N N UNCORKING NEW WINE AND DESIGN PAGE 7 NIAGARA NEWS NIAGARA KNIGHTS HONOUR THEIR BEST PAGE 15 CALLING ALL NEW STUDENTS PAGES 8-9 APRIL 17, 2015 • VOL. 46 ISSUE 13 niagara-news.com NEW WORLD RECORD AS EASY AS PIE ... AND CUPCAKES ... AND BROWNIES ... Party guests huddle around Willow Cakes and Pastries’ dessert table, one of the many dessert venues, to obtain one of their three desserts to break the Guinness World’s Record for the largest dessert party. The event took place on April 1 at the Niagara-on-the-Lake campus. See stories and photos on page 16. PHOTO BY JEREMIAH LINK $1.2- million donation for new building By CHRISTOPHER GERICS Staff Writer Niagara College received its largest ever corporate donation in the sum of $1.2 million from the Walker family, and its corporation Walker Industries Holding Limited. The donation will help fund the construction, at the Welland campus, of the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Centre. Due to the generosity of the Walker family, it will be formally named the Walker Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Centre. It is a crucial element toward Niagara College’s $55-million Capital Vision 2016 expansion project. The announcement was made in front of over 600 business, education and community leaders as well as college staff, at the 26 th annual Seafood Gala on April 11. Niagara College President Dan Patterson expressed immense gratitude to the Walker family. “All of us at Niagara Col- lege are extremely grateful to the Walker family and Walker Industries for their generosity,” Patterson said. Continued on page 7 How to open college doors for everyone Working on accessibility but some students say there’s more to be done By LAURA BARTON Staff Writer There are plenty of ob- stacles but Niagara College has taken on the challenge of making its buildings and programs accessible to all students, including those with disabilities. By the year 2025, the pro- vincial government’s goal is for all businesses, which includes public institutions, to be accessible for per- sons with disabilities. The standards for this fall under the Accessibility for Ontar- ians with Disabilities Act (AODA), which addresses physical mobility, intellectu- al and mental health issues. For the college, imple- menting these regulations began in 2010 according to Colleen Lovell, the human resources consultant for both of Niagara College’s campuses. She said the col- lege was required to train educators to comply with the legislation. “We deemed that every employee in the college is an educator in some facet, even the administrators and the support staff,” said Lovell. A number of measures have been taken by the college to ensure differ- ent learning materials and methods are available to students. Rhys Evans, a Recreation Therapy student at the Welland campus, was born with cerebral palsy and gets help taking notes and get- ting to his classes from an educational assistant. However, when it comes to his ability to get around the school on his own, he needs help. Evans describes the ramps in the school as being “too steep” for wheel- chairs and said there isn’t enough leverage to get up the ramps on his own. “I holler at different kids, ask kids to help me,” he said. “The annoying part of it is having to ask random people. Like, I shouldn’t have to do that.” He said when he does this he feels he is bother- ing people because he is taking up some of their time when they potentially have other places to go and other things to do. Sarah Hirniak, another Recreational Therapy stu- dent, also describes having issues with the ramps here. “The ramps are really bad,” she said and adds, “Es- pecially Merritt Wing going up to the second floor. We actually have to have classes moved down from there.” Hirniak, who has general- ized dystonia and epilepsy, uses a power wheelchair and said that the ramp is too steep and she can’t ma- nipulate the turn very well. Continued on Page 2 The Walker family helps to advance innovation
Transcript
NN UNCORKING NEW WINE AND DESIGN
PAGE 7
NIAGARA NEWS
NIAGARA KNIGHTS HONOUR
THEIR BEST PAGE 15
CALLING ALL NEW
STUDENTS PAGES 8-9
APRIL 17, 2015 • VOL. 46 ISSUE 13
niagara-news.com
NEW WORLD RECORD AS EASY AS PIE ... AND CUPCAKES ... AND BROWNIES ...
Party guests huddle around Willow Cakes and Pastries’ dessert table, one of the many dessert venues, to obtain one of their three desserts to break the Guinness World’s Record for the largest dessert party. The event took place on April 1 at the Niagara-on-the-Lake campus. See stories and photos on page 16. PHOTO BY JEREMIAH LINK
$1.2- million donation for new building
By CHRISTOPHER GERICSStaff Writer
Niagara College received its largest ever corporate donation in the sum of $1.2 million from the Walker family, and its corporation Walker Industries Holding Limited.
The donation will help fund the construction, at the Welland campus, of the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Centre. Due to the generosity of the Walker family, it will be formally named the Walker Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Centre.
It is a crucial element toward Niagara College’s $55-million Capital Vision 2016 expansion project. The announcement was made in front of over 600 business, education and community leaders as well as college staff, at the 26th annual Seafood Gala on April 11.
Niagara College President Dan Patterson expressed immense gratitude to the Walker family.
“All of us at Niagara Col-lege are extremely grateful to the Walker family and Walker Industries for their generosity,” Patterson said.
Continued on page 7
How to open college doors for everyoneWorking on accessibility but some students say there’s more to be done By LAURA BARTONStaff Writer
There are plenty of ob-stacles but Niagara College has taken on the challenge of making its buildings and programs accessible to all students, including those with disabilities.
By the year 2025, the pro-vincial government’s goal is for all businesses, which includes public institutions, to be accessible for per-sons with disabilities. The standards for this fall under the Accessibility for Ontar-ians with Disabilities Act (AODA), which addresses physical mobility, intellectu-al and mental health issues.
For the college, imple-menting these regulations
began in 2010 according to Colleen Lovell, the human resources consultant for both of Niagara College’s campuses. She said the col-lege was required to train educators to comply with the legislation.
“We deemed that every employee in the college is an educator in some facet, even the administrators and the support staff,” said Lovell.
A number of measures have been taken by the college to ensure differ-ent learning materials and methods are available to students.
Rhys Evans, a Recreation Therapy student at the Welland campus, was born with cerebral palsy and gets
help taking notes and get-ting to his classes from an educational assistant.
However, when it comes to his ability to get around the school on his own, he needs help. Evans describes the ramps in the school as being “too steep” for wheel-
chairs and said there isn’t enough leverage to get up the ramps on his own.
“I holler at different kids, ask kids to help me,” he said. “The annoying part of it is having to ask random people. Like, I shouldn’t have to do that.”
He said when he does this he feels he is bother-ing people because he is taking up some of their time when they potentially have other places to go and other things to do.
Sarah Hirniak, another Recreational Therapy stu-dent, also describes having issues with the ramps here.
“The ramps are really bad,” she said and adds, “Es-pecially Merritt Wing going up to the second floor. We actually have to have classes moved down from there.”
Hirniak, who has general-ized dystonia and epilepsy, uses a power wheelchair and said that the ramp is too steep and she can’t ma-nipulate the turn very well.
Continued on Page 2
The Walker family helps to advance innovation
Page 2 NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015
Continued from page 1 There is also a ramp near
the Learning Commons with a very sharp turn, which makes it difficult for her to navigate.
Washrooms are an-other challenge for those in wheelchairs, Hirniak stated.
“There’s actually only three washrooms in the school I can use and they’re all designated for somebody with a wheelchair.”
Of the other restrooms in the school, she said the doors are too small for her wheelchair to fit through. So whether there is a stall for persons with disabilities or not, she can’t get into the facility.
“I have said stuff to [Facilities Management Ser-
vices] and to SAC [Student Administrative Council], and it just never seems to go anywhere,” Hirniak said.
Susan McConnell, a Niagara College spokes-person, said on behalf of FMS, “A significant portion
of the Welland campus was constructed in the 1960s and 1970s, and while the buildings met the standards of the day they now require upgrades to meet current accessibility standards, and our work in this area is ongoing.”
According to Lovell, there is no government funding for making sure an estab-lishment complies with the AODA and each department must pay for the changes and renovations itself.
Overall, the experience is a frustrating one for the students waiting for these changes to occur. Evans said he knows students who have dropped out because they couldn’t access the entire school on their own.
“I feel comfortable advo-cating for myself,” Evans said, “but there’s some people that don’t feel com-fortable doing that.”
He goes so far as to say, “You’re basically saying to a population of people with disabilities, ‘we don’t want you here.’”
McConnell addressed the students’ concerns by saying, “We value feedback from our students – in fact it’s an important part of our process for identify-ing accessibility issues and challenges that need to be addressed. Any student who has a concern or issue with the accessibility of campus facilities should contact the Office of the Director of Student Services.”
NEWS
Students in wheelchairs face uphill battle with ramps, doors
Rhys Evans and Sarah Hirniak struggle in their wheelchairs to navigate the Welland campus, raising questions about Niagara College’s compliance with disability legislation. PHOTO BY LAURA BARTON
By SIERRA VOLPEStaff Writer
April is the month that every college and university student dreads but antici-pates. They long for the summer but hate the study-ing and exams. Schools usu-ally bring in therapy dogs to help relieve the students of their stress and free their minds.
University of Waterloo student Cassy Hicks says this year has been the most stressful so far being a biol-ogy major. “I have to study twice as hard as I did last year and cut open twice as many things, remember twice as many symbols,” the
20-year-old said. “I have never been this stressed out about anything in my life.”
The workload in universi-ty is tough to handle. There needs to be so much done in so little time. According to Hicks, most Waterloo professors have been try-ing to limit the amount of workload given to students and have also been trying to communicate more with other professors and tutors to not have so many assign-ments due in one day.
College is a whole dif-ferent story. Students are expected to be finishing up last-minute assignments while worrying about exams. Classes run much
longer than university. Rachel Wachner, a
Niagara College student currently studying Medical Administration, is juggling two full-time jobs along with being a full-time student. “It is definitely very difficult balancing out everything I’ve committed to,” said the 19-year-old. “But this is just a way of life. You have to learn how to prioritize.” Wachner does yoga on her spare time to de-stress herself from all the chaos.
Being a college student compared to a university is not so different. In fact, university students say that college students have it
easier than them, and vice-versa. It is an argument that can go on forever.
This is also a time where students looking to further their education are becom-ing stressed.
Madison Evans, 20, said that preparing for post sec-ondary is very hard. “I am working so much just to ap-ply to school.” Evans argued that the application process should be much easier and more affordable than it is.
This time of the year is stressful for everyone and everyone can agree. It proves you need motivation in your life to keep you go-ing and to keep you striving towards success.
By KEIOSHA SPARKSStaff Writer
As the semester ends, students start looking for summer employment and it won’t be easy. It’s all the more difficult for interna-tional students. They can find help at Niagara Col-lege’s International Depart-ment.
Michael Wentao-Wang, a student here, explains how he applies for summer employment. “I go to the In-ternational Centre and they help with my resumé and to find a job,” said Wang. The centre is on the bottom floor of the Simcoe building at the Welland campus. It provides help for students looking for employment, and offers jobs at the centre and around the school.
“At this department, right now, we have student help-ers and there is plenty of job opportunities around the school,” said Michele Ruicci, an academic adviser for international students. Working there is only part-time because they want the students to focus on school and not work as much.
Ruicci is a previous stu-dent at Niagara College and this wasn’t the only depart-ment in which he worked.
“We start them off by getting them to volunteer at the school, so that they can get involved and be a part of the social network we have here,” said Ruicci.
Under Canadian law, Eng-lish as a Second Language (ESL) students from level one to four cannot apply for
jobs. This is because their English is not strong enough to work in any sort of environment that requires interacting with custom-ers. ESL students mostly go to school to improve their English skills, and at times, it can be quite difficult for students for whom English is a second language.
“It’s hard to find a job when I don’t speak English that good,” said Wang. Now in an ESL program, Wang is improving his English skills and is looking forward to getting a job in customer service.
Being in Canada for only four months, Kate Kim, an international student here, is also having a hard time finding summer employ-ment.
“Coming to this country I plan on finding a job but not right now,” said Kim. “I want to stick to my studies first.”
End of term brings exam stress for students
Summer jobs in short supply for ESL students
Michele Ruicci is an academic adviser for international students at Niagara College’s Welland and Niagara-on-the-Lake campuses. PHOTO BY KEIOSHA SPARKS
“You’re basically saying to a population of people with disabilities, ‘We don’t want you here’.” RHYS EVANS
April: a blessing and a curse
NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015 Page 3
NEWS
By CERENA JOY GATILAStaff Writer
Raise, respect and realize is the philosophy the world stands by every April 2 — World Autism Awareness Day.
Frank Campion, mayor of Welland, and several mem-bers of the Niagara chapter of Autism Ontario were all smiles as they raised the flag on the flagpole, blowing against the wind alongside the blue City of Welland flag for the third year of mark-ing the day.
“We wanted to look at getting something on World Autism Awareness Day,” said Mike Gowan, the chapter representative for Welland and a member of Autism Ontario Niagara. “We came up with some ideas and thought that this would be a great way to raise awareness across the province and across the country.”
World Autism Awareness Day was officially recog-nized by the United Nations in 2008; however, it was not
officially recognized in Can-ada until Bill S-206 ensured the nation’s participation each year. “It was passed by the Senate and then by the House of Commons. It was declared to celebrate in Canada in 2012,” Gowan explained.
The Niagara chapter has various events and projects planned, Gowan said.
“We have fundraising events. We do a lot for the school system as well and we have a very large seg-ment in dealing with adults on the spectrum, because everyone understands children autism, but they do grow up,” he said. Two of the main fundraising events are a dinner dance and a golf tournament coming up on May 29 for which Gowan has been responsible the last 17 years.
According to Gowan, Au-tism Ontario has been in the Niagara region for “about 20 to 25 years and started up strong 15 years ago.
What started from three to four families has now grown to hundreds.”
There are 25 chapters in Autism Ontario represent-ing various cities and areas across the province. The or-ganization aids families and individuals who are affected by autism and advocates for them by raising awareness and providing the necessary programs and services.
To formally recognize World Autism Awareness Day, Autism Ontario came up with the idea of an official flag-raising ceremony aided by parents and community members across the province in 2013.
The Raise the Flag cam-paign was then born, also with a sponsorship by Bank of Montreal (BMO).
This year, Autism Ontar-io’s Raise the Flag campaign has raised 550 flags across cities, towns and schools across the province for World Autism Awareness Day. The campaign’s aim is to connect to the families and communities with au-tism helping people across the province to open up with stories about insight, acceptance and support.
Ontario raises flag for Autism Awareness Day
Raising the flag on Supporting World Autism Awareness Day, April 2, at city hall were, from left, Welland City Councillor Jim Larouche, Chapter Leadership Council (CLC) of Autism Ontario-Niagara Mike Gowan, Welland Mayor Frank Campion, and Autism Ontario-Niagara members Darla Gowan and Angela Roy. World Autism Awareness Day was officially recognized by the United Nations in 2008PHOTO BY CERENA JOY GATILA
By CASSANDRA RIENZOStaff Writer
The Niagara College Stu-dent Administrative Council (SAC) covers more issues than most people believe, dealing with everything from transit to pub nights, health and dental services, food banks and The Rise and Shine Breakfast pro-gram among others.
Most people assume SAC only covers transit issues, but while they’re working on that they also have a hefty list of other duties. Last month, Shane Malcolm, the current SAC president, was re-elected for the 2015-2016 school year. Malcolm was also the direc-tor of clubs and executive vice-president before being elected for president the first time.
Malcolm, now in his fourth year with SAC, said he is excited to start planning for the fall. He is flanked by new and return-ing members who are eager to be a part of this council. Malcolm is an active mem-ber and a full-time student but can still be found joking with staff and other council members around the cam-puses.
“It’s always a learning opportunity,” Malcolm said. “You put your best foot for-ward. You’re a student just like everyone else but step-ping up to a leadership role to make a difference and make the college experience different for some other people.”
SAC’s key roles are to plan new school events, make sure others such as the Rise and Shine Breakfast Pro-
gram keep running smooth-ly and to handle seemingly never-ending transit issues.
The Rise and Shine Breakfast Program provides students with a healthy breakfast free of charge. It has been a continuing suc-cess, averaging around 130 students every Tuesday and Thursday morning.
SAC also runs the student food bank here, a safe, judg-ment-free way for students to have access to non-per-ishable foods, free of charge, by visiting the SAC office at any campus. SAC has also added a Student Food Bank online request form.
Summer is a time for planning the new events that will take place in the beginning of the next school year. While budget is always a consideration, SAC aims to provide activities for all ages with a variety of inter-ests. Students receive some events better than others, said Malcolm.
“For almost every com-plaint we receive, there’s a dozen people who tell us we did a great job,” Malcolm added.
One of the most impor-tant services SAC handles is transit, U-Passes and park-ing passes.
These affect such a large number of students it’s hard to keep tabs. Mal-colm said Niagara College reaches out to more cities and municipalities than any other school, providing the students with a U-Pass that includes access to all buses in the Niagara Region including Niagara Regional Transit, which no other school has.
They are working inside
and outside of the school on issues that still need to be tackled but the progress can sometimes be slow when you’re dealing with seven different bus compa-nies from seven different cities. Malcolm hears about transit issues all day and knows exactly what to do to help ease the concerns.
“I’ve learned to mitigate complaints and a lot of it comes from a lack of
understanding or a misun-derstanding of what we do,” Malcolm said, about dealing with transit issues. “Once that’s cleared up things are able to run smoothly.”
The NCSAC office recently teamed with the Kristen French Child Advocacy Centre Niagara to fundraise and receive teddy bears in awareness of children coping with child abuse. It started out as a school
assignment for first-year students Tammi Givans, Jennifer Heard and Sarah Wakulich, first-year Child and Youth Care students and Tera Ford, a third-year Child and Youth Care student who connected with the NCSAC office. There they received help and advocacy from Jamie-Lynn Gillingham, director of Clubs and Volunteers.They collected around 500 teddy
bears as well as cash dona-tions from students and staff at the college.
Other large donations came from the Jubilee Fel-lowship Women’s Coffee Break, Renewed Thrift and Vintage Store and the St. Catharines MD Atom Hur-ricanes. Malcolm said, “We may not always hit the nail on the head but it’s part of the growing and learning. process.”
Student needs are top priorityNewly re-elected SAC president Shane Malcolm and company tackle issues from social activities to transit
Student Administrative Council president Shane Malcolm and NCSAC vows to make college a more enjoyable experience for all. PHOTO BY ALEX HENDRY
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Page 4 NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015
EDITORIAL Editor: Laura Barton
Associate Editor: Connor Marten
Assistant Editor: Cassandra Rienzo
Photo Editor: Nikita Grise
2009 WINNER2009 WINNERC A N A D I A NCOMMUNITYNEWSPAPERAWARD 2011
BNC2009
Publisher: Misheck Mwaba
Program Co-ordinator: Paul Dayboll
Managing Editor: Charles Kopun
Associate Editor: Phyllis Barnatt
Photography Consultant: Dave Hanuschuk
Having issues with your better half? Just swipe right.
In a world where technol-ogy is an integral part of our lives, it is not surprising to see the rising popularity of dating apps such as Hotor-Not, OkCupid and, of course, Tinder.
But has anyone stopped to think about the effect these are having on the most basic human interac-tion of finding companion-ship? Even if that com-panionship is only for two hours at a rundown waffle house.
For those who aren’t well versed in the app-dating scene, the most frequently used tool for finding that special someone is Tinder. Unlike the dating sites of yester-year, these apps are essentially based on the attractiveness of those us-ing it.
Basically, users will upload several pictures of themselves; the inclusion of a steamy “selfie” is all but a requirement, and those pictures will float around the Tinder world forever for all its members to see
and judge with an accepting swipe right or the unspeak-able denial of a swipe left. While this is going on, you yourself would be search-ing through thousands of pictures of hopeful suitors, swiping right on every individual that strikes your fancy and anxiously await-ing the most sought after prize of the online dating generation, a match.
While offering an endless supply of potential dates or mates, as you can imagine, there are also plenty of potential problems within
these apps and not the least of which is the cruelty and anxiety of rejection. But also what values is this kind of app dating teaching us? If I’m not mistaken one of the core lessons our parents try to teach us is not to judge a book by its cover. Apps like these turn us all into book covers.
Obviously physical attrac-tion is an important part of any budding relation-ship but isn’t the casual swipe replacing one of the most important gestures of dating: making an effort,
showing that a potential mate is worth more than a two-second look before the swipe?
The six weeks of build-ing up courage to ask out a waitress at your favourite diner, leaving a note in that guy’s locker you’ve always had a crush on; even walking up to someone in the Commons and giving it the old college try. It just doesn’t happen like it used to. Why should we spend so much time on that someone when there are 30 other someones just one swipe
away? It could just be coinci-
dence that a large number of relationships begin online and today’s divorce rates are higher than we’ve seen in the past. But let’s not ignore the connection either.
Relationships come too easy in today’s age, and it is this through such ease that we have become compla-cent and oblivious of who people actually are and what falling in love actu-ally is.
CONNOR MARTEN
Finding love: A Tinderella StoryTinder being an app for finding a relationship, causes many people to ignore the real meaning of love
On Tuesday, March 24, a Germanwings plane crashed into the French Alps. All 150 people on board died in the wreck, and people wondered, as we always do: What caused the plane to go down? Was it another trage-dy with a mysterious cause, like other air crashes over the past few years? Was it something specific? It didn’t take long before word came that co-pilot Andreas Lubitz had intentionally flown the plane into the mountain range.
It also wasn’t long before news sources started reporting that Lubitz was depressed, and suggested it could be the reason that he decided to take his own life and the lives of all the other people on board. Prosecu-tors claim that Lubitz had attempted suicide before and he had gone to see someone because he was too stressed from work.
All of this talk of mental health ignited a barrage of headlines that questioned if he should have been al-lowed to fly and ignited the conversation about whether pilots should face a psychi-atric evaluation because they only have regular physicals at the moment.
Maybe pilots should face psychiatric evaluation. In the wake of the tragedy, popular opinion was clearly on the side for manda-tory psychiatric evalua-tion. While certainly public safety might be improved by such testing there are significant risks to mental health stigma and abuse of that confidential informa-tion.
Here’s the thing, mental health has a bad rap. The stigma is so strong that
even in today’s “enlight-ened” and “tolerant” society, there are still many, many people who believe that people with mental health issues are “dangerous,” “crazy,” “unpredictable” and could self-destruct at any time. And really that’s just not the case.
Depression, for instance, is described in the Diagnos-tic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition, (DSM-5) as produc-ing symptoms of lethargy, disinterest, insomnia, dif-ficulty thinking, and many others. Nowhere in the text is it described as crazy or threatening.
Yes, suicidal ideation is also a symptom, but even suicide in the DSM-5 is not described as being threat-ening to anyone else. It is about the individuals want-ing to take their own lives, and often wanting to be alone while doing so.
There are exceptions, of course. And after incidents like the Germanwings crash, it’s the one that media and public opinion latch on to. It’s important to note we will never know what ex-actly what Lubitz was think-ing or experiencing when he crashed that plane.
Psychiatric “evaluations” for employment are wor-risome because they could lead to discrimination. At the same time these psych evaluations could lead someone to get treatment.
If psychiatric evaluations are going to be in place, there have to be some options for anyone who does have a mental health condition to get help. For instance, they could be referred to a specialist or counselling before derail-
ing their careers. Simply turning them away will better protect a busi-ness and its patrons, but not necessarily the individual who is suffering. Oftentimes when mental health plays a role in barring someone from doing or completing some-thing, it adds a feeling of failure to the mix and makes everything worse.
In order to have the psychiatric evalua-tions be effective, there needs to be an effort to get rid of the stigma of mental health. Because everyone’s experience is unique, we can’t know what Lubitz was thinking. But the fact that he didn’t report the doctor told him he was unfit to fly suggests that he was afraid of some-thing. Maybe it was that he would be cast aside and never allowed to fly again, left to fend for himself with his struggles. Maybe it was the stigma he might face at work even if he were allowed to fly again at some point.
Tragedies such as this one must be used as an op-portunity to educate about mental health. Instead of getting people worked up and afraid that everyone with depression may lose it one day, let’s have honest conversations about de-pression and mental health, how to recognize when someone might be strug-gling, and how to help them. With more education and awareness, fewer people will suffer in silence and more importantly they can be helped before something terrible happens.
LAURA BARTON
Offer real help, not stigma
NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015 Page 5
NEWS
By CHRISTOPHER GERICSStaff Writer
Vote now, or forever hold your peace.
Voter turnout in recent elections has been down-right abysmal. According to Elections Canada, only 61.1 per cent of citizens eligible to vote in Canada did so in the last federal election, which leaves a discrepancy of around 9.4 million lost votes. These votes can add up to a large swing of who is elected, and with those votes it could change the landscape of Canada. The blame however, cannot be solely placed on the voters.
The citizens of Canada are forced to sit through an-other long line of television attack ads, party ideologies and the constant quarrels between the three major parties. But what if Canadi-ans had an easier way to be heard in politics?
Recently, the Ontario government decided to implement a new online comment form regarding the Environmental Bill of Rights, in which citizens could type or paste their comments and deliver them straight to the ministry. This sparked a new revolution in the way we perceive politics being that we can finally be heard easily and efficiently.
Crispin Shaftoe, profes-sor of Academic and Liberal Studies at Niagara College,
said he believes there should be a smaller group surveyed in regards to on-line submission as opposed to a larger, provincial sector.
“I think that cities should approach this method first. With quicker and easier access to social media, you could advertise council meetings for people to speak,” Shaftoe said. Cana-da’s process for speaking to a member of provincial par-liament is long and arduous, explained Shaftoe.
“It is a very complicated and convoluted process, where you have to give each committee member 25 pages of your comment(s), show up in Toronto in person, and have already scheduled an appointment.
“If this model were like Barber’s theory, and put into practice, there could be a bigger and broader voice.”
Benjamin Barber, an American political theorist, believed that inter-city con-nectivity was key in estab-lishing a more diverse, com-munal and peaceful society, which lends itself heavily to cities working together and with the people. An online submission form for at least municipal government would allow people’s voices to be heard in a form of technology that is virtually accessible to anyone.
Chris Hunchak, 18, a first-year Broadcasting student, said he believes that not
only would this be a helpful tool in establishing citizen voices within the political spectrum of society, but would also help educate and raise awareness for youth voters who are either voting blindly, or have yet to vote.
“It’s the perfect medium [social media] to showcase
your platform. People listen if it’s on social media. It would be a lot more helpful for younger voters if they were educated or at the very least informed and so-cial media is the best place for that.”
Hunchak, who has not yet voted simply because
he wasn’t old enough, said he intends on voting and exercising his rights as a Canadian citizen. “I think it’s silly if you don’t vote. If you can’t make an effort to want change, you really don’t want it.”
While there isn’t an of-ficial webpage for Ontar-
ians to comment on bills currently presented, there is definitely a foundation that has been laid in terms of raising the political voice of a community, whether it be on a smaller level city by city, or on a larger scale either provincially, or quite possibly one day federally.
Easy way to access politics?Social media is expected to prompt access to the election and political education of every voter
Change in rules stresses international studentsBy JAKE TURNBULLStaff Writer
The dream for many people around the world is to come to Canada for post-secondary education. In 2010 alone, 218,245 came to pursue those dreams.
In the past, international students were able to com-plete their education and go into the workforce without having to return home and apply to stay in Canada per-manently. For students who have returned home and who want to come back, there is a new Express En-try into Canada designed to
bring individuals who have graduated from a Canadian institution, as well as other skilled workers.
There is much confusion around this federal rule as many believe they must return home and then apply to be a resident in Canada, which is not the case. There are multiple programs to which interna-tional students can apply so they can work while they wait for permanent residency.
This, “pool”, as the government calls it, has an application period that’s shorter than other forms of
awaiting residency. The fed-eral government points out this new method will form a bridge between future employers and immigrant employees.
There is lots of specula-tion about this new law but also lots of confusion. Many students mistakenly feared they would have to return home before returning to Canada.
Deep Chaudhary, a Gen-eral Arts student graduat-ing in April, says, “When first hearing about this, I thought I had to be ready to go home once I was finished with school, so it
really gave me a scare.”Students are now scram-
bling to find out all that they can on the matter of returning home. Sean Coote, director of Niagara College’s International Department, said, “Each province has its own im-migration rules, which fall under employment and in-ternational students, which means that Express Entry is only a concern to those who are trying to enter Canada to work.”
The main concern for these students seems to be the fact that they are unable to look for work right after
school. They come here be-cause these job opportuni-ties they are seeking aren’t offered in their countries.
“My job is to find out all the information about these new laws that are being placed so that I have all the information needed for those who are concerned or worried about their future beyond post-secondary education,” said Coote.
The new Express Entry law will not affect any current students or those who come after them. It is for those wishing to come to Canada solely to join the workforce.
Express Entry designed to bring international students back into Canada to work after graduation
Sean Coote, director of Niagara College’s International Department. PHOTO BY JAKE TURNBULL
Crispin Shaftoe is a professor of Academic and Liberal Studies at Niagara College. PHOTO BY CHRIS GERICS
MULTI-MEDIA REPORTER/PHOTOGRAPHERThe Hamilton SpectatorErie Media: Port Colborne, WellandThe Sprint Shack, Astoria, N.Y.SunMedia: The St. Catharines Standard, The Niagara Falls Review, The Welland Tribune, The Fort Erie TimesThe Londoner, London, ONBullet News NiagaraOrillia Packet & Times
PUBLIC RELATIONS MANAGERGreen Alien Software LLC, Omaha, Nebraska
WRITER/RESEARCHERCanadian Musician Magazine
WEBSITE DESIGN/ COPY EDITINGWe Foundation BangladeshNot Too Shabby Furniture
The Journalism program’s students and faculty wish to thank the following businesses for their participation offering field placements to the second-year students in 2015.
STUDENTS THANK PLACEMENT SPONSORS
Page 6 NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015
NEWS
By NIKITA GRISEStaff Writer
The Niagara College boardroom had a busy workplace buzz when Public Relations Graduate Certificate students and alumni got together for a panel discussion on March 24.
Seven graduates of the program were welcomed back as panellists repre-senting their fields. The panel paired students and alumni to discuss the program, learn about future employment opportunities and provide an outlet for networking with graduates and industry professionals.
Linda Camus, event co-ordinator and instructor in the program, says the panel is a great opportunity for students as they move into their placements, not only for networking but to know what to expect in the field.
The afternoon began with a brief introduction of the returning graduates, followed by several round table discussions where the students met in small groups for a better oppor-tunity to ask questions of the graduates.
“It’s great for entry-level career advice. It’s fun talk-ing to six different people about how they’ve done since they left here,” said student Doug Hunt, 26.
The panel saw graduates returning to advise stu-dents on what to expect out in the field and how to the make the most of their jobs.
“Be memorable. Even if you hate your job, act like it’s the best thing you’ve ever done because that’s how you get noticed,” said alumni Zoe Siskos who is now senior co-ordinator of Partnerships and Pro-motion for the Smoker’s Helpline at the Canadian Cancer Society.
Jason Petznick, market-ing creative co-ordinator at Blue Mountain Resort, said, “You have to put the time in, do the heavy lifting, to make things happen.”
A recurring piece of advice from the panel of alumni was to never go home at 5 p.m. Stay behind and offer a hand. Every-thing you put into your job will come back to you eventually.
“We had four months to prove ourselves and there was no point in doing it half assed,” said Ray McIlroy, senior account co-ordinator at Kaiser LaChance Com-munications.
The panel, marking the end of the one-year program, also acted as an initiation of this year’s class into the respected group of program graduates.
Dave Mammoliti, man-ager in executive education
at DeGroote School of Busi-ness, commented on the level of professionalism he saw in this year’s students.
“It’s great to see how the program has grown and the different type of student that’s in the program now. They seem more profes-sional, they seem more prepared for the workforce, they’re more confident,” Mammoliti said.
The current students began their placements last week, in jobs across the province.
“We have some fantastic students who are really well skilled in a lot of dif-ferent areas and you can tell by the placements they have,” said Camus. “The internships are everywhere from the City of Burlington to the Toronto International Film Festival.” “They’re all over the place and we couldn’t be prouder of how every single one of them was placed in a good, solid internship.”
Work late, lend a handPublic Relations students get real life lessons from program graduates
From left, Public Relations Graduate Certificate alumni Lexa Newell, Devon Greed and event co-ordinator Linda Camus.
“Be memorable, even if you hate your job, act like it’s the best thing you’ve ever done because that’s how you get noticed.”ZOE SISKOS
From left, Alumni Dave Mammoliti, Ray McIlroy, event co-ordinator Linda Camus, alumni Jason Petznick and Clara Goulet. PHOTOS BY NIKITA GRISE
The panel had alumni pair with students to discuss the Public Relations Graduate Certificate program and future employment opportunities. Many alumni gave advice.
By MARIANA CUARTASStaff Writer
Niagara College’s Teach-ing Winery revealed the winning label design for its first bottle of sparkling wine at the Niagara College Wine Visitor and Education Centre March 24.
Graphic Design student Chelsea Whipps from St. Catharines, Wine Busi-ness Management student Gaurav Ashwani from India and Winery and Viticulture Technician student Chris-tian Scagnetti from Tim-mins won for their “Balance Brut” design.
The design competition brought Niagara College’s Graphic Design students together with the college’s wine program students to produce a winning spar-kling wine label.
“I don’t think any of us would have been able to do it without the other two,” said Scagnetti. “My part was to make sure the bottle was following the VQA protocols, make sure every-thing was the right size and where it needed to be.”
“Gaurav was the one who decided on the balloons, and then we found ways to tie it together with the sparkling wine bubbles and the colours,” said Whipps, who was responsible for the label design. “This will be an awesome piece for my portfolio.”
The bottle also includes an elegant gold bottle wrap and the letters ‘NC’ in-scribed on the cork.
“It was a very rewarding experience to take part in the project and apply the skills I learned in class,” said Ashwani, who was responsible for the market-ing side of the project. “I come from India where we have beautiful designs and colours, but all I can say is that Chelsea Whipps was the one who came up with the balloon’s design.”
The selected bottle design included a balloon
graphics and an elegant gold wrap.
“We decided on the winner because it was a classy,eye-catching design, ” said Jennifer Wilhelm, program co-ordinator for Wine Programs.
“Students have an op-portunity to work with real-life clients’ demands. They really get to work within a team, which al-lows students to make relationships with different divisions and departments. A lot of students from the Graphic Design depart-ment said they didn’t know anything about wine, and students from the winery program said how much they learned about design,” Wilhelm said.
The wine sector is a hugely important industry to Niagara College, said Dan Patterson, Niagara College’s president. “We all stand very proud from the work that students have done, how students showcased this incredible wine.”
Misheck Mwaba, the dean of the Media, Trades and Technology Division, was impressed by the students’ dedication and hard work.
“When you look at all the designs it was a really hard decision to make,” he said. “But all four judges used their expertise to choose the best. At the end, every-one is a winner.”
Wine labels were judged on different criteria, includ-ing if the label matched the wine.
“The winning label was a difficult choice with so many great submissions that could all be viable op-tions,” said Canadian Food and Wine Institute Dean Craig Youdale. “In choosing the winner, we looked at simplicity, colour, recogni-tion of NC and an elegance that fits the product in the bottle.” “I look forward to having my first bottle of a wine, made in-house, that all the college community can be proud of, and I’m
excited that it is a student-driven product, from wine to label.”
The project was a natural pairing and addressed a real, practical need for the college, says Steve Gill, gen-eral manager of the Winery Sector at Niagara College.
“We are launching a new
product, the sparkling wine, and we wanted to have a new label,” he said. “Niagara College teaches winery so we want to be able to provide opportuni-ties for students to learn and get some experience. We talked to the academic staff and they put together three teams with three students each. One from the graphic designing program, one from the Wine Business Management and one Win-ery and Viticulture Techni-cian student to come in and meet with us. We told them what we wanted. Our guid-ance was that we wanted a product that is elegant, and something that will want a customer to pick up the bottle and try it.”
Niagara College students have had opportunities to participate in wine label projects for the past five years, creating designs for
Niagara College’s Teach-ing Winery as well as local wineries. A label for the NCTW’s 2012 Balance Sauvignon Blanc, created during the 2012-2013 aca-demic year, won Best Label
Design at the Ontario Wine Awards in 2014.
The first bottles of the winning label sparkling wine are expected to hit the store shelves later this year to the delight of many.
NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015 Page 7
NEWS
A Sparkling VisionNiagara College Teaching Winery showcases new wine label
Steve Gill, general manager (left) and Alicia Tymoszewicz, event co-ordinator pose by some food that was distributed during the label design competition. PHOTO BY MARIANA CUARTAS
Continued from Page 1“While their gift supports
Niagara College, it’s also an important investment in innovation and economic development in the Niagara region. It’s a true cause for celebration.”
Not only encased in a modern design, the centre will house modern techno-logical essentials such as up to date facilities, as well as much needed technical expertise, enhancing the overall applied research projects currently imple-
mented within the college. The donation will be a stepping-stone for innova-tion and education here.
Working closely with small- and medium-sized companies, students will become innovators, as well as be optimally prepared for the career they have chosen.
“While this gift is very significant for Niagara Col-lege, it’s also great news for manufacturers in Niagara, who will benefit from our enhanced capacity for in-novation, and our job-ready
graduates who will bring added knowledge and experience that comes from hands-on applied research opportunities to the work-place,” said Patterson.
Walker Industries is a fifth-generation family business, handling projects such as road building and waste management, and has expanded throughout North America. They didn’t forget their roots however, as the headquarters and many operating facilities are in Niagara.
Walker Centre key to expansion
The Walker Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Centre is a key component to Niagara College’s 2016 expansion project. SUBMITTED PHOTO
“When you look at all the designs it was a really hard decision to make,” he said. “But all four judges used their expertise to choose the best. At the end, everyone is a winner.”MISHECK MWABA
From left, Dan Patterson, Niagara College president, congratulates the winners of the selected bottle label, Wine Business Management student Gaurav Ashwani, Winery and Viticulture Technician student Christian Scagnetti and Graphic Design student Chelsea Whipps. PHOTO BY MARIANA CUARTAS
Page 8 NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015 Page 9
By CONNOR MARTENStaff Writer
Niagara College welcomed the people of Niagara, curious parents and aspir-ing “Knights” alike with open doors and open arms at the college’s annual Spring Open House.
Welland and Niagara-on-the-Lake campuses were open for one of the most popular events of this year’s calendar. Over 5,000 prospective students, along with their parents and the public, flooded the halls to see why Niagara College ranks so high among post-secondary institutions in Ontario.
Phil Hayes, manager of Student Recruitment and InfoCentre, said, “A big part of this (the Spring Open House) is for the visitors to get in-depth knowledge of our school and determine how our programs compare to other schools, but also for prospective students to realize the other opportunities available at the college.”
It allowed those interested in attending Niagara College to have a first hand experience of everything the school has to offer. With over 150 volunteers and 200 students putting on the event, programs and facilities were showcased and what a future student can expect in the daily life of a Niagara “Knight” was explained.
Hayes was quick to point out the significance of the day’s event.“Today gives people an opportunity to come in on a weekend, to talk to
people and see the school at its best, versus seeing a campus with empty hall-ways. A post-secondary institution is more than just the bricks and mortar, it’s the people inside it and seeing them in action, which draws people in.”
The college was able to attract visitors from all over the area, as well as the world as roughly 250 international students arriving by bus, from Pearson International Airport, were able to partake in the day full of exhibits, tours, information sessions and events.
The college’s local influence was also on display, with students from the Ni-agara region enjoying the fact that a post-secondary institute of this calibre is in their “own backyards.”
Fort Erie resident Andrew Fitzpatrick said he was “very impressed” with the progress Niagara College has made, from both an education stand-point and a cosmetic one.
“The first thing I noticed was how modern and inviting the school looked, especially compared to some of the universities I’ve visited.”
As the day came to a close, and buses began to roll off, thousands of hopefuls departed the Niagara Region, knowing what to expect in the fall and what it takes to be a “Knight.”
COLLEGE GETS A FULL HOUSE
Students and parents alike flock to Niagara College for its annual Spring Open House
Hundreds of students from around the world were bussed to both campuses from Pearson International Airport as Niagara College’s reputation begins to spread globally.
Student volunteers from the Horticulture and Agribusiness programs set up shop, allowing visitors to purchase student grown greenery. Paramedic students demonstrate their medical prowess on the only willing subject.
Logan Smith of the Automotive program.
Left: The Spring Open House was a huge success, attracting over 5,000 visitors taking part in the day’s activities.
Right: Art and Design Foundations student, Clare Funk, shows off her artistic prowess by putting her imagination on paper for one of the many program exhibits on display.PHOTOS BY CONNOR MARTEN
Nick Appleman, Jamie Lynn Gillingham and Charles Burley enjoy activities during the Open House.
Page 10 NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015
NEWS
YOUNG JOURNALISTS HONOURED
Transfer credit towards your university degree available!
Toronto, ON
Apply by May 1, 2015 for fall 2015
> Business > early Childhood > Family and Community soCial serviCes
> JustiCe studies > Kinesiology > media studies > PsyChology
Before sending them off to the working world of reporting, editing and production, Niagara College honoured its new young journalists at a ceremony attended by students, faculty and industry professionals. The winners, from left include: Joel Ophardt (Senator Keith Davey Memorial Award), Bayley Nargang (W. Bruce Leslie Award), Luca Guardari (The Faculty Award), Juliet Kadzviti (Senator Keith Davey Award), Becki Crewe (Niagara Falls Review Award, Terrence J. O’Malley Award, Giant FM Award), Mazie Bishop (Russo Family Scholarship), first-year student Laura Barton (The Associate Dean’s Award), and Jenn Hardy (E.W.N. Morgan Award). PHOTO BY LORIE PEACOCK
By TANDI CHABWAStaff Writer
“It started as an idea on the back of a napkin over lunch,” said Stephen Dominick, on Niagara College’s fifth annual SickPix competition. “It’s become a blockbuster event.”
SickPix, run for and by Digital Photography students, took place March 27 in the Applied Health Auditorium. The event has become an increasingly exciting part of the Digital Photography program, and encourages students to get into the studio and shoot, says Dominick, program co-ordinator. He continued, “We take it very seriously. The prizes are quite spectacular. This year, I think we gave away close to $6,000 worth of prizes.”
Those prizes didn’t appear overnight. In addition to generous donations from Henry’s camera store, majority of the prize money came from the student committee, which took graduate portraits as a fundraiser. The student SickPix committee put a significant amount of work throughout the year to make the event possible. The committee handled responsibilities including planning fundraisers and creating category criteria, as well as a rubric for the judges.
“We had an incredible committee this year, they worked really hard,” said Grace Smith, a Digital Photography professor and SickPix staff co-ordinator.
“It was probably our best committee we’ve had. We raised the most money this year for our prizes.”
Lorie Peacock, SickPix chair member, and the winner of Best in Show for the second-year students, says the committee wanted to motivate students by offering substantial prizes.
“We really wanted to get prizes to award the students because this year we have all worked so hard. I really wanted to make sure that it rewarded the students for all of the hard work that they put in, as well as the time and stress sometimes,” Peacock said.
When asked about the importance of the event, she didn’t miss a beat.
“For me personally, I’ve been to another college for a different program. But when I was there I felt like a number. There were so many of us and there was never one on one, or any recognition for all the hard work that you put in. So I feel like SickPix is something that steps up to another level in terms of getting the students involved. It inspires them to work hard, because you have the chance to win prizes, and even just to have your work shown on the big
screen for all of your friends and family and peers to see,” she said.
Peacock said students appreciate the support of those who come out annually to the show.
“It’s nice to know that there are people out there who appreciate all of the work that the students do, and all the time and effort we put into our work. It makes it worthwhile at the end of the year, and given all those opportunities, it’s really inspiring and makes you get a taste of the real world. You’re going to have people that critique you, you’re going to have people that want to see your work, or they don’t like it or you just have to learn to take the criticism and everything and use it to your advantage to get better.”
The program has come a long way in the five short years since it began. With 372 entries to the
competition and an ample wait list for September enrolment, Dominick and Smith attribute the program growth to similar reasons.
“We’ve become quite well known in our program,” said Smith. “We have students come from Toronto who come here, from everywhere, to be a part of this program, that could have gone anywhere closer to home. They drive by four other schools to come all the way here. When we ask why they chose us, they say its because we’re very hands-on. We’re a very hands-on program.”
With the school year winding down, Best in Show winners Peacock and Caleb Vandervalk are looking to their futures in photography.
“I have dreams,” first-year student Vandervalk muses. “I’d love to have a studio and do some sort of photography business, but those are just dreams. In the end, I’ll probably just take pictures for the rest of my life. I don’t know if it will ever be my main source of income or if it’ll always just that hobby that I think is really cool.”
Peacock then noted, “I want to get a job in commercial photography and expand my portfolio. I also do like shooting photos of people, mostly outside, so like engagements and weddings, things like that. Those are two areas I’m looking to get into further. I want to have my own business, I’m not sure if I want to work for someone first, and then expand. It just depends on how the opportunities work out.”
For now, the SickPix competition has proven to be quite the golden opportunity for both of this year’s the winners.
NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015 Page 11
NEWS
Year 1 Winners Best of Show: Caleb Vandervalk Portraiture: 1st - Rachel Wang 2nd - Alica Crane-Kucinic 3rd - Caleb Vandervalk Still Life: 1st - Caleb Vandervalk 2nd - Meagan Goodhew 3rd - Caleb Vandervalk Street: 1st - Abbey White 2nd - Kevin Porter-Byrne 3rd - Kenwil Henfield
Year 2 Winners Best of Show: Lorie Peacock Commercial: 1st - Lorie Peacock 2nd - Oliver Hannak 3rd - Cody Godfrey Fine Art: 1st - Madeleine Passmore 2nd - Madeleine Passmore 3rd - Orianna Daniel Portraiture: 1st - Oliver Hannak 2nd - Madeleine Passmore 3rd - Jennifer Ribout
Digital Photography students Lorie Peacock, second-year, and Caleb Vandervalk, first-year, smile after winning Best in Show at the March 27 SickPix event at Niagara College. SUBMITTED PHOTO BY RACHEL WANG
By GAGE LEBLANCStaff Writer
Microsoft and Sony released their newest consoles, the Xbox One and PS4, over a year ago. Gaming has reached a new technological peak as new systems are thrown out into the mass market at a rapid pace. But instead of purchasing them, consumers seem to be as interested in nostalgia gaming with systems such as the NES and GameCube.
Michael Dodd, a contributor to Toronto-based Radio Stations AM640 and This Week in Geek, and a Niagara College graduate, sees a place for the new and old.
“It depends on what experience you want,” Dodd said. “Older has more of a different kind of challenge, but new consoles give you a more mass story.”
Asked about people who are new to collections and their intentions, it took him a second to respond. “It’s hard to answer. More people are getting into the hobby for wrong reason,” he said. “They collect for an investment instead of as a hobby. In the next few years, we’ll see where the alliances lay with people’s bank accounts.”
Reuben Kuntz, 19, a future Niagara College student and a collector of older generations, sees the motivations of those who prefer older over new.
“I prefer the older generation of consoles for one reason: There is always something special about the system I grew up with and would play and to this day, still sometimes play.”
Lindsay Hodges, a Niagara College student studying General Arts and Sciences, noted, “GameCube and N64 are the most sought after for older systems, but I’m not sure if people will lean towards older consoles further, since newer ones are making remastered versions of previous games.”
Nostalgia seems to have taken hold at Niagara College, with a recent tournament held two weeks ago to crown the Super Smash Bros Melee Champion. It drew in hundreds of participants and spectators.
If you need console-ing
A quest to find the sickest picsSickPix digital photography competition searches for the next Ansel Adams
Grace Smith, professor, and Stephen Dominick, Digital Photography program co-ordinator, are shown at Niagara College’s SickPix 2015 on March 27. SUBMITTED PHOTO BY RACHEL WANG
Page 12 NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015
NEWS
So you think you can paintBy CHEZNEY MARTINStaff Writer
Niagara’s Got Art show, held in the Welland cam-pus’s The Core April 8, showcased the work of more than 25 Niagara College students, staff and community artists. The art was donated for silent auc-tion with proceeds going to the Student Administrative Council (SAC) Emergency Food Bank.
The food bank is open to active Niagara College stu-dents needing assistance. More than 500 students use the food bank yearly, said show co-ordinator Nick Ap-pelman.
The art show was held from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and all proceeds went to the food bank, including that of the silent art auction, raffle tickets and free donations.
Appelman said he was very happy with the turn-out.
“I’ve been working hard at it for over a month for sure, in the last two weeks I’ve been non-stop,” he said. “I’ve missed classes to be doing this,” mentioning he had to get the budget passed for the event as well. “It’s all been living and breathing.”
SAC President Shane Mal-colm, who assisted with the show, called it a success.
“We have a lot of support from obviously students and the college community, and honestly we’re over all pleased with the fact that we could get the majority of the student items bid on,” said Malcolm. “Every penny counts because it’s a fundraising event, so we really appreciate everyone’s
contribution.”During the opening re-
marks, Dan Patterson, presi-dent of Niagara College, said the art show would be the “first of many,” here. After bidding on several art pieces, Patterson donated $100 to the Student Emer-gency Food Bank.
“Events like this are an
important part of student life, and what is particularly neat about this is it’s talking about our sense of social responsibility as a college community, as a college family,” he said.
As the silent auction began, Alex Sobchak had a display of several art pieces and is a student in
the Digital Photography program here. Sobchak said he wanted to use his art to give back to the school.
“One, it gets the aware-ness out; two, it gets your name out there in the art industry, and then three, it also helps the food bank all at the same time.”
Later in the evening, a
student submission draw offered a $250 night out for two in Niagara Falls. There was also a raffle for a painting by Dichen Zhang, a Chinese artist known for his unique water-painting style, now living in Niagara.
Evelyn Qing Zhuge, win-ner of the student submis-sion draw, transferred from
Brock University for a busi-ness degree. “I think it’s a really great opportunity, it’s different. It’s a special way to help people,” she said.
Adam Miolo was the winner of the painting by Dichen Zhang. Miolo is a SAC office member and said, “I never win anything, so it’s awesome.”
Nick Appelman (left) gives the winner of the raffle draw, Adam Miolo, the Dichen Zhang painting. PHOTO BY CHEZNEY MARTIN
Even free health care comes at a priceBy RAZA MALIKStaff Writer
One of the best things about being Canadian is the “free” health care. It’s one of the things we take pride in and hold dear to our hearts. We don’t have to pay thou-sands of dollars like our American counterparts do when they see their doctor. But because our health care is universal and subsidized by taxpayers, does it mean we have to simply accept the quality of health care?
“Due to shortages of doc-tors and nurses in Canada, the waiting period for a patient in the emergency room takes more than just to get checked in by triage and by a nurse,” Thushiyan-thy Sriharan, family doctor in Scarborough said.
Since it’s free, people gen-erally misuse it for minor health issues, clogging up the system. Another reason, there isn’t enough staff. A 2013 report commissioned by the Royal College Physi-cians and Surgeons found one in six specialists can’t find work, and others take jobs beneath their qualifi-cations. Even doctors that have been working for more than 10 years have taken part-time positions because of the cuts in the number of operating rooms. These shortages force highly quali-fied professionals to treat paying patients in private facilities.
“Don’t get me wrong, the health care system is great here, but because it’s free there is going to be more problems. Anyone and
everyone will show up at the emergency room for something a walk-in clinic can take care of,” Sriharan said.
Canada, unlike other countries, doesn’t cover costs of prescription drugs and also fails to fund adequate home care and long-term care that are cov-ered in many other health systems like Japan, Ger-many and Sweden. To make matters worse, Canada was ranked last among 11 countries in the First World in patient wait times.
In 2013, a survey by the Commonwealth Fund found that Canada has done noth-ing to improve wait times since 2004. The report also found that where one lives affects the care one gets in the health care system.
Twenty-two-year-old Susan Scott is a new mother. “I’ve been to the hospital numerous times over the past four months. Prior to giving birth, the wait times were long. I assumed that was because the doctors and nurses were taking care of other patients who needed them most,” she said.
“During those visits, the nurses would tell me that there wasn’t enough help to go around, so the hospital would be backed up almost all the time.”
Emergency room wait times in Canada are another problem where Canada ranked last, stated in the same report. Twenty-six per cent reported they’ve waited four hours or more just to see a doctor. This
contrasts with the Nether-lands, ranked first, that has one per cent wait time. The report also stated that the lack of family physicians and clinics in certain prov-inces is between three and 15 per cent, which is why in those particular provinces wait times are longer.
“For the first night I was only there for three hours but the next day I was there for 10,” said Christine Gray, 21, a Niagara College stu-dent. “It was nerve-racking because they never updated me on when I’m going to be looked at next.
“There wasn’t anyone around, they kept me in the waiting room and kept saying they’re waiting for my results to come through. This was all to get blood work done which had to be
done three times because they messed up the first couple times.”
Despite negative expe-riences, there are many positive aspects. Prior to 2004, the Commonwealth Fund found 42 per cent of Canadians agree the system as a whole works well. However in 2004, 22 per cent of Canadians felt that way. Today more than 60 per cent of Canadians also rate the system as good or excellent.
The report, titled, Where You Live Matters: Cana-dian Views on Health Care Quality, compared Canadian health care with other Or-ganization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries, that took part in the survey from March to June 2013.
Student and staff paintings sold for SAC food bank
NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015 Page 13
NEWS
Students in Canada’s first teaching brewery raised a glass to the end of the academic year and asked everybody over for a drink.
The Project Brew 2015 Craft Beer Festival was held Saturday at the College’s Niagara-on-the-Lake cam-pus and showcased beers made by students and local craft brewers. In addition to featuring local craft brewer-ies – including Niagara Oast House Brewers, Brimstone Brewing Company, Sil-versmith Brewing Com-pany, Brothers Brewing Co., Garden Brewers and the Niagara College Teaching Brewery – the outdoor fes-tival shone a spotlight on 22 unique student beers from
the college’s Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management Class of 2015.
“The event is a wonderful opportunity for visitors to get a taste of the local craft brew scene as well as brews specially created by our students who are about to enter the growing industry,” said Craig Youdale, dean of the college’s Canadian Food and Wine Institute.
“Our graduating students not only have an opportu-nity to showcase their skills at the festival, but have crafted a ‘resume in a bottle’ which is a valuable learning experience for them and a testament to applied educa-tion at Niagara College.”
“We served American Pale
Ale today,” said Cat Leniar-sky, who was pouring beer at the Oast House Brewers, which is known for mak-ing traditional European style beer, was showcasing American Pale Ale at the festival.
Another brewery, Brothers Brewing Co., just started brewing few years ago, served their new pale ale, Mosaic. But the festival was a great opportunity for graduating students, too.
“I made Belgian Wheat spiced with ginger and lemongrass,” said Jeffery Wiebe. “So it’s very refresh-ing,” said Wiebe. He said that he used the grains he grew, like wheat, barley, oats and rye. Introduc-
ing his summer beer, he explained the brew-making process to visitors.
Festivalgoer Shayne Beattie said that he’d like to be able to buy these at the Beer Store, after taste test-ing some of the offerings.
“We always enjoy coming here,” said Beattie, noting he learns more about beer making and wants to sup-port craft brewers.
Another visitor, Holly Morton, in Horticulture Studies here, enjoyed the festival, too. “I like the beer people make themselves,” said Morton. “I like music, and everyone looks so happy. I love it.”
With files from Eun Jo, Niagara News
You Got Served! A college student’s dream
By JILLIAN EMERSONStaff Writer
Parents are always look-ing for new ways to help their kids live their lives to the fullest. Sue Dhillon, a dance mom, hockey mom and middle school teacher, feels that her kids “have to love the sport. If they don’t love it, I don’t want to waste my time or money driving them to and from practice and competitions. But as long as they want to do the sport, my husband and I give them our full support.”
The homework load and the complicated schedule help teach kids time man-agement, self-esteem and communication. Although these skills are taught in school they are enforced in life by making children more responsible for get-ting their homework done, even if they are at the dance studio until late at night.
But a busy, rewarding life for children has to be bal-anced against the academic demands of school and the stress of keeping this kind of life in balance. Dhil-lon has created a system to make her children’s teachers aware of what their hectic schedules are like. “We give the teacher a copy of their schedule at the start of the year so that they are aware and they are more understanding to our children’s needs,” said Dhillon.
Dhillon’s daughter, Lauren Shoss, 14, has been danc-ing competitively for eight years and she danced recre-ationally for four years be-fore that. On top of almost 20 hours of dance a week, Shoss is also involved in her school’s activities such as Sears Drama Festival (act-ing), production crew, arts council, social justice and the multicultural club.
Although Shoss said dance still remains a hobby she loves, she said there are downsides beyond just the
financial costs. “My family never eats
dinner together,” Shoss said. “My brother and I aren’t as close as we should be because even though we are close in age, he is always at hockey practice and I am usually at the dance studio. It’s hard to find time to do homework for school or to study for my tests.”
Not only is Dhillon’s daughter involved in an intense sport but her son, Matt Shoss, is as well. Matt,
now 12 has been playing hockey competitively for more than six years.
“It all started with the horrid 6 a.m. practices before school,” Dhillon said. “And for a six-year-old to be doing that? I thought he would quit right away to be honest, but he loved it, and still does to this day.”
However, even with the added stress, Dhillon still feels there is more to benefit from than there is to lose. Dhillon said, “All
this stress can definitely have a negative effect on self-esteem. Because Matt is at such a high level in hockey, they need to try out for the teams and if all of his friends are put on one team but he gets put on another it is upsetting, but it forces them to learn to make new friends.”
There are still some students who “refuse to do any extracurricular ac-tivities while [they] are in school because of the added
stress,” said Alex Dolgos, a first-year Social Service stu-dent. “I would rather hand in my homework on time and focus on school than go out and do a sport. School is just more important to me.”
Depending on what your schedule is, extracur-ricular activities may not be a good idea for you. Kate Devereaux, a Niagara Col-lege academic adviser, said although extracurricular ac-tivities help make students more rounded, it is not the
end of the world if some-one doesn’t participate in any extracurricular sports. These activities outside of school are not the only way to improve oneself, home-work is another way to develop skills.
Even with all the time and effort that needs to be put into these activities, people seem to benefit from the socialization, helping them to find new and exciting ways to live their lives to the fullest.
Breaking out, breaking downA survival guide for parents and children who try to balance school and busy schedules
Girls, ranging from ages 13 to 16, are on the bar practising in their ballet theory class in Burlington, getting ready for their April 5 dance competition in Brantford. PHOTO BY JILLIAN EMERSON
Brothers Brewery Company serves fresh pale ale to thirsty college students at the 2015 Craft Beer Festival. PHOTO BY EUN JO
Page 14 NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015
SPORTS
As the School Year comes to a close...
...many students will once again be packing up and moving out. In the spirit of good neighbourliness,Niagara College’s community partners – which include Police, Fire and City Services, and Niagara Region’s Public Works Department – wish to remind you of the following rules and tips:
TRAFFIC SAFETY:As the neighbourhood surrounding the college includes a diverse mix of residents – seniors, children, families with pets, and shift workers – student drivers are asked to drive carefully on residential streets, respecting posted speed limits, parking and other traffic rules that apply.
WILL YOU HAVE NON-PERISHABLE FOOD LEFT OVER?The on-campus Food Bank is happy to accept donations. Just drop them off to the Student Administrative Council (SAC) office where they will be stored and shared with fellow students in need throughout the year.
TERM-END PARTIES AND GET-TOGETHERS:Students are reminded to respect the city’s noise bylaw, which states that there shall be no excessive noise at any time of day. This includes loud music, honking of horns, loud shouting or swearing. Keep all noise inside each day to avoid fines or other charges by police. Don’t let a bad night of partying ruin a clear record or cause additional expenses because of fines. The fine for violating the noise bylaw is $300. Please help your guests to understand and abide by these rules. If things do get out of hand, call police.
GARBAGE COLLECTION: Weekly pick-up is limited to one bag per house. Additional bags require a special tag, which may be purchased for $2 each at various locations. To find the location nearest to you, visit niagararegion.ca/waste Garbage, Recycling under Tags
FIRE SAFETY:Any outdoor cooking must be closely supervised and fires extinguished when you’re finished cooking. Campfires are not allowed.welland.ca/fire
RECYCLABLES: Recyclables, organics and household hazardous waste will not be collected if mixed in with regular garbage. A weekly recycling pick-up is in place – blue box (plastics, Styrofoam, glass, etc.), grey box (paper, cardboard) and green bin (food waste and organic material) – all on the same day as regular garbage pick-up.niagararegion.ca/waste Garbage, Recycling under Items Collected
LARGE HOUSEHOLD ITEMS (SUCH AS FURNITURE) AND APPLIANCE COLLECTION: Collection is available year round. You must call your garbage collector at least two working days before your regular collection day to have these items picked up on your regular garbage day. Refrigeration units (fridges, freezers, air conditioners) require a special CFC sticker, available for $20 at locations listed at niagararegion.ca/wasteGarbage, Recycling under Large Items
STORING GARBAGE AND OTHER REFUSE UNTIL COLLECTION DAY: For fire safety reasons, please keep garbage and other trash away from the sides of buildings. A fire started among the garbage can quickly become a fire hazard to the house and its occupants.For more information, call the Waste Management Services Info-line: 1-800-594-5542 or visit niagararegion.ca/waste
Enjoy your summer!Student Services ext. 7689
A Special Message to STUDENTS Living OFF-CAMPUS
For more information on off-campus living, please visit niagaracollege.ca/ocl
Still some fight left in IceDogs
Niagara IceDogs defenceman Blake Siebenaler (No. 5) and IceDogs goaltender Brandon Hope (No. 1) prepare for action on April 1 against the Ottawa 67’s during Game 4 of the 2015 Ontario Hockey League playoffs at the Meridian Centre in St. Catharines. PHOTO BY EMMA MASON
By EMMA MASON Staff Writer
The Niagara IceDogs con-cluded the first round of the 2014/2015 OHL playoffs on home ice, on April 5, with a 4-3 win over the Ottawa 67’s. After losses in the first two road games, the Ice-Dogs took the best-of-seven series, 4-2.
This set up a showdown with the Oshawa Generals in the next round of the Ontario Hockey League playoffs.
The IceDogs hadn’t ad-vanced past the first round of the playoffs since the 2012/ 2013 season. Ottawa, on the other hand, had not seen playoff action since the 2011-2012 season when they were eliminated in the conference finals by the Ice-Dogs, four games to one.
The IceDogs, who were off to a slow start at the beginning of the season, picked up momentum as the season progressed and finished with a 37-27-2-2 record to attain fifth place in the Eastern Conference. The 67’s fared slightly bet-ter on paper finishing in fourth place with a record of 38-25-4-1.
Getting this far into the playoffs wasn’t on the team’s mind earlier in the season. In fact, this year’s playoff motto, “started from the bottom,” chosen by Ice-Dogs retail manager, Jamie Amell, reflects the long road to the post-season.
“It was just perfect with how we started our sea-son, in last place and not knowing if we were even going to make the playoffs,” Amell said. “Then we hit our stride and climbed up in the standings and now we’re here.”
Although fans are thrilled that the IceDogs are fighting it out in the second round, it was a character-building battle to get here.
“The beginning of the sea-son was tough on everyone because we expected to be one of the top teams in our conference from the start,” said IceDogs’ game day operations manager Nick Williams. “But some injuries and bad puck luck put the team behind the eight-ball. It shows the character of the team to rise from the bottom of the conference to where they were when they entered the playoffs.”
The series against Ottawa had its moments. After a nail-biting first and second period on Easter Sunday, the IceDogs entered the third period up 4-2. At the 15-minute mark of the third, Ottawa defenceman Nevin Guy scored to bring the game within one goal. Then seven minutes later, 67’s right winger Nathan Todd tied up the game with eight minutes left, but the goal was waved off leaving the score at 4-3.
According to fans, the last few minutes of the game were the most intense.
“I couldn’t watch the last few minutes of the game because it was too nerve wracking. I was glad when they finally pulled it off,” said Kevin Mauger, a 71-year-old St. Catharines resident, who has been fol-lowing the team since they moved here in 2007.
“The atmosphere for all of the games has been electric. The fans have been really supportive and we have seen some exciting hockey, especially with the overtime win we had in game four,” said Williams.
The Niagara IceDogs celebrate a win over the Ottawa 67’s in the first round of playoffs. SUBMITTED PHOTO
NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015 Page 15
SPORTS
By DAVON JAMESStaff Writer
With a record of eight wins and 10 losses this past season, the Niagara College’s men’s basketball players are looking to both come closer together as a team and to achieve person-al goals as they prepare for a new season in September.
A major asset to the future success of the team, Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) Rookie of the Year Delroy Grandi-son’s primary objective is staying mentally and physi-cally determined.
“Personally, I set out goals for myself heading into the off-season and have already begun working on my own
physical cardio and body appearance.”
The team members know they need to work hard and have dedicated themselves to working harder on team-work at six o’clock morning practices. “Basketball is a team-oriented sport and as the floor general, I’m going to continue to focus on creating opportunities for my teammates to get open looks at the basket,’’ said point guard Lequan Hylton.
After a year of being at the helm, Knights’ coach-Keith Vassell described his great capability of coaching the players and the next
step for his team.“This year was a very
big and different learning experience, it was great and I enjoyed all the players that we’ve had.’’ Open to new talent and ambitious student-athletes, recruitment is another im-portant aspect the Knights’ seek to take into consider-ation over the off-season. ‘‘As of right now there are some players that are not returning out of gradua-tion, so we will definitely be looking to recruit some more players who can con-sistently knock down the three point shot.’’
Men’s basketball rebuilding
Floor General Lequan Hylton conducts the Knights’ offence leading them to success over the Sheridan Bruins. PHOTO BY RYAN McCULLOUGH
Worthy Knights honoured
By JOSH THOMASStaff Writer
The Niagara Knights ath-letes celebrated their best season this past weekend.
Coming off a year in which an unprecedented eight of nine varsity pro-grams competed in the On-tario Colleges Athletic As-sociation (OCAA) playoffs, it was only fitting to have an awards banquet that saw over 100 individual awards given out.
The night began with inductions into the Niagara College Hall of Fame. The 1969-70 women’s basket-ball team, who also doubled as the 1970 women’s vol-leyball team, led a class of inductees that included: women’s volleyball player Diane Vanden Hoven-King, Golfer Maxime Barre, women’s basketball player, Kaitlyn McKenna and Welland restauranteur John Clark in the builders category.
From there it was all
about the current athletes. Men’s basketball’s Delroy Grandison and women’s basketball’s Courtney McPherson took home male and female rookie of the year honours.
Grandison put up 15.9 points per game and 7.1 re-bounds per game as a walk on to the Knights.
McPherson led her team in scoring averaging 12.9 per game, and in rebounds where she averaged 10.1 per game.
Over 30 athletes took home OCAA academic awards, led by Anthony Stranges, who finished with a 91 per cent average.
Golfer Lorelle Weavers took home the female tour-nament sport player of the year award after coming off what was arguably the best ever season by a Niagara College athlete in any sport.
Weavers won all three invitational tournaments she played in en route to a silver medal at the OCAA championships. From there
Weavers competed in the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association championships, where she proved her silver medal was a blip in the radar as she took home the gold medal.
Weavers was also named female athlete of the year and took home a CCAA all Canadian award to add to her already impressive set of victories.
One of, if not the most, decorated athletes in Niaga-ra College history, Weavers will have a banner with her name on it hanging in the gym beside other Niagara College greats.
Men’s volleyball’s Steve Stone, and women’s basket-ball’s Miranda Ross received leadership awards.
Head coach of the women’s volleyball team, Joey Martins took home the Ralph Nero Memorial Award for coach of the year after he led the Knights to a 15-3 record and a bronze medal at the OCAA champi-onships.
Rookie of the Year winners Courtney McPherson and Delroy Grandison on April 10.Female and Male Athlete of the Year, Lorelle Weavers and Jeff Scott stand proudly with their awards on April 10. PHOTOS BY LUCA GUARDARI
2014-2015 Award WinnersMen’s basketball:
Delroy Grandison, MVP and rookie of the year; Aaron Chapman, leadership; Aidan Alize-Minty, scholatic achievement.
Women’s basketball:Courtney McPherson, MVP, rookie of the year; Miranda Ross, leadership, scholastic achievement.
Curling: Megan Droog, MVP; Mike Corner, rookie of the year; Andy Hein, leadership; Al-lison Mondloch, scholastic achievement.
Golf: Lorelle Weavers, MVP, scho-lastic achievement; Nick Schepens, rookie of the year; Zach Bankuti, leader-ship.
Men’s soccer: Keith Makubuya, MVP; An-drew Currie, rookie of the year; Jordan Provenzano, leadership; Anthony Strang-es, scholastic achievement.
Women’s soccer: Jackie Lawther, MVP; Rebecca Morrison, rookie of the year; Sarah Morris, leadership; Cassandra Gill-more, scholastic achieve-ment.
Men’s volleyball: Jeff Scott, MVP; Cole Jordan, rookie of the year; Steve Stone, leadership, scholastic achievement; Bailey Cochrane, scholastic achievement.
Women’s volleyball:Lucy McLay, MVP; Bailey Davis, rookie of the year; Alexandria Botelho, leader-ship; Vaska Hamanova, scholastic achievement.
Weavers and Scott win athlete of the year McPherson and Grandison win rookie of the year
A bright future ahead for the NC Knights after an 8-10 season
KEITH VASSELL
SWEET SUCCESSPage 16 NIAGARA NEWS • April 17, 2015
FEATURE
By JEREMIAH LINKStaff Writer
Niagara College has unof-ficially broken the Guinness world record for the largest dessert party. Between the gags and jokes on April 1, Niagara College’s Event Management Graduate Certificate program was not playing a prank when it chose to host the world’s largest dessert party at Niagara College’s Niagara-on-the-Lake campus.
The management team’s initial goal was to get 1,000 people to simultaneously eat a dessert. The event managed to unofficially break the record with a total of 910 people. The previous record was set by Friendly’s Ice Cream in Wilbraham, Mass., on July 18, 2013 involving 794 people, who ate a variety of sundaes.
After Welland’s Mayor Frank Campion announced that the record was unof-ficially broken, guests of the dessert party hollered in sweet satisfaction.
Niagara College President Dan Patterson said, “We are on top. This is amazing and it is all about applied learn-ing and how the college is very special in the lives of our community and our students.”
The record becomes offi-cial after Guinness officials review video footage of the event, which could take several weeks.
For the record to be bro-ken each participant had to have at least three des-serts, eat a sweet delightful treat at the same time as everyone else and be pres-ent at the same time for 15 minutes. A count was made when they funnelled people into different sections of the cafeteria and gave each guest a cookie, provided by the Canadian Food and Wine Institute, to eat when instructed.
There were more than 5,200 desserts in total. At the end of the event, only 1,100 remained. Local bakeries and caterers provided all of the desserts.
“We have
desserts coming in from PigOut Catering, they’re giving us 1,000,” said World’s Largest Des-sert party chair Madison Vine. “They have some bacon-flavoured stuff, so that’s fun. We have 1,000 coming in from Above and Beyond Cupcakes, 1,000 from Willow Cakes and Pastries, 500 coming in from Fallsview Casino, 200 from Bella Cakes and 250 coming in from Feastivities Events and Catering.”
Tickets cost $5. VIP tick-ets were $20 and included early access to the desserts and an invitation to the after-dinner party.
The funds raised from the world’s largest des-sert party will support the student-driven Many Hands Project.
“The Many Hands Project is a combination of the Event Management stu-dents and the Construction study students,” said Vine. Every year a non-profit organization is chosen by the students to receive help with renovations.
“The way the Many Hands Project works, it’s a student-driven renovation project,” said Tina Hoens-vraar, project chair. “Every year a different non-profit in the Niagara region is cho-sen to undergo renovations and it’s the job of the Event Management students to plan and execute five events and all the money raised from these events goes towards renovations.”
“The Construction Reno-vation Technician students use the money raised and they renovate. All the proceeds from today will go towards the renovations of Stride Niagara.”
It is this year’s recipient. “It was a no brainer,” said Vine. “When we had to choose a location, Niagara College students have gone through Stride Niagara and they were really in need.”
From cupcakes to brownies to cakes, Niagara College served over 5,200 desserts donated from local bakeries and caterers. PHOTOS BY JEREMIAH LINK
Niagara College breaks record for world’s largest dessert party
