Archive for Kwantlen
Kwantlen’s ‘onward and upward’
My university is like a shark – it never stops moving! It has just opened its fifth campus – near the end of Skytrain’s Expo line, in what used to be one of the saddest and most dangerous neighbourhoods in Canada. I hope to teach some classes there soon.
Finals
It has been slim pickings here at basil.ca the last while. Fall 18 was a very hectic semester. I added a major assignment to my upper-level professional communications classes, and I fit in two significant trips (one to Boston for my son’s wedding, and the other to the Kootenays to take care of my late friend Kat Kosiancic‘s things). I’ll be heading back to Buffalo to visit family and friends over the break and’ll be posting more before and during the trip. But before that: Final exams tomorrow!
Saudi “scholarship students” leaving Canada
I’ve had a number of superb students at Kwantlen Polytechnic University from that country. This is awful news.
From Inside Higher Ed this morning:
Saudi Arabian students in Canada are caught in diplomatic crossfire.
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Education is making plans to transfer students out of Canada to institutions in other countries after a diplomatic meltdown between the two countries sparked by Canada’s criticism of the kingdom’s arrest and detention of human rights activists.
A spokesman for Saudi Arabia’s education ministry said on Twitter that the ministry is “working on preparing and implementing an emergency plan to facilitate the transfer of our students to other countries.”
CNN reported that 7,000 Saudi students on government scholarships in Canada will be relocated.
Dan Drezner of the Washington Post has three “not mutually exclusive” explanations for the Saudi action:
– Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman is “trying to demonstrate that he is in control [in his country], even if these sanctions will not lead to any Canadian concessions.” …
– “Another possibility is that these sanctions are less about compelling Canada and more about deterring other Western countries from criticizing Saudi Arabia.”
There is one final, more speculative explanation. There has been some recent international relations research into “prestige goods” or “Veblen goods,” things that states spend costly sums of money on with little tangible return. … As I explained this summer: “Veblen goods are positional goods, in which demand increases along with price because the good is seen as a display of prestige. Veblen goods can explain why some countries choose to invest in aircraft carriers or space programs when they should be allocating scarce resources elsewhere.” …
Maybe, just maybe, economic sanctions themselves have become a kind of Veblen good. Not many countries have the resources to impose economic sanctions of any kind on another state in world politics. The United States sanctions a lot, the European Union sanctions some, so do Russia and China, and then . . . crickets.
Except for Saudi Arabia. If Saudi Arabia is seen as a country that can sanction others, it starts to look more like a great power. The very fact that these sanctions are costly is what makes them such a compelling Veblen good. According to this logic, it does not matter whether they work: Most sanctions fail anyway. What makes them successful is that Mohammed has demonstrated that he can impose them in the first place.
A surprise
I once asked a student of mine, who was finishing her degree in fashion design, why women found purses and handbags so important. She said, “They are just like us. They are beautiful on the outside, and there is everything you need on the inside.”
Summer term
Summer is my favourite time to teach. The long hours of sunshine leaven my mood and extend my focus. Students seem happy. Colleagues relax. Goodness knows how much trouble I’d get into if I actually had a “summer vacation”!
This semester I’m teaching Advanced Professional Communications and Technical Report Writing. These are not the most promising-sounding course titles, I know, but the coursework is often stimulating, if not exactly enchanting.
The Wilson School of Design
Students in the design programs at Kwantlen Polytechnic University are some of the most talented people I have ever met. These programs just got themselves a beautiful new building.
The new Wilson School of Design will add 140 full-time seats for a total of 681 spaces for design students. New facilities will include innovative teaching studios and labs, a testing centre, gallery space and expanded study and design spaces for students. It will also house advanced technology, such as laser cutters, 3D printers and ultrasonic welders. …
The $36-million building will provide a space for a range of existing design programs at KPU, such as the bachelor of design in fashion and technology, bachelor of interior design and continuing and professional education. It will also house KPU’s product design and technical apparel design programs, which educate students in the development of performance, technical, medical and protective apparel and gear. …
“B.C.’s environment creates a demand for technical apparel that is unparalleled in the world,” said Chip Wilson. “The province is home to world-class technical apparel companies, and we now have a state-of-the-art facility and training programs to supply the technical demand.” …
“Our vision is for B.C. to continue as a globally recognized leader in athletic performance apparel,” said Shannon Wilson. “Chip and I share a passion for nurturing creative talent, and we are thrilled to partner with KPU to help develop the next generation of designers and innovators.”
The $36-million Wilson School of Design building was funded through a $12-million contribution from the B.C. government, $12 million from KPU and $12 million in donations that include $8 million from Chip and Shannon Wilson.
I’m proud of my school.
Honour Code
We’re entering the third week of the fall semester at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, and I am very much enjoying my two Advanced Professional Communications classes.
This semester KPU’s Richmond campus has seen the reappearance of posters advertising “ghostwriting” services to Chinese students. The service charges $60 per double-spaced page and guarantees that the results will fool plagiarism-detection programs.
It is depressing to consider the possibility that any of my students would hire a ghostwriter to complete their assignments. I tell my whippersnappers that I can always detect a change in their use of language, and whether that change has resulted from his or her own improvement or from a substitution of author. Alas, this is more difficult for me to pull off in an online course, in which students can hire another person to complete *all* of the assignments (but not the final exam, unless they forge an I.D. to get seated).
Summer teaching
Tomorrow I meet the students in my Advanced Professional Communications class for the first time, out at Kwantlen Polytechnic University‘s Surrey campus. What a splendid gig I have!
Friday night lights
My advanced-communications students have their final exam tonight – a Friday night! I made the exam short and, if not sweet, at least not sour. I have not met these students in person before; I taught this course online for the first time this semester; it will be good to see their faces.
It will be good just to go outside in the sunshine. For almost three weeks I’ve been holed up at home, nursing an abscess in my jaw and whining about it insufferably. (If you complain about the same thing at least three times in the same hour, you are no longer complaining; you are *whining*. My personal definition.) The jaw feels a bit better today and, as I said, there is sunshine out there.
Kwantlen accolades
From the news release:
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) is a top employer in B.C.—again.
In an annual competition that is widely considered the “Oscars of Employment,” the university has been named a B.C. Top Employer for 2017 for the 10th year in a row. …
Employers are evaluated based on physical workplace, work atmosphere, benefits, employee communications, training and skills development, and community involvement, among other criteria. …
I love my university and am endlessly grateful for my gig there.
Come to Canada
In a tart post this morning Atrios notes that he would be
shocked if foreign enrollment in [American] colleges and universities wasn’t down 10%+ next year (I completely made up that figure, of course, but you get the idea) even if they started handing out green cards to anyone who asked for one. And those institutions really rely on full paying foreign students these days, for better or for worse (certainly for worse in some ways, but just ripping away that revenue source isn’t going to help).
Prediction: If the travel bans and if the “extreme vetting” stay in place, Canadian universities like Kwantlen will see a surge in applications. And what a tremendous thing that would be for my country and for my colleagues in postsecondary institutions across Canada. But at such a cost.
cross-posted from nocontest.ca
My university’s president, Dr. Alan Davis …
… issued a statement about the past two days that I want to share here:
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) proudly and unabashedly embraces diversity, and remains steadfastly committed to the values of inclusion and belonging.
For this reason, I am deeply disturbed by events of the last few days. On Sunday, six people were killed and many more were injured during an attack on Muslim worshipers at a Quebec mosque. On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump issued an executive order restricting travel to the United States for 90 days on individuals from seven predominantly Muslim countries.
KPU stands with Universities Canada in expressing our opposition to the executive action taken by the Trump government. …
It was only three months ago that KPU was proud to join with SFU and the City of Surrey to become Canada’s first international City of Refuge, and to work together to offer temporary sanctuary—respite from danger and fear—to writers and artists who are persecuted in their home countries for their creative work. …
Among KPU’s international student population are students from countries affected by the travel ban, and we are currently reaching out to those students directly. Students from other countries who come to KPU to study enrich the university’s global learning environment by furthering cross-cultural engagement. To these students, I offer the university’s abiding encouragement and support, and a pledge that we will do our utmost to ensure their academic experiences are minimally impacted by the order. Further, we remain committed to supporting the international academic pursuits of all our students and faculty members, and that includes maintaining our relationships with universities around the world. …
In terms of any pending or current education leaves, professional development or scholarly activities, KPU strongly advises those who might be subject to these travel restrictions to carefully consider whether their travel plans should be amended in light of the current situation.
Further, we understand that these restrictions may impact the ability of scholars to freely travel across borders. In some instances, some of those scholars may have been scheduled to speak at KPU. We will review on a case-by-case basis any instances where these travel restrictions will impact plans to have visiting scholars speak at KPU and what might be done to still ensure their voices are heard. …
Kwantlen students helping Syrian refugees in BC
For their practicum, several former students of mine in KPU’s Bachelor of Business in Marketing Management program have formed C.A.R.E. (Community Aid & Relief Efforts) Kits,
a student run endeavour eager to aid the Syrian refugees settling in British Columbia. As fourth-year marketing students at Kwantlen Polytechnic University entering into practicum, we wanted to help make a difference in our community.
Our amazing team has put together care packages, also known as “kits”, filled with basic necessities that families and children will need once they arrive in Canada. Each kit that is sold will be delivered and stored with a partnering community outreach program here in Surrey. Once our new neighbours arrive, our kits will be distributed by our partnering organization. And because we are all about giving back, our entire proceeds made from all kits sold will be given back to Kwantlen’s Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing Management (BBAMM) Scholarship Fund.
I know five of the six students running this project very well. They’re tops.
KPU’s Scholarship Fund has long been close to my heart. I’ve seen first-hand how it helps students – many of whom are immigrants themselves – stay in school, pay the rent, and lessen their debt load. (I’ve been funding two scholarships – The Maureen and George Basil Award and The John Reiss Award in Journalism – for many years.)
Get yours while supplies last …
… Engineering Communication: A Practical Guide to Workplace Communication for Engineers (2nd ed.), by David Ingre and yours truly.
My university
You can now study the cultivation and marketing of (“medical”) marijuana at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. Wow (and how British Columbia!).
My school
I am happy that, more often not, stories in the news about Kwantlen Polytechnic University are inspiring ones: Truly innovative programs are launched; students and alumni break ground in business and nonprofit ventures and advocate for enlightened public initiatives; professors write books and articles and lead national and international conferences and research projects. That said, one can’t avoid the seemingly dismal display of financial (and other) oddities practiced by a (very) few of the university’s higher-ups in the last year or two.
From yesterday’s Vancouver Sun:
The former board chairman of Kwantlen Polytechnic University has been asked to repay thousands of dollars in unacceptable expenses, expensive wine, lavish meals and political donations.
Gord Schoberg, whose term as board chairman ended in the fall of 2013, said Friday he’d reimburse any disputed expenses dating back to 2011. The expenses are expected to total less than $10,000. …
[Among other items] Kwantlen [had] reimbursed Schoberg for two bottles of Glenfiddich 18-year-old scotch totalling $180, which were purchased at an airport duty-free store.
Schoberg said he bought the scotch as part of a professional development conference for the board. “Rather than having alcohol around the table, I’d invite the board colleagues back to my room for a drink,” he said.
Advanced Education Minister Andrew Wilkinson blasted the expenses, saying it is totally inappropriate for a school to spend money earmarked for classrooms and research on alcohol and party donations.
“Unreasonable or inappropriate entertainment expenses are definitely not to be paid for out of public funds,” he said.
I believe almost everybody knows that the *most important* Kwantlen story has been consistent for a very long time: It is a great place to be a student (and a professor). The hallways in the buildings on our four campuses ring out with learning, mentorship, creation, teamwork, and profound delight. It’s a blessed environment that supports our community and makes our future something to look forward to.
Great time of year to learn
Today I started summer school: three 3-hour classes, spread over two campuses. That’s a lot of public transit! It’s wonderful being back in front of students again.
Yik Yak and Meerkat
When Ted Cruz announced his candidacy for USA president at Liberty University yesterday, many students in the audience used the Smartphone app Yik Yak to mock the junior senator from Texas (and to complain that they were coerced to attend the event by the university). Yik Yak gives users the opportunity to interact anonymously with other users within a ten-mile radius. The tone of the messages run the gamut; many are vile indeed (no examples needed here); others are requests for advice (“where’s a good place for lesbians to drink on Granville Street?”); and others are semi-amusing insults (“Things I love more than you: burritos”). I will keep this app on my iPhone for a few days to find out if there is anything I find there that I can’t find elsewhere. If so, it stays. I have my doubts.
Another recent addition to my iPhone will stay there a long time: Meerkat, a very simple live-streaming application; I have been looking for something like this for a long time. My first project: Live-streaming (some of) my Kwantlen classes.
[April 11 *Update*: Yik Yak has been true to its name, mostly icky chatter; it’s off my iPhone. Meerkat’s groundbreaking appearance did not lead to long-term dominance; Periscope, purchased by Twitter, has supplanted Meerkat almost completely. Things change very fast in app-land. That’s why teaching my digital marketing class is such a challenge, and usually very fun, too.]
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