressed concerns about the timelessness of the new logo, saying “it’s kinda of reminiscent of the ’70s,” Bolivar assured council that the design was very strong architecturally and that it keeps coming back in style.

Bolivar also presented the proposed colour scheme to councillors and executives. The colours would reflect the different services the SA offers: blue for governance and representation, lime green for lifestyle and wellbeing, purple for planning and communications and brown for culture and community. Bolivar said these colours were chosen based on colour history and colour association, as well as heavy research and surveys conducted with MacEwan students.

Several councillors expressed their issues with the colour scheme, saying that the vibrant colours would become out-dated.

“There’s a lot of research done on it (the colour theory). … It’s our opinion based upon the experience that we have that we think that these work together,” said Bolivar.

He also reminded council that the logo is supposed to be all black and that the colours would be used to emphasize the services provided by the SA.

Another issue brought up by Coun. Paul Schmermund was that students wouldn’t be aware that the brightly-coloured circles represented the SA.

“The onus to make this our brand and make it notable is on us and how far we want to spread it out,” said Coun. Jason Campbell to his collegues. “It’s not on [McRobbie Optamedia].”

SA president Nils Holmgren applauded the design for its uniqueness.

“From what I’ve seen from other student associations’ logos, this is fresh, it’s useful, it’s high-energy. It’s better than anything I’ve ever seen in my taking of [business] cards.”

The rebranding of the SA started taking shape about a year ago when the SA wanted to revamp their website.

While the website has been a slow go, the new logo has been on track for the last six month. The brand launch date will be some time in January.

The current blue SA logo has been around for about 10 years. The winged shield and distressed text design is two years old.

The maximum amount the SA can spend on the new logo is $30,000. Vice-President Operations and Finance, Jamie Fraleigh, said that the current project is nowhere near the financial limit.

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Facebook

To get your blog to continuously import into Facebook, just follow these steps.

1. Go into Notes. On the right hand side there will be a small link that says "Import a blog". Click that.

2. Enter the URL of the blog that you wish to import, then click on the box agreeing that you have the right to re-distrubute it. The click Start Importing.

3. Complete! Facebook will grab all the posts that it hasn't yet imported. I haven't written any that it doesn't already have, which is why it says it couldn't find any new posts.

Twitter

This is set specifically for WordPress blogs, while the Facebook instructions could have been used for any kind of blog.

If you go to Dashboard > My Blogs, it will show the blogs you write. Then click Twitter to have the selected blog automatically update your Twitter when you have a new blog posting. In order for it to stop, you have to disable it.

Alternativly, you may not want every blog post to go straight to Twitter. Sometimes I update my writing portfolio with 6 posts a day to catch up on a month’s worth of articles, and I don’t want to bombard my followers with these tweets. If you want to pick and choose individual posts to tweet, follow these steps.

1. Under Add New Post, write your posting as you usual would. Then select Get Shortlink.

2. A box will pop up with the shortlink (a shortened link used for Twitter to cut down on the number of characters you use). Copy that.

3. Go into Twitter and write a brief intro about your new blog post. Paste the shortlink where applicable (I usually stick it at the end). Hit Update and go on your merry way.

Theatre program loses bright light

Supplied

Laurie Callsen – news editor

MacEwan’s musical theatre founding father died, leaving behind a long legacy that won’t soon be forgotten by staff, students and fans.

Tim Ryan, 62, passed away on Nov. 5 from congestive heart failure complicated by H1N1. Ryan founded the MacEwan Theatre Arts program in 1979 practically overnight.

The Ryan family has always held a strong presence in the Edmonton theatre community. Daughters Bridget and Kate and ex-wife Maralyn are actors, directors and playwrights. Laurie Fumagalli, Ryan’s wife, is a pianist/musical director and lawyer.

Ryan had a B.A. in Theatre and Music from the University of Dayton and an M.A. in Drama and Theatre from the University of London. He has extensive knowledge of opera, plays and musicals.

Before coming to Edmonton, Ryan and then-wife Maralyn had run Willoughby School of Fine Arts in Cleveland.

The family moved from Ohio to Edmonton 30 years ago to start the musical theatre program at MacEwan.

Ryan has directed the majority of the plays produced by the Theatre Arts program, as well as some productions for productions for Leave It to Jane Theatre Company, of which he is the Artistic Director. Ryan wrote, choreographed and directed Prospero, a dance-drama based on The Tempest while in England in 1989.

Denise Roy, who is now the Dean of the Centre for the Arts and Communications, got to know Ryan 20 years ago when she was starting out as a teacher in Arts & Cultural Management and their offices were side-by-side. She already knew of Ryan though his extensive work in the Edmonton theatre community.

“He was a very special man,” Roy said of Ryan. She spoke of his passion and incredible knowledge of the world of musical theatre.

“This guy was a world expert in musical theatre and all its forms—who wrote what, the lyricist and the [choreographer]. That was his life … He could talk – and would talk – morning, noon and night to anyone who listened about productions.”

Theatre Arts alumni Heather Mah, who is currently living in Seoul, South Korea, remembers Ryan as more than just a teacher — he was a mentor and friend.

“I remember how his office door would always be opened for us and classical music would be playing,” she said in an email. “Even though he [was] a busy man, he always had time to chat with us. I will fondly remember our chats about Canadian plays.”

“Tim’s absolute belief and conviction and support for his students and his faculty was phenomenal,” said Roy.

“The [students] that struggled the most, Tim would adopt them,” Roy said. “He wouldn’t let them fail. He’d keep at them and he’d keep haulin’ ‘em back and say ‘do it again’ and ‘do it better’.”

Both Mah and Roy spoke of Ryan’s humour.

“For any of us that knew him… this guy had a huge personality,” emphasized Roy. “He loved people. He had a wicked sense of humour.”

Mah said that when Ryan laughed, it means that the students got the scene just right.

“One of his favourite sayings for us during rehearsals [was] to ‘make it funny.’ He [was] someone who likes a good laugh and nothing pleased us, his students, more than being able to make him laugh.”

Roy said that students are coping with the loss of their mentor well enough. They are busy rehearsing for the next show as well as preparing for Ryan’s memorial on Friday. The tribute, which is open to the public, will run from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Haar Theatre, Ryan’s second home for the last 30 years.

Province narrows vaccine recipient pool

Laurie Callsen – news editor

H1N1 vaccination clinics will re-open on Nov. 5, but only for children between six months and five years  – the age group that is at the highest risk of getting the illness, according to Alberta Health Services.

In a press conference on Nov. 3, Alberta’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, André Corriveau and Alberta Senior Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Gerry Predy said that it is still unknown when clinics will be re-opened to the general public. Anyone who shows up and is not in the high-risk group will be turned away.

Pregnant women will be able to access vaccination clinics on Nov. 6, when the non-adjuvanted vaccine (the vaccine that is safe for pregnant women) will be available.

Only children and pregnant women will have access to clinics over the weekend. Then, more at-risk groups will be added once there is more vaccine.

While parents will have to prove that their child is younger than age five as of Nov. 1, the honor system will apply to pregnant women.

“We will not be asking for proof of pregnancy. We will accept people’s word,” said Predy.

There are approximately 200,000 doses of vaccine left in the province, which is more than enough to vaccinate children and pregnant women, said Predy.

“We’ve vaccinated a fair number of those [at-risk] already. We know in Edmonton we have the numbers for 10,000 kids under the age of five already, so there is a number of people we’ve already vaccinated. But certainly we have enough vaccine to do everyone in the …group even if they all come forward.”

Corriveau urged people not to overwhelm the system on the first day the clinics open.

“We’re going to have enough vaccine for all the target group we’re aiming at over the weekend, so people don’t have to all rush first thing Thursday morning,” he said.

The clinics will likely be in the same areas, and another clinic may be added to each urban centre. Clinic locations and hours of operation will be on the Alberta Health Services website.

When the clinics open to children and pregnant women, time management and line strategies will be juggled to find out what works best. A numbering system was one option that was suggested.

There will also be security at the clinics for an extra precaution to ensure only the top at-risk groups are getting vaccinated.

“The second wave will last, we’re estimating, anywhere around 12-16 weeks. … In Alberta the flu season lasts until the end of April, so we could be hit with a third wave after the second wave, or the second wave could be longer, said Predy. “Once a new virus emerges, it’s going to be around for a while.”

Corriveau added that the second wave affects about 20 to 25 per cent of the population and that there are a number of people who still haven’t been exposed to the virus.

The announcement of clinics re-opening came on the same day Alberta Health Services launched an investigation into how the Calgary Flames procured the H1N1 vaccine for a private vaccination of team members and their families.

SA launches nude calendar

Lindsay Chambers/Intercamp

Laurie Callsen – news editor

The first thing people tend to think when they hear ‘nude calendar’ is a Playboy Bunny sprawled on a expensive European sports car or a model on the beach with strategically placed sand castles.

The Students’ Association is hoping to break those stereotypes with the Peer Support nude calendar. The project is an initiative by Stephanie Hall, Peer Support co-ordinator for the Centre for the Arts and Communications. Hall said that she wants to do away with the idea of nudity being taboo.

“It’s generally thought of as something men would look at — these women who are portrayed in a negative way.”

Hall was inspired to start the project by her own life goal to pose nude.

She then thought up useful products that people would want to purchase, and came up with the nude calendar.

The project is almost completely student-run. Hall and a team of students are organizing the event, all the models are students and one of two photographers is a student.

Some students have raised the question that promoting a calendar full of naked co-eds is too controversial for an academic institution.

“That’s kind of the whole point — to be controversial. Not everything is going to be agreed upon by everyone but I don’t think this project is hurting anyone. It’s quite the opposite; it’s helping people feel more comfortable with their bodies.”

The photographs of the models won’t be crude or intrusive. Hall said that she only wants the shots to be as revealing as the models want them to be.

“Basically I want it to be just as much as the model feels comfortable. … It’s more like if they don’t feel entirely comfortable revealing anything, then it would be more of the idea of them being naked.”

Models are chosen based on what they hope to get out of being involved in the project. While all the models have already been selected, Hall is still looking for volunteers to help with the launch party.

Calendars will be available sometime in December.

U-Pass vote this spring after city approves price hike

Lindsay Chambers/Intercamp

Laurie Callsen – news editor

The price of the U-Pass could go up to $140 per term over the next three years after city council approved the price increase.

University of Alberta and MacEwan will be headed towards a referendum this spring to decided whether or not to continue using the U-Pass.

Students’ Association President Nils Holmgren said that the referendum is still in the planning stages, but will take place during the spring election for the SA Executive Council.

Holmgren said that only full-time students are able to vote in the referendum, and that resources will be provided so voters can make an educated choice.

Edmonton City Councillor Kim Krushell helped introduce the U-Pass when she was first elected. She hopes students realizes that even if the U-Pass doesn’t help them directly, that it can still help fellow students as well as the environment.

“I feel for those students that have to pay the fee and maybe aren’t benefitting,” she said.

“But I think that fee, even if you’re not using [the U-Pass] is still helping the environment, and we’re not asking for a huge, huge amount.”

The University of Alberta subsidizes their students’ U-Pass fees because the administrators of the university are also using it. “That’s the commitment they’ve made,” said Holmgren.

He said that currently, subsidization is not an option for MacEwan.

The current price of MacEwan’s U-Pass is $97.50 per term, which breaks down to a little over $24 a month.

Even when the U-Pass goes to $140, the price per month will be $35. An ETS monthly pass for post-secondary students is $67.50 a month.

The first U-Pass referendum passed in March 2007, with 73 per cent of MacEwan voters approving the U-Pass.

MacEwan joins University ranks

Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach, MacEwan President Paul Byrne, Board of Govenors Chair Eric Young and Minister of Advanced Education and Technology Doug Horner admire the plauque commemorating Alberta's newest university on Sept. 24, 2009. Photo: Lindsay Chambers

Laurie Callsen – news editor

Finally, MacEwan becomes an University

But despite the change from Grant MacEwan College to Grant MacEwan University on Sept. 24, MacEwan will be sticking to its roots.

“This is a whole step by the province moving to the next-generation economy,” said Premier Ed Stelmach on the name change. “There’s such a huge opportunity for us to build jobs.”

President of the university Paul Byrne said that there will be no significant changes in the operation of the university, class sizes or tuition.

“We will do everything in our power to ensure that we remain focused on the learner.”

The changes that will occur, said Byrne, will be a broader reach across the country and across the globe. Byrne also said that, although MacEwan won’t become a research institution, another change will be an increase of research within the global community. “We’re very focused on helping people.”

Students’ Association President Nils Holmgren emphasized the lack of impact the name change will have on student life while at MacEwan. Life after school, however, could be affected. “It’s going to have so many positive contributions from the name when it comes to international recognition and student employability,” Holmgren said.

MacEwan currently offers college prep, certificate, diploma, degree and applied degrees. “It’s not a hierarchy. It’s a continuum of learning,” said Byrne.

As time progresses, more degree programs will be added to MacEwan’s current five (Bachelor of Child and Youth Care, Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science).

Two degrees are waiting to be added to MacEwan’s bill. The new Bachelor of Music has been approved by the government and is waiting for funding, as well as a Bachelor degree in Communications, which would combine the Journalism diploma and the Professional Writing applied degree program.

MacEwan changed from Grant MacEwan Community College to Grant MacEwan College in 1999.

Financial troubles at MacEwan: Provincial AG

MacEwan’s financial errors and reporting problems were spotlighted in the latest Alberta Auditor General Report.

The college needs to solve staffing and information issues and internal control weaknesses, according to the April-issued report. It also said that MacEwan is at risk of fraud and error going undetected, inaccurate financial information for management and Audit Committee.

Jeff Dumont, Assistant Auditor General, said that some problems such as staffing issues could be dealt with quickly, while more complicated solutions will take some time. He also said that the errors highlighted in the Auditor General report were uncommon for an institute like MacEwan.

“Significant weakness at Grant MacEwan College … indicate an ineffective control environment for a college of its size,” Dumont read from the report.

The Auditor General found four areas with financial errors: Parking fees, Sports and Wellness Centre, sub-ledger reconciliations and capital assets.

There were several instances of incorrect documentations of deposits, so it is unclear if deposits were made or not. Reconciliations (to make one account consistent with another) were either not prepared or were insufficient.

Parking fines totalling $738,000 from 1999 to 2008 weren’t pursued or recorded. A total of $380,000 was written off as uncollectable. There was also failure to collect $54,000 for Plan A passes from the Sport and Wellness Centre.

As well as insufficient reconciliation practices, there were several instances of incorrect coding. $1.8 million was incorrectly coded for the Robbins Health Centre parkade, and other expenses of $1.7 million for other expenses were miscoded.

MacEwan media relations advisor David Beharry was tightlipped about the changes that will be happening to the MacEwan finance system. “There is a task team in place… and we will be making the report to the Auditor General. We won’t be releasing any of the information until we present that report.”

Despite these concerns, the provincial government won’t be changing their MacEwan funding habits. In fact, the Alberta Advanced Education and Technology (AAET) is willing to work with MacEwan to correct the errors in their finances. “We [the AAET] obviously want all colleges, universities, technical institutes to manage financial affairs and student affairs. We want them to be the best they can be,” said Kevin Donnan, spokesperson for the AAET in a phone interview.

MacEwan’s response to the Auditor General will be released sometime in October.

New science labs brighten futures

With roughly 1,000 students in the science program, new science labs have to be built to provide more room for everyone. “We couldn’t take anymore students if we didn’t build new labs,” explained Dr. Pat Sullivan, Associate Dean of the Bachelor of Science program. The first- and second-year students fill up the eight labs that are already in place.

Michael Coney, a second-year Bachelor of Science student specializing in microbiology, molecular genetics and cell-bio technology, said he chose MacEwan for small class sizes and instructors. “You have individual attention the professors can offer.” Coney said that other classes at some universities that he looked at typically had 400 students, while his have 75.

Currently, Science students have to transfer to the University of Alberta for their third and fourth years of study. With the addition of the Bachelor of Science degree, students will be able to complete their entire degree at MacEwan. As the labs complete construction, the rest of the degree program will be offered at MacEwan. “They have to be finished by September of next year or we have nowhere to put the third-year students,” said Sullivan of the construction deadlines.

The first lab to be completed will be the physics lab and should be finished this week.

Speculation builds over “University” name

Mount Royal College became Mount Royal University on Sept. 3, an event attended by the Premier, the Honourable Ed Stelmach and the Minister of Advanced Education and Technology, the Honourable Doug Horner.

Speculation over MacEwan’s own name change was heighten when Mount Royal’s event was tied in with an email from MacEwan’s president Paul Byrne to MacEwan staff. The email said “[The college is] working closely with the Ministry to hold a similar event at MacEwan later this month”.

MacEwan and Mount Royal were allowed to apply for University status under an amendment to the Post-Secondary Learning Act, which stated that post-secondary schools that offered baccalaureate degrees could be called Universities.

When asked for comment on this development, Media Relations advisor David Beharry stressed that the name change is only hypothetical. “We need to be patient and wait for the announcement,” he said when asked about how MacEwan will change if it becomes a university.

Students’ Association President Nils Holmgren believes that national and international recognition would grow if MacEwan had University status. “[It] could greatly benefit students who are looking to transfer to other institutions around the globe, it could increase study abroad opportunities for students and positively affect their employability when competing for employment with other University graduates. It could also lead to higher enrollment and further expansion of degree, diploma, and certificate programs in the future.”

Students hope that the potential name change won’t change the MacEwan environment. “I think it’s just as good as any university,” said Sandra Skalbeck, a design student. “MacEwan is more laid back.”

Music student Lauren Blench stressed that the programs are what post-secondary universities are about. She had looked at the University of Alberta before coming to MacEwan. “[The U of A] is more prestigious, but they didn’t have the program I wanted, and that’s what’s important.”

So far there is no word on when the “similar event” will be held at MacEwan.