Whitehorse, Yukon – On Monday, December 7, at noon in the Boardroom, the University of Alberta (UofA) and Yukon College (YC) will sign a Collaborative Program Agreement for an Environmental and Conservation Sciences Degree. This agreement will be what is commonly referred to as a 2+2 program – two years in a Yukon College program and then two years in the University of Alberta Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree program. Most students will begin with two years in either the Renewable Resource Management or Northern Science Diploma programs before transferring into the BSc, however other routes of entry will also be available. All studies could take place at Yukon  College taught by UofA and YC faculty, or students could choose to spend some or all of their +2 study time at UofA. It will also be possible for students from Edmonton to complete part of their program in Whitehorse.

Yukon College’s new website is gaining momentum and seeing increased traffic, with 27,000 unique visitors who connected to the site 81,000 times in the first two months.

The website was soft-launched at the end of September as part of the College’s rebranding. The objective of the new site is to simplify navigation, sport the new Yukon College brand and provide current, intuitively located information.

“Improving the identity of the College is one of our six strategic goals and the website is an important component of that,” Bedard says. “Increasingly, this will be the source for program and course information.”

Two new Board members were appointed to the Yukon College Board this month. Ranj Pillai is the staff representative, nominated by college employees, and Fabiana Naves is the student union representative, chosen by the student union.

Pillai has worked at Yukon College for the past five years as an Instructor and Coordinator. He was also recently elected to Whitehorse City Council and he’s active in many community organizations including the FASSY Board, Whitehorse Elementary School Council, and Copper Ridge Neighborhood Association.

Naves is an international student from Belo Horizonte, Brazil who is studying Tourism. As Student Union President, a full-time student herself, and holding down several part-time jobs, Naves is busy learning about the life, culture and governing structures of Canada.

           
Two-time bursary and scholarship recipient,
Kimberly Blake receives her awards from
Yukon College President, Terry Weninger.
                                                     
    A Yukon College student dedicated to giving back to the community is among four students being recognized with scholarship and bursary money this semester, this time totaling $2,000.

Yukon College will be on Parliament Hill next week helping to promote the value of community colleges as a central part of Canada’s economic and social development.

Karen Barnes, Vice President of Education and Training, will participate in the Association of Canadian Community Colleges on Parliament Hill event on November 16th and 17th. Barnes will gather in Ottawa with 100 other college representatives, including the President of Yellowknife’s Aurora College and the President of Nunavut Arctic College, to highlight the value of their institutions and to demand a fair share of post-secondary funding. “Yukon College is part of national system and we’re coming together in Ottawa to use our collective voice to garner support for community colleges across the country,” Barnes says.

The group will meet with politicians including, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty and Liberal leader, Michael Ignatieff, to highlight the need for more support for community colleges.

The Association of Social Workers in Northern Canada and the Yukon College Bachelor of Social Work Program have partnered to host a day of presentations and the Association�s Annual General Assembly on November 6th and 7th at Yukon College.

Twenty-five BSW students, 20 social workers and over 35 representatives from Yukon First Nations will gather for the event, where Cindy Blackstock will make a series of presentations. Blackstock is the Executive Director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada and has worked in the field of social work for over 20 years. One of the topics she will speak about is the inequality experienced by First Nations children and she will suggest ways social workers can help address the issue. Blackstock�s presentations on November 6th will be followed by facilitated discussions.

University of Saskatchewan President Peter MacKinnon and Joan Greyeyes, advisor to the president on aboriginal initiatives, will be in Whitehorse on Tuesday Nov. 3 and Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2009, to speak with students, members of the public, community leaders and U of S alumni. Members of the media are welcome to attend the following events:

1)Peter MacKinnon and Joan Greyeyes will join U of S alumni and friends for a wine and cheese reception and presentation: 

Place:Westmark Whitehorse Hotel & Conference Centre
Time:Nov. 3, 5:30 - 7 pm
Theme: “Where Great Minds Meet” - The current state of the University of Saskatchewan will be discussed, followed by a question and answer period.

2)The Whitehorse Chamber of Commerce will host Peter MacKinnon and Joan Greyeyes at a chamber breakfast:

New Bachelor of Science Program in the Yukon

In collaboration with the University of Alberta, Yukon College will be offering a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Environmental and Conservation Sciences.  To learn more about the BSc Program, course offerings, and admissions for January and September 2010:

• October 29th, Yukon College, Whitehorse (Ayamdigut), Pit (inside front doors), 7:00-8:30 pm.  Public information session
• October 30th, Community campuses via videoconference (please contact your Yukon College community campus for information on how to participate), 12:00-1:00 pm.  Public information session.

For more information, contact:

Thompson Rivers University Provides YC Students with Admission

Whitehorse � On October 29th Thompson Rivers University (TRU) delegates will arrive at Yukon College to sign a Memorandum of Understanding giving Yukon College students access to �Dual Admission� at TRU and YC.

Students in the Liberal Arts, Sciences or Business will be eligible to apply for Dual Admission to the TRU Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Business Administration degree. �This process guarantees students transfer from Yukon College to TRU in one of these three degree programs,� said Karen Barnes, VP Education and Training. �This type of agreement is something we�ve been working towards over the past year.�