Se Fee ma | Revelstoke Avalanche kills two, injures 30 ants An avalanche in Revelstoke on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. has killed two and injured 30. An unconfirmed number of people are still missing as the search and rescue operation continues. It happened during the Big Iron Shoot- Out, an annual snowmobiling event. Approximately 200 people were present for the event despite a warning from the Canadian Avalanche Centre that an avalanche could occur in the area. Crews from around the province as well as Calgary were brought in. An Olympic-sized stat holiday As part of the legacy of the 2010 Games, VANOC CEO John Furlong is campaigning for the third Monday of every February to be a stat holiday in BC. Premier Gordon Campbell, however, is reportedly against the idea. Economists estimate that the stat would cost $270 million in productivity annually. _ An online petition has already amassed thousands of supporters. Google pulling out of China? After a widely publicised round of negotiations about censorship failed, multiple news sources are ‘now reporting that search engine and internet heavy-weight Google will shut down its website in China. Google announced in January that it would no longer be a party to China’s strict censorship regulations. No time line for the closure of _ Google.cn was announced and, at the time of this writing, Google has yet to comment on the matter. aw Student think tank to help improve the student experience at Douglas Students get a chance to sit down with policy makers March 16 By Kristina Mameli, News Editor s part of the Strategic Planning Process, Douglas’ President Dr. Scott McAlpine recently created an online student satisfaction survey in concert with a new blog, in an effort to collect ideas on how to make the typical student experience at Douglas better. “Here,” McAlpine writes in the “About Me” section on the blog, “I and others will blog about strategic planning and the 7 key themes at the centre of our process.” The survey and blog ask students to provide feedback on their experiences as a Douglas student and on what kinds of changes they would like to see in order to make the programs and services the institution offers better. This strategy utilizes the burgeoning world of social media to hone in on what could bolster student pride and make Douglas more than just a transitional school. “We need your thoughts and feedback,” McAlpine continues. “This is one place to share it.” Overwhelmingly, well over 200 students have already responded in the forum-like setting and the next step will see policy makers taking the time to sit down with students. On March 16 from 5-7 p.m. in room 4920 on the New Westminster Campus, policy makers, including McApline, will sit down with students to openly discuss key issues brought up in the survey and further the Strategic Planning Process. The group hopes students will suggest specific and feasible ways in which Douglas’ administrators can improve the student experience. All students are invited to attend and encouraged to share their ideas through this and any of the online outlets. Free pizza and drinks will also be provided for those who attend this excellent opportunity to make a difference. If you'd like to participate, please RSVP by emailing glanvillee@ douglas.be.ca And for more information on the Strategic Planning Process at Douglas visit McAlpine’s blog at http://www.douglaspresident.com/. Transportation minister confirms that all B.C. The price, however, remains unfixed Kristina Mameli news editor minister Shirley Bond said that the provincial government will keep its 2009 promise to work towards a U-Pass for all B.C. post-secondary students, a promise which until now had been greatly lacking in follow through. In I: a surprise announcement Friday, transportation students will have a U-Pass by September Meggs on behalf of Mayor Gregor Robertson. Priscilla Bartleman, external relations coordinator of the DSU, told The Other Press in January that Bond was working to have an answer for the group by the end of the school year as a result of the group’s meetings with her. “We'll have to wait and see,” said Bartleman. The pass, promised by September, will now be province wide as Bond told The Province. “We are going to honour the commitment we made... We’ve had a lot of discussions with students, and certainly students have “We are going to honour the commitment we made... We’ve had a lot of been very fact, it inspired discussions with students, and certainly students have been very active active and very the student and very unique in how they’ve shared their views.” unique in how unions of four —Transportation minister Shirley Bond they’ve shared institutions their views.” without a U-Pass to start the OnePassNow Campaign in the fall 2009 semester. The Other Press reported on the efforts of the student unions of Douglas College, VCC, Emily Carr and UBC’s AMS last year, which started the successful campaign. The group utilized social media such as texting, email, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter to relay their message and goal to students and ultimately to Premier Gordon Campbell: a $25 per month U-Pass for all post-secondary students in Metro Vancouver. Arally in October at Victory Square saw over 700 students gather in support of the campaign. As a result, October 21 was officially declared U-Pass Day in Vancouver by Vancouver City Councillor Geoff The U-Pass is currently only available to Capilano College, Langara, SFU and UBC in the Lower Mainland and at UVic in Victoria and Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops. The price of the passes at those institutions ranges from $23.75 to $38. Other schools in the Lower Mainland, such as Douglas, pay $73 per month for a one-zone pass which, coupled with a valid student card, becomes a three-zone pass. The price of the new pass has not yet been revealed. “In the minister’s words: they want to stay as close to our $25 ask as possible,” said Bartleman. “You could take that any way you want to.”