The Robarts Centre for Canadian Studies launched a new initiative on Nov. 13, the Robarts Centre Fellowship, supporting undergraduate students based at York University’s Glendon Campus who are interested in learning more about various aspects of Canadian Studies throughout the academic year.
The launch event was held at the Canadian Language Museum located at the Glendon Campus. In attendance were Canadian Studies faculty members; the Co-Interim Principal of Glendon, Ian Roberge; the Robarts Centre Visiting Professor of Canadian Studies, Junichi Miyazawa; and Glendon alumnus and former federal minister of transport David Collenette. Following a presentation titled “High Speed Rail in Canada – A Dream Unfulfilled” by Collenette, the 14 Robarts Centre Fellows were free to network with guests.
The Robarts Centre Fellowship is a pilot project that will run until May 2019. During this time, selected students commit to: attending a series of Robarts Centre events, lectures and workshops to develop specific marketable skills of their choosing; volunteering in Robarts Centre activities; engaging in various networking and mentoring activities; and presenting their own perspective on a selected topic relevant to Canadian Studies, using the Glendon Open Lab or the Glendon Media Lab.
The Fellowship program is not only in line with the Robarts Centre’s mission to foster research-based exchanges on topics of Canadian Studies, Roberge added: “This is exactly the type of project we wish to see at Glendon. It supports student engagement, fits well with our priorities of experiential education and bilingualism, and creates significant synergies between research-based activities and community-building, in complement to our traditional teaching and learning strategies.”
As a research engine that facilitates and mobilizes research pertaining to various aspects of the study of Canada in the York community, which notably possesses one of the largest concentrations of Canadian specialists in the world, the Robarts Centre for Canadian Studies continually looks for new ways to build and expand its research community. As Acting Director Jean Michel Montsion indicated, “The Robarts Centre Fellowship is a great initiative to encourage undergraduate students to engage with the complexity of various Canadian Studies topics, to connect with the wealth of expertise we have at York on these topics, and to develop further a collaborative, interdisciplinary and nurturing research culture and community around the study of Canada.”
Upon completion of the program in May 2019, the Robarts Centre Fellows will receive a certificate of recognition and their work will be published on the Robarts Centre for Canadian Studies website.