Newsletter 2006

TRU Opens Centre for the Study of Canada

On July 1, 2005, Acting Dean of Arts Dr. John Belshaw announced the creation of Thompson Rivers University's Centre for the Study of Canada (CSC). The CSC will incorporate interested members of the TRU community whose research is focused on Canadian issues and themes. It is an interdisciplinary group drawn from across campus who make use of the Centre to facilitate further connections with members of the TRU community, whether they are based in Kamloops, Williams Lake, throughout the Cariboo region, or in the virtual classroom of the Open Learning Division of Thompson Rivers University. The CSC is led by a board of the four Canadianists who comprise the Canadian Studies Programme and three adjunct board members: Dr. James Hoffman, Professor of Theatre and Chair of Visual and Performing Arts;  University of Alberta Professor Emeritus Dr. Tom Pocklington;  and Dr. Uli Scheck, TRU Dean of Arts.

Meet the Canadian Studies Program Faculty

Anne Gagnon: Anne balances her professional development between teaching classes for the Kamloops Adult Learners Society at the Henry Grube Centre where she has offered a variety of Canadian subjects such as a Pre-confederation course, Quebec History, and Women’s history and researching for her current publication, an article about French Canadians' use of folk medicine in Alberta at the turn of the twentieth century.  
 
Terry Kading: In addition to teaching Political Science, Terry contributed a chapter entitled “Drawn into 9/11, But where have all the Superheroes Gone?” in the recently published book Comics as Philosophy, and his most recent published articles include "Negotiating the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA): From Liberal Idealism to Realist Power Politics and Canada" and "The Hemisphere: The Summit of the Americas Process and the Free Trade Area of the Americas".

Ginny Ratsoy: In 2006, Ginny presented papers at TRU Teaching Practices Colloquium, the provincial ABE conference, the ACTR Congress, and the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. Spring, 2006 also marked the launch
of Theatre in British Columbia, a book of scholarly essays she edited. She is also a CURA researcher.

Martin Whittles: With help from his CSC Service Learning students, Martin coordinated the highly successful ImagiNative Art exhibition held across the TRU campus. His most recent publication was the book chapter entitled "From Noble Collectivist to Rugged Individual: Non-Inuit Contact Narratives in context" in the book First Nations in North America: Politics and
Representations. In May, Dr. Whittles was awarded the 2006 TRU Distinguished Service Award.