LA&PS welcomes York alumnus Shyam Selvadurai as writer-in-residence
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York University’s Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS) welcomes its Fall 2023 writer-in-residence, the award-winning Canadian writer and York alumnus Shyam Selvadurai, with a reading from his new novel, Mansions of the Moon, on Sept. 13 at 1:30 p.m. in the McLaughlin Junior Common Room(MC 014).
Shyam Selvadurai
Born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Selvadurai moved to Toronto with his family in 1983. He earned a BFA in theatre directing and playwriting from York and an MFA in creative writing from the University of British Columbia.
Selvadurai is the author of Funny Boy, Cinnamon Gardens, Swimming in the Monsoon Sea and The Hungry Ghosts. His work has won the WH Smith/Books in Canada First Novel Award, the Lambda Literary Award and the Canadian Library Association Book of the Year Award, and has been shortlisted for the the Governor General’s Literary Award. He is also the editor of Story-Wallah: A Celebration of South Asian Fiction and a comprehensive anthology of Sri Lankan literature called Many Roads Through Paradise.
In 2012,in conjunction with the National Peace Council of Sri Lanka, Selvadurai began Write to Reconcile, a project bringing together emerging Sri Lankan writers to write on the issues of conflict, peace, reconciliation, memory and trauma in relation to Sri Lanka’s civil war and the postwar period. The project resulted in three anthologies: Write to Reconcile, Write to Reconcile II and Write to Reconcile III.
“I’m thrilled that Shyam Selvadurai will be joining us this fall,” said LA&PS Dean J.J. McMurtry. “His work speaks for itself. It is deeply personal yet universal, touching on issues related to family, belonging and freedom of expression. Our students and Faculty will benefit greatly from his expertise and guidance.”
The Writer-in-Residence Program connects faculty, staff and students with a professional writer for feedback, critiques and support. Four meetings per week are available by appointment through Calendly. In addition to providing consultations, Selvadurai will be hosting public readings, panel talks, writing workshops, classroom visits and other events.
On Oct. 25, Selvadurai will host a panel discussion with fellow authors Janika Oza and Larissa Lai. On Dec. 7, he will host acclaimed filmmaker Deepa Mehta for a screening and discussion of her new documentary film, I Am Sirat.
Students awarded Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships
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The Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship, presented by the Government of Canada, aims to support first-rate doctoral students studying social sciences and humanities, natural sciences and engineering, and health. This year, seven York University students have been named Vanier Scholars, earning them $50,000 annually for up to three years to support their research projects.
Candidates are evaluated based on three equally weighted selection criteria: academic excellence, research potential and leadership. This year’s scholars have proposed innovative solutions to challenging problems through their projects, each of which spurs positive change in their community, both locally and globally.
Marissa Magneson (Cree-Métis, citizen of the Métis Nation of Ontario), Faculty of Education
Marissa Magneson
Magneson’s application was ranked second out of 200 at the national competition for Vanier Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council files. Her proposed research contributes to the ongoing discourse of decolonial and artistic pedagogy, research-creation and Indigenous beadwork practices by challenging the ways education can look both inside and outside of the classroom.
Her project specifically seeks to uncover how beading supports Indigenous students in reclaiming culture, strengthening identity, fostering community, healing intergenerational traumas and developing a sense of belonging, while also contributing to Indigenous pedagogy through creative storytelling and supporting reconciliation.
“Beadwork as pedagogy actively responds to the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action, suggesting that beading not only strengthens identity but also fosters healing and reconciliation,” shares Magneson.
Greg Procknow, critical disability studies
Greg Procknow
Procknow’s doctoral research illuminates the experiential claims of inpatients found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder (NCRMD) to explore whether education leads to decarceration and to re-evaluate education as a non-psychiatric method for recovery.
His research will document the educative experiences of inpatients granted day-release privileges to pursue post-secondary education on campus to uncover what factors have facilitated or inhibited their inclusion in educational spaces, how education has advanced their recovery plans and how these inpatients perceive education’s role in qualifying them for an absolute or conditional discharge.
“This research is vital to learning how pedagogy impacts rates of decarceration, supports the reintegration of NCRMD into the community, reduces recidivism and rehospitalizations, and nurtures recovery,” opines Procknow.
Cole Swanson, environmental studies
Cole Swanson
Swanson’s PhD study will use material-based art to explore the dynamic ecology of a bird colony with a stigmatized reputation, the double-crested cormorants (Nannopterum auritum). Working against dangerous imaginaries on cormorants fuelled by religious, settler-colonial, and extractivist histories and politics, Swanson will examine life in the colony to illuminate the entanglements between avian, human and more-than-human worlds.
“Through socially-engaged art practice, the apparent divides between our species will be broken down, stoking empathy and a community-based investment in the well-being and protection of these ancient creatures and their colony constituents with whom we share our lands and resources,” says Swanson.
The project will culminate in a multisensory art exhibition composed of photo, video and sound recorded from the colony, which will be shared with a diverse public for analysis useful in both scientific and social contexts.
Areej Alshammiry, sociology
Areej Alshammiry
Alshammiry’s project explores the practice of “double punishment,” where non-citizens or foreign-born individuals in Canada are criminalized and rendered deportable. The research particularly focuses on double punishment’s impact on those who are unremovable because they are stateless but inadmissible on the grounds of criminality.
“Driven by the politics of the War on Terror, these processes lead to increasing cases of statelessness by decisions like citizenship stripping of foreign-born persons or deprivation of citizenship to those without one,” states Alshammiry. “However, such measures often target already marginalized communities and are often arbitrary, as they are driven by racial, ethnic, religious and national discrimination.”
This innovative project undertakes the important work of revealing the lived experiences of stateless individuals and can positively contribute to policy frameworks on statelessness and abolition.
Jordan Krywonos, physics and astronomy
Jordan Krywonos
The PhD study proposed by Krywonos considers gravitational waves, which are ripples propagating across the fabric of our universe. As the gravitational waves travel, they carry information about their source, providing an avenue to study previously inaccessible sources such as an orbiting pair of primordial black holes that are proposed to compose a portion of dark matter. Thus, this groundbreaking research on gravitational waves could help illuminate the nature of dark matter.
“Given that the identity of dark matter is among the most important outstanding questions in cosmology, discovering primordial black holes would revolutionize our understanding of the universe, and provide a new means of probing its origin,” reveals Krywonos.
Austin Martins-Robalino, civil engineering
Austin Martins-Robalino
Martins-Robalino’s project investigates how new and emerging materials can be used in place of traditional materials when constructing shear walls, which are a key influence on how structures perform when subjected to loading from wind or seismic events. Martins-Robalino proposes that replacing traditional reinforcing steel rebar with a smart material like superelastic shape memory alloys and concrete with engineered cementitious composites could provide insight into making more damage-resilient and sustainable structures that recentre themselves after loading.
“Such resilient infrastructure would inherently improve the sustainability of structures, reducing the equivalent carbon emissions over their service life,” says Martins-Robalino.
Waisman’s proposed research seeks to provide a novel, easily accessible approach to treating chronic post-surgical pain (CPSP). A study conducted at York University and the Toronto General Hospital, published in the journal Pain, with Waisman as the lead author, found that patients who recall a greater number of event-specific, pain-related autobiographical memories before surgery are significantly less likely to develop CPSP up to one year later.
Building on these findings, Waisman’s PhD project will develop a remotely-delivered intervention that will train individuals to be more specific in the retrieval of their memories after surgery, with the aim of preventing chronic post-surgical pain.
“This work addresses a significant public health need. By creating a brief and easily accessible intervention, our plan is to deliver effective pain management to virtually anyone with a computer,” shares Waisman.
Students receive summer research conference awards
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At the Faculty of Science’s annual undergraduate summer research conference, students received awards in recognition of oral and poster presentations they gave on summer projects they worked on.
More than 60 students from the Faculties of Science, Health, and Environmental & Urban Change attended the Faculty of Science Summer 2023 Undergraduate Research Conference to present their projects, reflecting work ranging from bee conservation and biochemical innovations to quantum computing and more.
The conference was an opportunity for recipients of other summer undergraduate research awards (including the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Undergraduate Summer Research Awards, the Dean’s Undergraduate Research Awards, the Earle Nestmann Undergraduate Research Awards and the York Science Scholars Awards) to share projects they have worked on. Students’ presentations were judged by faculty members as well as postdoctoral and graduate students, and the winners for best presentations were announced at the end of the event. Health students were announced in a separate category.
First place winners, from left to right: Hannah Le, Jessica Latimer, Patrick Hewan
The following science students received awards for their oral presentations:
Hannah Le, a third-year chemistry student, won first place for the project “Value-Added Vat Orange 3 Dyes for Functional Materials Development,” supervised by Thomas Baumgartner, professor of chemistry;
Chiara Di Scipio, a third-year biology student, won second place for the project “Investigating the signaling cascade of a CAPA neuropeptide in the Malpighian tubules of the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster,” supervised by Jean-Paul Paluzzi, professor of biology; and
Isaac Kogan, a first-year biology student, won third place for the project “Using Machine Learning to Interpret LFIA Results,” supervised by Sergey Krylov, professor of chemistry.
The following science students received awards for their poster presentations:
Jessica Latimer, a fourth-year chemistry student, won first place for the project “Practical Accuracy Assessment of Equilibrium Dissociation Constants,” supervised by Sergey Krylov, professor of chemistry;
Sarah Powell, a fourth-year physics student, won second place for the project “Theoretical particle physics on quantum computers,” supervised by Randy Lewis, professor of physics and astronomy; and
Yash Shrestha, a second-year biology student, won third place for the project “Exploration of altered synaptic pruning in an autism model mouse,” supervised by Steven Connor, professor of biology.
Within the Faculty of Health, the following students received awards:
Patrick Hewan, a psychology student, won best oral presentation for the project “Microstructural integrity of the Locus Coeruleus is related to decision-making in older adults,” supervised by Professor Gary Turner; and
Mira Bhattacharya, a second-year cognitive science student, won best poster presentation for the project “Neuronal Correlates of Flexible Decision Making,” supervised by Professor Liya Ma.
Launch of iClass to enhance LA&PS student learning
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By Elaine Smith
York University’s Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS) is introducing iClass (innovative, Collaborative Learning And Student Space), a new eLearning hub that will become operational during the 2023-24 academic year.
The technology-enhanced learning spaces that make up the hub will be housed at 117 South Ross Building, thanks to funding from the Ontario government’s Training Equipment and Renewal Fund, intended to help modernize post-secondary facilities.
Anita Lam
“Because York University aims to diversify whom, what and how we teach, in accordance with the University Academic Plan, we hope to intentionally design learning spaces that can help facilitate 21st-century teaching and learning,” said Anita Lam, co-chair of York’s Joint Task Force on the Future of Pedagogy and former associate dean, teaching and learning, for LA&PS.
iClass will include three separate types of teaching and learning spaces. One space will be a dedicated drop-in learning space for students to engage in online courses while on campus.
The hub will also feature two tech-enhanced classrooms for instructors to experiment with pedagogical innovations and deliver pilots or special online courses. Both classrooms will be equipped for Hyflex teaching and learning, allowing instructors to bring the outside world into their classrooms in a variety of ways. For example, they can bring in a virtual guest speaker from across the globe, or allow LA&PS students to learn alongside students from another university.
The third type of space that will be part of iClass is a one-button studio that allows both novices and tech gurus the opportunity to create digital content.
“One-button studios offer non-technical users the ability to quickly and easily create audiovisual content,” said Lam. “They were originally developed at Penn State University but have quickly spread to upwards of 100 institutions.”
Lam said there can be many uses for the one-button production studio: instructors can create high-quality lecture recordings for online courses; and students can create audiovisual (AV) content as part of their course-based assessments (e.g. video presentations).
With invaluable assistance from York planners, Facilities Services and AV support services, among others, Lam and Nathan Chow, LA&PS director of information and learning technology, worked together to bring iClass to life. For Chow, this project offered a unique opportunity to “showcase the business value of [information technology] (IT), and how IT teams can meaningfully collaborate on strategic initiatives that allow instructors and students to thrive in new learning environments.”
“Coming out of the pandemic, faculty members realized that they needed both space and time to try new educational technologies and teaching methods, so iClass is an attempt to offer instructors a campus space for pedagogical experimentation and play,” said Lam. “Our iClass space complements eClass, by offering an in-person playground for transformative teaching and learning activities and practices.”
Lam adds: “As a pedagogy-first initiative, iClass suggests a different way of designing and redesigning learning spaces at York. Because these spaces can transform teaching and learning experiences, they can have a profound impact on how instructors and students engage in 21st-century learning.”
“We are thrilled to introduce this innovative hub that is set to transform the learning landscape at the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies,” shares LA&PS Dean JJ McMurtry. “This project is a testament to the dedication and collaborative spirit of our community. Congratulations to Anita Lam, Nathan Chow, and the Teaching and Learning and e-services teams who worked tirelessly to bring iClass to life.”
Lassonde PhD students recognized for environmental research
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Three Lassonde School of Engineering PhD candidates in civil engineering have been recognized – two with awards and one with publication approval – for work in environmental research that promises to help right the future.
The award-winning students are:
Gurpreet Kaur, third-year PhD candidate
Gurpreet Kaur
In May 2023, Kaur presented research focusing on microorganisms to degrade harmful contaminants in groundwater at the International In-Situ Thermal Treatment (i2t2) Symposium in Banff, Alta., where she was honoured with a Best Presentation Award.
More than nine million people in Canada depend on groundwater as their primary source of drinking water. If groundwater is contaminated, pollutants can reach consumers and cause harmful effects like cancer and other diseases,” she says. Kaur specifically studies biomediation, a process that uses microorganisms that are naturally present in the subsurface to degrade environmental pollutants. However, the activity of these microorganisms may be hindered by cool temperatures below ground. To solve this issue, some remediation strategies supplement the subsurface with heat, but that can be an expensive process.
“My work analyzes the effect of geothermal heat pumps on bioremediation,” says Kaur. “This is a sustainable and cost-effective solution that can help enhance the growth and activity of microorganisms.” In addition to improving the efficiency of bioremediation, geothermal heat pumps can be used to provide heating and cooling to surrounding buildings, thereby serving two functions at once.
To explore the effects of geothermal heat pumps on bioremediation, Kaur isolated and analyzed two pollutant-degrading bacteria strains from geothermal borehole soil samples. Her analysis showed the strains have the ability to degrade Benzene, Toluene, Ethylbenzene and Xylene (BTEX), four common chemical contaminants found in groundwater. She also applied heat to these pollutant-degrading bacteria, which resulted in significantly increased bacterial growth and BTEX degradation rate, suggesting the inherent beneficial effects that geothermal heat pumps may have on bacteria. The results of Kaur’s work demonstrate the great promise of this modified method for bioremediation, which could ensure clean drinking water for millions of Canadians.
De Santi’s research aims to develop and implement data-driven solutions for water safety issues in refugee and internally displaced person (IDP) settlements with SWOT. Primary sources of drinking water in these settlements are highly susceptible to contamination, which creates a risk for people to contract waterborne disease upon consumption.
To decontaminate drinking water and mitigate disease risk, free residual chlorine is used as a water treatment; however, this can significantly alter its odour and taste. Using data collected from a refugee settlement in Uganda called Kyaka II, the SWOT generated a risk model to help determine an optimal concentration of free residual chlorine that allowed for a balance between water safety, as well as favourable odour and taste. This work suggests the SWOT can be effectively used in real-world scenarios, to help water system operators satisfy both water safety and consumer standards in refugee and IDP settlements.
De Santi’s ongoing research and aspirations are supported by his PhD supervisors, Professor Usman Khan and Research Fellow Syed Imran Ali, as well as the Lassonde community, and reflects engineering’s potential to impact the world. “Engineering isn’t just about learning; it’s also about solving problems,” says De Santi. “The reason I was drawn to civil engineering is because I think it can be used to tackle the most global challenges and help the most people.”
Olivares recently had an article, titled “Thermally assisted deformation of a rock column above Tomb KV42 in the Valley of the Kings, Egypt,” accepted for publication in the journal Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering.
The article is an extension of his PhD thesis, supervised by Professor Matthew Perras, which has primarily involved geological field campaigns based in Egypt. His research focuses on the thermal effects of crack growth in rocks. Examining such growths is important, as climate change in post-glacial and arid regions can significantly progress rock damage over time, leading to altered function and behaviour.
The publication summarizes Olivares’ ongoing work in the Valley of the Kings, located within a large landscape and UNESCO World Heritage Site called Theban Necropolis in Luxor, Egypt. Along with his research team, he monitored the transient conditions of a micritic-limestone rock column above a tomb, as well as an existing fracture, while investigating thermomechanical displacements with various tools. Data gathered throughout this study will enhance understanding of environmentally-driven fracture growth mechanisms and help inform approaches to preserve and protect the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
New locations for student services and offices at Glendon
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La version française suit la version anglaise.
Hello Glendon community members:
As we begin a new academic year, we are writing to announce several new locations for our offices, with the hope of increasing accessibility and visibility for our various services.
The Office of Student Affairs (previously located in C Wing, York Hall), Accessibility Services and Counselling Services (previously in Accessibility, Well-Being and Counselling Centre in the Manor) are now located in the new Student Success Centre, located on the main floor, B Wing of York Hall, where the recruitment offices were previously situated. This more central and accessible location will better serve the diverse needs of our students in an integrated manner. (Note: the alternate exam drop-off box will remain the same, York Hall C133.)
The recruitment team’s welcome desk has opened its doors at York Hall A118. This new location at the front of the Centre of Excellence will serve as the first point of contact for prospective students and families. Other recruitment offices, for non-student-facing services, are in York Hall’s C Wing.
The Career Development Centre and Writing Centre, previously located at York Hall A118, have now moved to York Hall A224, on the second floor. Services will continue to be offered both in person and virtually.
Nouveaux locaux pour les Services aux étudiants et les bureaux à Glendon
Chers membres de la communauté de Glendon :
Alors que nous entamons une nouvelle année universitaire, nous vous informons que les Services aux étudiants ont déménagé dans de nouveaux locaux, dans le but d’améliorer l’accessibilité et la visibilité de nos différents services.
Le Bureau des affaires étudiantes (précédemment situé dans l’aile C de York Hall), les Services d’accessibilité et les Services de counseling (précédemment situés dans le Centre d’accessibilité, de bien-être et de conseil au Manoir) sont maintenant situés dans le nouveau Centre pour la réussite étudiante, situé au rez-de-chaussée de l’aile B du Pavillon York, où se trouvaient auparavant les Bureaux de recrutement. Cet emplacement plus central et plus accessible permettra de mieux répondre aux divers besoins de nos étudiants de manière intégrée. Veuillez noter que la boîte de dépôt des examens adaptés restera la même et se trouve au C133 Pavillon York.
L’accueil de l’équipe de recrutement est maintenant située dans A118 Pavillon York. Ce nouvel emplacement, situé dans l’entrée du Centre d’excellence, servira de premier point de contact pour nos futurs étudiants et leurs familles. Les autres bureaux du recrutement se trouvent maintenant dans l’aile C du Pavillon York.
Le centre de développement de carrière et le centre de rédaction, qui se trouvaient auparavant dans le A118 Pavillon York, ont déménagé dans le A224 Pavillon York situé au deuxième étage. Les services continueront d’être offerts en personne et virtuellement.
For more than a decade, OsgoodePD’s popular Certificate in Construction Law has offered professionals in the industry intensive, practical education on the legal issues impacting construction. Meanwhile, elective courses in construction law have been available to Professional LLM students in Osgoode’s Energy & Infrastructure Law and Business Law programs. Andrea Lee, a co-founding program director of the new Professional LLM in Construction Law alongside Osgoode Professor and Chartered Arbitrator Janet Walker, has witnessed an increased demand for legal expertise in her construction niche, in both her private practice and her role as an OsgoodePD instructor. She says the new LLM program will help relieve some of that pressure.
“There is certainly an appetite for more construction law courses, so it’s great that Osgoode is taking things to the next level,” Lee says. While lawyers who deal regularly with construction law issues or advise industry professionals are obvious candidates for the new program, Lee says it is also likely to appeal to lawyers looking to gain insight into construction law to complement their existing practice, or even transition into this area on a full-time basis.
Chris Bennett, one of three Chairs of OsgoodePD’s new Certificate in Public-Private Partnership (P3) Law and Practice in Canada, shares a similar sentiment regarding the new certificate program. The coming-of-age process for P3 projects has proven turbulent, he says, with many private-sector players struggling to get projects done within the rigid structure and risk-transfer profile of a traditional P3 model.
While traditional P3s continue to be used, the risk is too much for many, says Bennett, leaving public owners with a dwindling number of private-sector partners willing to bid on them. As a result, he says the public sector is increasingly open to new methods for delivering large and complex infrastructure projects, with innovative models emerging to reflect the changing market conditions.
“We’re entering a very evolutionary phase of P3, where different types of partnership are available, so we’re reassessing what risk allocation looks like, and testing new models,” Bennett says, adding that this makes the timing perfect for the launch of Osgoode’s new certificate.
“It’s all about keeping Canada on the leading edge of infrastructure globally,” says Bennett.
OsgoodePD’s Certificate in Public-Private Partnership (P3) Law and Practice in Canada is an open-enrolment course, accepting registrations now. Applications for Osgoode’s LLM in Construction Law open Oct. 1. Fill out this form to receive program updates.
To view additional construction and infrastructure offerings, visit the OsgoodePD website.
Fall orientation continues with welcome events for all students
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The new academic year at York University begins on Sept. 6, which means York’s 2023 Transition and Orientation programming is already underway, welcoming new community members with a mix of fun and informative events.
In addition to the orientation sessions YFile highlighted last week for Black, mature, transfer and international students, here are the details about the remaining 2023 Orientation events – all with a focus on decolonization, equity, diversity and inclusion to ensure all students feel welcome and supported at York.
Open Doors York
Open Doors York will bring the entire University community together in a large, festival- and exploration-style day, on Sept. 5 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Key partners on the Keele Campus will open their office doors for new and returning students to visit, learn and maybe even walk away with some freebies. And that’s not all – in the York University Commons, expect a carnival-style atmosphere featuring music, games, snacks and giveaways.
Yorklicious
From Aug. 26 to Sept. 8, York students, staff and faculty can enjoy specially priced meals from participating campus food vendors. Yorklicious is a great opportunity to explore the wide variety of food options on campus and get a great meal for $10 or less. Participating vendors include:
Sushi Shop
Campus Bubble Tea
Z-Teca
Great Canadian Bagel
Mac’s Sushi
Break Café
416 Grill
Rasoi
ChopD and WrapD
Grill House
Chef’s Table
Crepe Delicious
Chungchun Rice Dog
Insomnia Cookies
Basil Box
Osmows
Orange Snail
Students enjoying a meal together on York University’s Keele Campus
Indigenous Student Orientation
The Centre for Indigenous Student Services (CISS) will welcome incoming Indigenous students to York with three days of specialized events and activities from Aug. 23 to 25, including a harbourfront boat cruise. Students will meet CISS staff and learn about the services and programs offered by the centre. For more details and to register, visit the CISS Events & Activities page.
York University students learning about Indigenous culture
Move-in Day and Parents & Family Orientation
Aug. 26 is the official residence Move-in Day. Parents and/or guardians can drop students off at their specific residence, where student volunteers will be waiting to help them move in. More details are available on the Housing Services website.
As the move-in is happening, parents, guardians and family members can attend the Parent and Family Orientation. There, they will receive a welcome from University staff and students, and they can take in a play performed by Vanier College Productions. The performance offers a humorous but heartfelt glimpse into the first-year university experience, while simultaneously introducing the audience to many of the supports and services that are on offer for students.
Afterwards, a services fair will allow parents and guardians to speak directly with University staff and learn about the resources that will be available to their students. There will be additional sessions available for parents of international students, plus a generic session on student finances that is open to everyone.
Orientation Week
This year, Orientation Week will run from Aug. 27 to Sept. 4. The week will include a variety of events, workshops and icebreakers designed for first-year students to get to know each other, as well as upper-year students in their colleges and Faculties.
A York University student participating in Orientation Week celebrations
For complete details and to register, visit the Orientation Week Events page. Students can use the college finder tool to determine which session they should sign up for based on their academic program’s college affiliation. Participating colleges and Faculties include:
Bethune
Calumet
Founders
Glendon
Lassonde
McLaughlin
New College
Schulich
Stong
Vanier
Winters
Academic Orientation Days
Academic Orientation Days will take place on Aug. 29 and 30. These mandatory sessions for all new students introduce their specific degree program and the resources available within their affiliated college and Faculty. They also touch on academic services, financial support and other vital tools to help facilitate a smooth transition into university life. Students can refer to the Transition and Orientation Events page for complete details and registration information.
YorkFest 2023
Each year, the York Federation of Students (YFS) aims to make YorkFest the largest back-to-school orientation festival held on a Canadian university campus. Details for this year’s YorkFest haven’t yet been released, but keep an eye on the YFS website for updates.
For more information about what’s happening at York in the lead-up to September and beyond, visit the Transition and Orientation 2023 website, which includes a schedule of events, the new student checklist, a college finder tool, student support services, information for parents, housing details and more.
AMPD students experience multi-national theatre production
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Students from the Department of Theatre at York University travelled to Budapest to collaborate with the Hungarian National Theatre on a multi-national production of The Tragedy of Man, commemorating the 200th anniversary of the birth of Hungarian writer, Imre Madách.
The University of Theatre and Film Arts in Budapest invited several foreign theatre programs to participate in the play, which tells the story of Adam and Eve who, after being expelled from Paradise, travel the world guided by Lucifer, in search of humanity’s purpose on Earth.
The play is divided into 15 different scenes, and for the production each scene was performed by theatre students from a different country, with their own imagined set decorations, costumes and in their native language. Among the 11 countries invited to Budapest, the School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design (AMPD) York University cohort was the only North American program included.
Tereza Barta, Kate Counsel, Mercedes Clunie, & Stéphane Arcand
When Tereza Barta, a film production professor in the Department of Cinema & Media Arts, was approached by two representatives of the University of Theatre and Film Arts from Budapest at a conference and asked about York undergraduate students participating, she didn’t hesitate. “I thought it would be an absolutely incredible opportunity for the students,” she says and accepted the offer to direct “The Space” scene, which had been assigned to York. The rehearsals lasted for almost a month with York student Mercedes Clunie in the role of Lucifer, Stéphane Arcand in the role of Adam and Kate Counsel cast as The Voice of Earth’s Spirit.
Each country prepared their assigned scene in advance, in their own country, and on June 8, the cast of almost 200 students and 22 faculty members met in Budapest in the Eiffel Art Studios (Hungarian State Opera) to present their work. For the next two weeks, the Hungarian theatre director Attila Vidnyánszky worked with the multi-national cast to weave the scenes into one homogeneous show, with students often rehearing for 12-hour stretches. “There was an absolutely incredible commitment,” Barta says.
During that time, the students were afforded unique experiential opportunities. For one, Vidnyánszky is a celebrated theatre director in Europe, and many of the York students made the most of working with him. “They would try to absorb as much as possible form his direction and methods,” says Barta. “The common denominator that they all had, was this burning passion for this art.”
Rehearsal of “The Space” scene in the The Tragedy of Man mounted at Eiffel Art Studios in Budapest.
The multi-national nature of the production also meant the York AMPD students met and collaborated with colleagues from outside Canada, gaining experience with different perspectives and approaches to the craft. “Openness, exposure to other stage concepts, more availability for empathy, understanding various cultures more deeply,” Barta says were outcomes she hoped for the students when she agreed to take part in the project, and she was pleased to see her expectations met. “There was a lot of exchanging points of view about the world about, about the meaning of their art, about the meaning of their lives,” Barta says. “It was quite enriching.”
The play – which lasted over seven hours – was performed live in Budapest on June 23, but plans are in place to allow others to screen it later this year and allow others to see the result of the experiential experience the AMPD students participated in.
Stéphane Arcand as Adam & Mercedes Clunie as Lucifer
“This whole theatrical experiment brought us the certainty that the ardour and dynamism with which creators devote themselves to artistic expression is irreplaceable. And on the same occasion, Europe also learned that the future of Canadian theatre remains steadfastly in the hands of the talented and passionate,” says Barta.
New this fall: cross-disciplinary certificate in children’s literature
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A new certificate program launching this fall through York University’s Department of Humanities answers a request from students to have their coursework in children’s literature recognized.
Students in the program, offered by the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LAPS), will have the opportunity to complete a cross-disciplinary certificate in children’s literature while completing a major or minor degree in children, childhood and youth studies; humanities; or English.
Alison Halsall
Cheryl Cowdy
“We offer a breadth of courses in children’s literature few other departments at York University or in Canada can match,” explains Alison Halsall, a professor in the Department of Humanities, who together with Professor Cheryl Cowdy led the development of this certificate. “Many students in the Children, Childhood & Youth (CCY) Program also complete courses in children’s literature administered by the departments of English at the Keele and Glendon campuses. All these courses have high student demand and enrolment.”
The undergraduate certificate will recognize and value the importance of children’s literature in the study of constructions of children, childhood and youth, says Cowdy. It will review many of the methodological approaches that have governed and continue to govern the literature intended for young people.
This cross-disciplinary certificate in children’s literature is designed to allow students to engage with texts in the field to examine how modes of representation shape perceptions of children and youth in the contemporary world.
Students will take a total of 24 credits in courses reflecting the certificate’s specific humanities approach. Two of the core courses for this certificate ensure that students have the opportunity to work with materials that are part of the Children’s Literature collection housed in the Clara Thomas & Special Collections Archive in Scott Library.
In 2020, the CCY program launched a unique 3000-level research methods course in children’s literature scholarship, CCY 3998: The Child and the Book: Research Methods, and a 4000-level honours research project, CCY 4998, that makes use of the Scott Library collection while providing students with valuable experiential education opportunities and training in the distinctive methods of children’s literature research.
The certificate will be housed in the LA&PS faculty’s department of Humanities, administered by the CCY program, and offered as a concurrent option.
“This certificate will be particularly useful for students entering into the communication or media industries, education, advertising and the arts, as well as those interested in careers in children’s book publishing and library studies,” says Cowdy.
