N d
S r December 2003

The Douglas College Newsletter

m New Westminster Campus and David Lam Campus

IN

Douglas College

 

Four winners show commitment to community

Front: (left to right) In-course award winners Darren Brow (General Studies:

 

Sport Science), Johanna Beemster (Psychology) and Christie Ang (Nursing).
Back: Dean of Health Sciences Joy Holmwood, Board Chair Diana Miles,
President Susan Witter and Dean of Science and Technology Des Wilson.

Everybody needs music

The Community Music
School celebrates the
holidays with a fund-raiser
concert showcasing the
musical diversity of its
faculty on December 14.
From Baroque choral to
Middle Eastern drumming
to Celtic fiddling, there’s
something for nearly every

musical taste.

“The Community Music
School has a challenging

_
mandate,” says

Coordinator Bob Caldwell.

“We don’t focus solely on

children’s programs, theory

classes or private lessons.
We strive to address the
needs of every musician.
And that translates into an
eclectic group of
performers in the faculty.
We are celebrating that

diversity with this concert.”

With over 30 courses at
both the New Westminster
and David Lam Campuses,
Caldwell has his hands full
trying to predict the next
musical trends. This fall, he
helped out Canadian Idol
hopefuls with the
Beginning Solo Singing

course. And this winter,

he’s thinking Tabla drums.

But foremost on his mind
is the upcoming fund-
raiser concert, which starts
at 2pm in the Performing
Arts Theatre. Several
Douglas College faculty
will perform, including
pianists Henry Waack,
Barrie Barrington and
Ellen Silverman, flautist
Kathryn Cernauskas and
guitarist Michael Strutt.

Tickets are $10 and
available from CMS
instructors and at the CMS
office at 604-527-5469.

 

A music school for the community: here young students strive for the right

notes.

They're students from four
different disciplines with
two things in common —a
commitment to
volunteering and a $4,000
boost to their bank

accounts.

Douglas College students
Darren Brow (Sport
Science), Chelsea Weber
(Stagecraft), Christie Ang
(General Nursing) and
Johanna Beemster (now
studying Psychology and
Sociology at SFU) have
won the new in-course
award from The Canada
Millennium Scholarship
Foundation. The $4,000
award recognized 830
Canadian students who
have completed part of
their post-secondary
studies and demonstrated
community involvement
and strong academic skills.

Brow, a General Studies
student focusing on Sport
Science, has demonstrated
widespread community
involvement. For example,
he is on the strata council
for his Coquitlam condo. “I
just thought I could help
out in ways other people
cant. I’m a carpenter by
trade, so I know howa
building’s built from the
ground up.” Because of his
industry connections, he

helped find a reputable

engineering firm and
construction company to
deal with repairs. Brow also
volunteered as a Peewee
hockey coach and a kayak
instructor for children with
disabilities.

Weber has volunteered as a
volleyball coach, an anti-
drug abuse educator and a
lighting consultant in her
hometown of Westbank in
the Okanagan. Last
summer she was the
volunteer Assistant Stage
Manager for the Sunshine
Theatre Company, a
position she learned about
through her instructor,
Ross Nichol. “I really like
my hometown and I'd like
to live there,” says Weber.
“Tt was great to have the
opportunity to get to know
local people in the

business.”

Former Douglas College
psychology student
Johanna Beemster, now at
SFU, says, “I go through
withdrawal when I’m not
volunteering.”

Beemster always wanted to
be a psychologist, but it
wasnt until her mid-40s
that the single mother of
two decided to give
academia a try. She took
Sociology 125 with Nick
Mansfield, and she was

Crystal Decisions makes
donation to Douglas College

hooked.

Last summer, Beemster
volunteered at Riverview
Hospital with psychiatric
patients. “You learn this
stuff at school and you
want to apply it
somewhere. It’s like a new
car — you can’t wait to try it
out.” She also has
volunteered for the Family
Education and Support
Centre, at a local daycare
and as a scout and cub
leader in her hometown of

Maple Ridge.
Ang says she started

volunteering because she
wanted to do something
useful with her time. “I
still want that now when
I'm not busy studying.”

Ang, who lives in
Richmond, is the Douglas
College student
representative for the
Registered Nurses
Association of BC, anda
long-time member of
Youth Taking Charge, a
community social service
group. She is a BC Red
Cross First Responder .

“A lot of people have
volunteered their time for
me,” says Ang. “For me
volunteering is a chance to
give back to the
community that I got so
much from.”

major

Health Information Services students at Douglas College will gain valuable expertise on
the product of choice for their profession, thanks to a generous donation of Crystal
Reports software from Crystal Decisions.

“We're beyond thrilled,” says Joy Fletcher, an instructor in the Health Information
Services Program. “Having Crystal Reports will make a huge difference to us, and to our

students.”

The Health Information Services Program at Douglas College will use the donated

Crystal Reports software, valued at $21,534, to train students to manage health care
information, creating reports and statistics that are vital to policy decisions in hospital
management and government. The Fraser Health Authority also is donating training
services and expertise on Crystal Reports.

The donation complements a $134,500 software donation from Guelph-based Cactus
Health Systems, received earlier this year. Cactus also donated its yearly maintenance fee,

valued at $32,000.

“Employers are really excited our grads will know this software,” says Fletcher. “This puts
our grads on the cutting edge of health care information.”

 

Quote of the Month

“It was an eye-opener about life. You get to a certain age and you think you know things and then you read about what

you think you know in a book and it’s been documented and you think, I need to know more. It’s validation.”

— Johanna Beemster, Millennium Scholarship winner and former Douglas College student, on taking her first class as a mature student, Sociology 125