June 2007
June 7, 2007
Partnerships & Pathways to Aboriginal Success ConferenceThompson Rivers University has organized and is hosting a conference that will bring together representatives of regional First Nations to discuss and address ways to encourage and increase enrolment of Aboriginal students in post-secondary institutions, explore factors that will lead to success for Aboriginal students, and examine ways to develop greater awareness of Aboriginal history and culture among all students at the university.
TRU has invited world-class experts to present and facilitate discussion on the following topics:
- Improving Aboriginal student support services
- Increasing Aboriginal enrolments
- Improving Aboriginal post-secondary success rates
- Partnering to build self-government
- Supporting economic development
- Developing greater awareness of Aboriginal history and culture
DATES: June 11-12, 2007
LOCATION: Thompson Rivers University Campus Activity Centre, Kamloops B.C.
Keynote Speaker - Monday evening
- Phil Fontaine, National Chief Assembly of First Nations
Speakers and Discussion Group Facilitators: Monday and Tuesday
- Dr. Stelomethet Ethel Gardner, chair of the department of Aboriginal education, Lakehead University
- Michelle PenOziequah Aguilara-Wells, director of the Reservation Based/Community Determined Program, Evergreen State College
- Professor Leroy Little Bear, visiting professor, University of Lethbridge and former director of the American Indian Program, Harvard University
- Dr. C.T. (Manny) Jules, chair of the Indian Taxation Advisory Board
- Dr. Makere Harawira, assistant professor, Faculty of Education (policy studies), U of Alberta
Media are invited to attend the conference to interview the speakers.
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June 7, 2007
TRU volleying to host national championshipsKAMLOOPS-Canadian Interuniversity Sport announced on Wednesday the reception of 13 bid proposals from universities to host national championships in five different sports in 2009, 2010 and 2011, including one from Thompson Rivers University to host the men's volleyball nationals in 2010 and 2011.
This latest round of bidding for CIS Nationals included women's soccer (2009, 2010), men's soccer (2009, 2010), swimming (2010), women's volleyball (2010, 2011) and men's volleyball (2010, 2011).
The next step in the selection process will be the bid presentations to the Selection Committee in Ottawa on June 26th. The Selection Committee will be appointed by the CIS Board of Directors and its make-up will include the following voting members: President or alternate, Vice-President Marketing or alternate, Vice-President Sport or alternate, up to four additional CIS members, and up to two external experts.
A final decision on all championships up for bid should be announced in early July, 2007.
The CIS volleyball Nationals drew interest from four institutions including Trinity Western, which bid for both the women and men's tournaments for a two-year period (2010, 2011).
In men's volleyball, TWU's competition will come from Thompson Rivers, which joined CIS in 2005-06. Both schools have never hosted the championship and are hoping to attract the event to its hometown for two years in 2010 and 2011.
The men's volleyball Nationals will be hosted by Laval in Quebec City in 2008 and by Alberta in Edmonton in 2009.
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For more information, please contact:
Ken Olynyk (TRU Athletics Director) at 250-828-5273 or 250-320-4263.
Michel Bélanger (CIS Communications Manager) at 613-562-5670 ext. 25 or 613-447-6334
The
CIS National Championship Bid Book 
, including selection criteria.
June 7, 2007
Two thousand and seven graduates in 2007
Thompson Rivers University is awarding an estimated 2007 diplomas, degrees and certificates from over 50 graduate and undergraduate degree options and more than 50 different career diploma and job entry certificate programs.
At each of the four convocation ceremonies in Kamloops on June 7 and 8, attendees will hear from honorary degree recipients, valedictorians and see the medal winner from each class lead their procession across the stage.
Beneath the mortarboard caps, the beaming faces of the graduates speak to their pride in their academic accomplishments. B
ut there is more to the university experience than a credential.
"Think of their leaving university not only with a degree diploma or certificate but with a rich group of networks, experiences, successes and confidence built through doing," said Roger Barnsley, President and Vice-Chancellor.
Undergraduate research opportunities, hands-on-involvement in quality construction projects, student leadership, co-op and Study Abroad are some of the ways students add value to their credentials.
"Think of these graduates holistically and inclusive of what they have achieved, with skills, education and experiences that prepare them for life," Dr. Barnsley said, reflecting on the graduating students.
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June 11, 2007
TRU WolfPack WVB welcomes two more KAMLOOPS-The Thompson Rivers University WolfPack women's volleyball team welcomes two more recruits this week.
Amanda Loree, a 6' left side who graduates from Pleasant Valley Secondary in Armstrong this month, is enrolled in TRU's Bachelor of Arts degree program. Amanda is an exceptional scholar athlete who has excelled in the classroom and on the court. As well as attaining honour roll status and work habits awards throughout her high school years, she was named her school's top female athlete four years in a row and received both basketball and volleyball awards in 2002, 2004, 2005 and 2006, and her school's soccer award in 2005.
A member of the BC Summer Games Volleyball Team in 2004 and the BC Provincial Team Volleyball in 2005, Amanda was a member in 2006 and 2007 of the Kamloops U18 Volleyball Team, where she was named a volleyball Valley Championship Allstar in 2006 and helped her team to a 3rd place finish at the 2007 BC Provincial Club Volleyball Championships.
"We are pleased to have Amanda join the WolfPack this season," said head coach Carrie Barrett. "Amanda is a great student and a terrific athlete. At 6'0 and agile, Amanda has a lot of versatility which is a great asset in supporting the needs of our program. I suspect that we will see a lot of Amanda as she gains experience at the CIS level."
Also joining the WolfPack for the 2007-08 season is 5'7" setter Taylor Hall, a Grade 12 grad at Burnaby Mountain Secondary school who comes with impeccable volleyball credentials.
Taylor has played for and captained Burnaby Mountain Volleyball teams since grade eight, played for and captained the X Volleyball Club from 2002-2005, and was a member and captain of the Synergy Volleyball Club U17 Provincial Champion team. Taylor was also a member of the BC Summer Games Zone 4 team in 2004, helped her team to an 11th place at the 2005 high school provincials, and was a member and captain of the Synergy U18 team and a member of the 2006 U18 Team BC.
"We are glad that Taylor had made to decision to join the WolfPack team next season," said Barrett. "She is a great student and athlete with a tremendous work ethic. Her enthusiasm, talent and dedication are great assets for our program and I know that Taylor will push our team to continue to excel."
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For more information, please contact:
Amanda Loree at 250-546-9581 or
by email.
Taylor Hall at 604-420-1521 or 604-444-4131 or
by email.
Carrie Barrett at 250-371-5735 or 250-318-0789 or
by email.
June 13, 2007
TRU instructor ‘dad’ to 13 Thai orphansKAMLOOPS- Dave Wharf, a heavy-duty mechanics apprentice instructor who took a two-year leave from his teaching duties at Thompson Rivers University to work with orphans in Thailand along with his wife, Terry, is back in the city for a couple of months to fundraise for Thai orphans for a second time.
After a year of fundraising in 2005/06, the Wharfs, who had connected with the El Shaddai 2 orphanage, located at SiRacha, about two hours SE of Bangkok, on a previous visit, returned in September 2006 to help to finish the building and provide its furnishings. The two have been building beds, cupboards, tables and chairs, and re-building the kitchen, including purchasing a new fridge and stove suitable for 30+ children.
Dave also worked at many mechanical projects that were needed to keep vehicles operating properly for the home and other ministries including rebuilding a Jeep CJ 7 that had been apart for many years, while Terry worked in the office on many accounting projects, just getting things updated.
Around Christmas the pair received funds from Canadian supporters and local missionaries that allowed them to purchase gifts for the children.
“If not for that money, it would have been a bleak Christmas,” said Dave. “Our son, daughter and son-in-law also arrived, bearing gifts for the children from Kamloops supporters as well as a huge ham (still frozen) to add to two turkeys for Christmas dinner. Terry and I hosted all El 2, local missionaries, some El 1 kids (grown up) and whoever else we found that had nowhere to go for Christmas dinner, 56 in total.”
Even if they had the money, the children wouldn’t have been lining up for holiday sales: “The children had to go to school Christmas day and Boxing day for exams so they didn’t open their gifts until after supper,” explained Dave.
The following month saw the Wharfs providing transportation for bible college students and staff to the northwestern border region and camping in the jungle for two weeks, ministering to local villages.
“We visited one to two villages a day, many times just spending the whole day in one village. On our way home we passed a Karin refugee camp of approx 150,000 people living along the border,” said Dave.
In February the Wharfs returned to the orphanage to discover that the guardians of the home wanted to move on.
“With the lease up on the rented house and the new building still not ready, the children all moved in with us,” said Dave, adding that they had only four beds for 13 children.
“That started our duties more as mom and dad than uncle and aunt (as they all call us). We now feed, clothe, take to school, shop, do laundry, pick up from school, etc, every day of the week,” he said.
“We also had to take over the new building project in January, as the contractor ran into financial problems and walked away from the project. Terry has been painting rooms, I’ve been installing electrical panels, water heaters and finishing plumbing while the children have been at school. We all, children included, have worked on hauling concrete supplies to the roof, backfilling with buckets etc. We finally moved in to the home, still lacking screens, drapes, paint, and even some windows in mid-May. We’ll finish things as we go from now on.”
At the same time, Dave and Terry also plan to make some trips up to the jungle areas, particularly the Golden Triangle area where most of the children have come from, to find orphaned children and bring them back to the home. They'll also be teaching the children English and teaching the villagers and older children some practical trade skills.
“When the house is finished, we'll look at adding more children and possibly bringing some over to Kamloops to finish high school and possibly some training at TRU. This will of course take time and more supporters,” said Dave.
Dave and Terry, who are paying for all their own expenses such as rent, food, travel, fuel etc, hope to raise enough money to finish off the home and get everything running properly.
The Wharfs are interested in speaking to any organizations or service groups about their activities and experiences in Thailand. They also urge people to send donations to A&D World Missions, PO Box 26010, Lethbridge Alberta, T1H 6H4, and label the donation for El Shaddai 2 children’s home. Dave notes that A&D World Missions uses only 1 per cent of donations for administrative expenses, with the rest going directly to the orphanages. Tax receipts can be issued if donors wish.
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For more information, call Dave Wharf at 250-319-7354 or 250-828-1994, or by email,
Dave or
Terry or visit
www.terryanddave.blogspot.com to view some of the Wharf’s Thailand activities.
A+D World Missions Canada can be contacted at 1-800-958-3352
June 15, 2007
TRU student works at international exhibitionKAMLOOPS-Five second-year screen printing students at Thompson Rivers University have been accepted into the 6th
Lessedra World Art Print Annual Mini Print 2007, to be held in Bulgaria June 7 to August 31.
The five students, of whom three are Canadian and two international, are among 641 artists from 58 countries whose work will be showcased at the event.
The students and their works are:
CHRISTINE STALKER, Canada
1. Energy, 2007, Silk Screen, 11,8 x 15 cm - 90
KRISTIN PASSMORE, Canada
1. IKEA: Instructions Sold Separately, 2007, Silk Screen, 22 x 14 cm - 90
2. BITE, 2007, Hard Ground Etching, 22,3 x 15 cm - 90
3. Canada Post, 2007, Photo Etching, 10, 7 x 15,7 cm - 50
LYDIA MCANDREW, Canada
1. Touch Me, 2007, Silk Screen, 13 x 15 cm - 100
2. Here` s The Church, 2007, Silk Screen, 14,5 x 16,5 cm - 130
3. The Hamilton Spectator, 2007, Silk Screen, 14 x 20,5 cm - 100
TAEKO OKAMOTO, Japan
1. My Special Leaves, 2007, Silk Screen, 18,6 x 20,6 cm - 70
2. This Is Who I Am, 2007, Etching, 11,2 x 17,7 cm - 70
3. Across Culture, 2007, Etching, 10 x 10 cm - 50
XIAO HAN, China
1. In The Afternoon, 2007, Silk Screen, 14 x 13,5 cm - 70
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For more information, please contact:
Ila Crawford
Instructor, Visual and Performing Arts
Phone: 250-371-5706
Or go to: http://www.lessedra.com/annual.php
June 14, 2007
New TRU Vice-President, Advancement excited to be returning home
KAMLOOPS - President Roger Barnsley is pleased to announce the appointment of Christopher Seguin to the new position of Vice-President, Advancement at Thompson Rivers University. Seguin, who will officially join TRU in July from Simon Fraser University, is a former graduate of Kamloops Secondary School (now SKSS) who's excited to be returning home to the community where his family still resides.
The announcement is the culmination of a nationwide search that saw applications from across Canada and abroad, and marks the beginning of a new era for TRU. Over the next year, the new Advancement Office will bring together the TRU Foundation and the TRU Alumni Association within the university, along with the public relations office.
A 'Golden K' award winner who was active in drama and athletics during his days at Kam High, Christopher Seguin attended Simon Fraser University on a football scholarship. As an honours graduate from the Faculty of Arts at SFU, he focused on international studies during his academic career, and later worked as a cultural liaison in the SFU International Education department. Over the past twelve years, Seguin established his expertise in a number of development and fundraising positions at SFU, and since 2001 has been the Advancement Officer for university athletics at SFU, playing a major role in several multi-million dollar capital fundraising projects and grants.
"I'm excited by the tremendous potential of TRU in terms of raising funds for major capital projects, such as the proposed new Library and First Nations House of Learning" said Seguin, "and I also know the importance of creating more funds to support students through scholarships and bursaries."
Seguin is also excited about returning to the only community he has ever called home. Raised in a family connected to the mining industry, he attended 13 different elementary schools around the country before finally arriving in Kamloops.
"It's fantastic to return to the place where I found home," said Seguin, "and this exciting new opportunity at the most exciting university in Canada is a dream come true for me."
"I look forward to meeting and working with the people who have built the Foundation and Alumni Association, and will look to them to help create the team of advocates we need to champion our causes around British Columbia and beyond.
"Advancement is about team success, and our team is the institution and the city. I am anxious to get to know the leaders within our community, the people who can step forward and help open doors and create the relationships we need to develop across Canada and around the world, in support of every aspect of this amazing university."
Seguin also invites local community members and leaders to contact him directly at any time, even prior to his arrival, if they have any questions or ideas regarding to the opportunities for advancing the university and the community on the provincial and national stage.
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For more information:
Christopher Seguin, Vice-President, Advancement: phone 604.307.8277
Josh Keller, Director, TRU Communications: phone 250.851.6843
Photo available by email.
For Immediate Release-June 18, 2007
Social justice focus of major new TRU student awardKAMLOOPS-Thompson Rivers University (TRU) students will learn the value of acting according to their social consciences thanks to the establishment of a generous award by a well-known Canadian couple.
Monia Mazigh and husband Maher Arar will establish a sizable scholarship at TRU, where Mazigh has taught for the past year.
"We have been thinking for a while how to best give back to the Kamloops community," explained Mazigh. "We want to encourage students to be socially responsible and active while maintaining high academic standing, and we found that TRU was the best place in Kamloops to allow us to achieve these objectives."
The Mazigh's gift, a scholarship of $2000 per year, is one of the Foundation's most significant commitments in terms of annual award value, as most annual awards are $1000 and under. It includes in its criteria requirements that the student be an academic achiever as well as actively involved in furthering social equality, the elimination of racism and racial profiling and the improvement of the lives of the poor, among other causes.
"We believe in encouraging social responsibility and community involvement. We hope this scholarship will motivate students to be both academically exceptional and socially active," said Arar.
"As the TRU Foundation celebrates 25 years of support for students and to the university, we are honoured to have such a meaningful gift made to the Foundation for such significant purposes," said Foundation executive director Kathleen Biagioni. "We look forward to TRU students making a difference, locally, as they are inspired by Maher Arar and Monia Mazigh to engage in social justice issues."
Applications for the scholarship, which will be offered for the first time in November, 2008, will be adjudicated by a committee comprised of former Dean of Arts and English professor, Professor Emeritus Henry Hubert and two TRU faculty members, Gail McKay, an assistant professor in the School of Business and Economics and Nelaine Mora-Diez, an assistant professor in the chemistry department.
"We would like to thank the TRU Foundation and everyone who was involved in setting up this scholarship," said Mazigh, who offered some final words to those wanting to know of a simple, doable action that any person could do to further social justice in Canada and the world:
"Write a letter to the local newspaper whenever you hear about injustice being committed locally, nationally or internationally," urged Mazigh, who knows well the power of the written word through her campaign on her husband's behalf.
Mazigh and Arar, who have made headlines around the world related to the campaign mounted by Mazigh to bring her husband home to Canada from the Syrian jail in which he was incarcerated as a suspected terrorist, and her subsequent call to the Canadian government to launch an inquiry into the matter, with the result that in October 2006, Judge O'Connor cleared Arar of any suspicion related to terrorism, received an apology and compensation from the Canadian government in January 2007.
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For more information, please contact:
Monia Mazigh at 250-828-5156
Dayanti at 613-265-7530
Kathleen Biagioni at 250-828-5266.
For Immediate Release-June 18, 2007
TRU faculty member wins National Playwriting Competition with "Still Life With Nudes" KAMLOOPS-TRU faculty member, playwright George Johnson has won top honours at the National Playwriting Competition sponsored by the Regina Little Theatre, for his one act comedy "Still Life With Nudes."
Johnson, who teaches modern British drama and creative writing at Thompson Rivers University, says the play parodies contemporary installation art and upends stereotypes of the elderly.
"The characters are based on some very feisty local seniors I know at the Kamloops United Church," Johnson said. "And the setting is inspired by the Tate Modern Art Gallery in London, which was a former power generating station."
Johnson expressed his thanks to his creative writing students at TRU with whom he workshopped the play, and dedicated the work to his mother, an artist in Ontario.
Mary Blackstone, a professor at the University of Regina's Theatre Department, and one of the adjudicators, said "Still Life with Nudes makes an important statement about how our perceptions of older people need to change-and it does this in a way that creates entertaining drama for all ages."
Another adjudicator, well-known Canadian playwright Colleen Murphy, added, "This play is a winning combination of engaging characters, smart dialogue, witty interaction, very solid
dramatic structure and, most importantly, a lot of heart. Congratulations to the author!"
In the play, when Betty Dilliwick's Gauginesque still life with nudes paintings are rejected for hanging, she and fellow pensioners storm the offending bastion of contemporary art, the Blotchley Leisure Centre and Art Gallery; they install themselves until the decision is reversed.
Besides the award presented in Regina on June 16, the play won the Gladys Cameron Watt Award in the 67th Canadian One Act Playwriting Competition sponsored by the Ottawa Little Theatre earlier this year. It is also currently one of three finalists in the McLaren Memorial Comedy Play Writing Competition, sponsored by the Midland Community Theatre, Midland, Texas.
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For more information contact:
George Johnson (250) 579-8655 or
by email.
Regina Little Theatre Board member Blaine Lucyk, (306) 761-0164.
More details at:
http://www.reginalittletheatre.com/season0607/playwright/default.htm
June 26, 2007
Joint Release from: Thompson Rivers University (TRU) and the
TRU Faculty Association (TRUFA)
Agreement reached on mandatory retirement issue at TRU KAMLOOPS - Thompson Rivers University and the TRU Faculty Association are pleased to announce that an agreement has been reached on mandatory retirement.
Through a series of meetings over the past two weeks, the parties have agreed to end mandatory retirement effective July 1, 2007, which will give seven faculty members facing retirement this year the option to stay with the university. Additionally, as part of the agreement, all outstanding grievances related to the issue of mandatory retirement have been resolved.
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For more information contact:
Josh Keller, Director Marketing & Communications
at 250-828-5008 or
by email.
TRU researcher awarded $50,000 grant to help bridge literacy gapJune 26, 2007
KAMLOOPS-Thompson Rivers University education professor Dr. Lynne Wiltse has been awarded a $50,884 research grant from the
Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) to improve the academic literacy of intermediate students in Kamloops' inner-city schools.
The three-year research project, Creating Third Spaces for Minority Language Learners in a School-University-Community Research Collaboration, will build upon a pilot project conducted during the past school year. TRU education students from Wiltse's Language and Literacy courses were paired with students from an inner-city school in two literacy projects.
"There have been several initiatives addressing the issue of improving literacy for 'at-risk' primary students," explained Wiltse. "However, studies show students who make gains through these early interventions often experience difficulty with academic literacy during the intermediate grades (4-7), fueling the phenomenon known as the 'fourth grade slump.' In these grades, vocabulary and concepts in content areas such as science become more complex."
"It is a great honour for a researcher to receive a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council," said TRU's associate vice-president of research and graduate studies, Dr. Nancy Van Wagoner. "These are among the most competitive awards in Canada."
"Lynne's work exemplifies the importance of TRU research to the community, and the close, if not inseparable, connection between university teaching and research," she added.
Wiltse, who received a teaching excellence award from the university in May, explained that the study will examine ways to merge the out-of-school literacy resources with school literacy practices for intermediate-aged Aboriginal and other non-mainstream students in an inner-city school in Kamloops.
The grant supports one of 841 new university-based research projects funded in Canada by SSHRC and was recently announced by the agency's president Chad Gaffield, who received an honorary doctorate from TRU earlier this month.
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For more information contact:
Dr. Lynne Wiltse at 250.371.5565 or
by email.
June 29, 2007
TRU to host CIS men's volleyball Nationals KAMLOOPS - Thompson Rivers University athletics, and specifically the men's volleyball program, received some outstanding news when
Canadian Interuniversity Sport announced that it has selected TRU to host the 2010 CIS men's volleyball National Championship.
This will mark the first time the men's volleyball tournament has graced the courts of British Columbia since UBC hosted in 1983, and it will be the start of at least two years of national-level varsity volleyball in BC, as Trinity Western University has been selected to organize the 2011 men's volleyball tournament.
Although TRU has never hosted a CIS championship, this is not unfamiliar ground for both the university and the city of Kamloops. Along with the new first-class Tournament Capital facilities, Thompson Rivers University has a long and distinguished history of hosting high quality events in the BCCAA and the CCAA. In addition, the
City of Kamloops is known for its enthusiastic volunteer base and supportive businesses when hosting regional, provincial, national, and international events.
"I am very excited about hosting the 2010 men's national volleyball championships, and it is great for TRU and the City of Kamloops," says TRU Director of Athletics, Ken Olynyk. "With the new facility, the Tournament Capital Centre, and the support of TRU and the city of Kamloops, I know this will be a benchmark championship."
The Okanagan-Thompson Region is a new market for the CIS and the city of Kamloops is an untapped market as Thompson Rivers University has only been competing in the CIS for two years.
WolfPack men's volleyball is very active in the interior of BC, hosting camps and exhibition games, and with TRU's hosting of the 2010 CIS men's volleyball championship, the CIS stands to gain exposure and interest from a largely untapped market. The nearest CIS institution is University College of the Fraser Valley, which lies 270 km west of Kamloops.
"As a member of the CIS I believe it is important for us to support our own organization and one way in which we can do that is to bid to host the national championships," said Olynyk.
Hosting the CIS men's volleyball championship will showcase the top Canadian university student-athletes in the interior region of BC, giving younger athletes a goal to aspire toward. As High Performance Director of Volleyball BC, Steve Manuel, said, "Over 20 years have passed since a men's CIS volleyball championship was hosted in BC. I believe that this is one factor for the recent decline in the number of boys playing volleyball, particularly in British Columbia's interior region. A key component in the development of a sport at the youth level is to host high-profile events."
"This is definitely a boost for men's volleyball, not only in Kamloops but also the interior of BC," said TRU WolfPack assistant men's volleyball coach Chad Grimm.
"Kamloops has always been a great host to large sporting events such as this, and I look forward to having men's volleyball play a starring role in an event of this calibre. Hosting this event will help increase participation in boy's volleyball in our area. It will also benefit our recruiting for the future and act as motivation for our current players to reach the elite level it will take to compete for a medal in 2010 in front of our home fans."
"Our team should be a veteran team in 2010 and a team that will take a serious run at being national champions," added Olynyk.
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For more information, please contact Ken Olynyk at 250-828-5273 or 250-320-4263 or
by email.