The Douglas College Newsletter m New Westminster Campus, David Lam Campus IN Douglas College November 2006 Dustin Freeland (bottom) plays C.C. Showers and Nick Hugh (top) plays Buddy Layman in Douglas College's production of The Diviners. Playing on drought and disillusionment this fall edemption and disenchantment best describe the Fall Semester’s Theatre and StageCraft productions. 7he Diviners, written by American playwright Jim Leonard Jr., and directed by guest director Stephen Drover sees the residents of Zion facing a shortage of water. Buddy, a misunderstood youth, with a gift for water-witching, is also tormented by the fear of water. C.C. Showers, a back-sliding preacher confronts his own haziness as he rejects the demands of a life he once lived. Together the two men join the townsfolk as they all search for something to believe in. Top Girls sees director Allan Lysell bringing together seven actors — playing 16 unforgettable characters — to present this unconventional play by British playwright Caryl Churchill. The story, set in 1982, begins with five historical females sitting down to dinner and drinks with the main character Marlene. From that chaotic scene the play visits a number of modern women working their way through the challenges of career, family, love and loneliness. The Diviners runs from November 3-11 in the Studio Theatre. Zop Girls runs from November 10-18 in the Performing Arts Theatre. For ticket information and times call 604-527-5488. Eat, drink - it's all for a good cause f you enjoy wine and/or Scotch, _ be featured. Proceeds go to assist gourmet hors d’oeuvres, great students in our Hotel and Restau- music and the chance to win rant Management, Athletics and prizes, then you will want to attend the ninth-annual A Class Act, Douglas College Foundation’s major annual fundraiser. Set in the majestic atrium of the David Lam Campus you can taste wines from more than seven distinct wine distributors as well as a number of excellent Scotch whiskies. There will be a live and silent auctions and scores of great rafHe prizes. Music from the Jeffrey Laing Trio will also Dispensing Optician programs. A Class Act takes place on November 17 from 7 to 9:30pm. Tickets are $55 each and can be ordered by calling Sarah Lock at 604-777-6176, locks@douglas. be.ca Payment can be via cheque or Visa or M/C. Pace of program development reaches all-time high hat do careers such as a Physical Education teacher, financial planner or child protection worker have in common? All three careers will soon be available to graduates as Douglas College’s new Bachelor's Degree programs are finalized. Scheduled to start in Fall 2007 (pending final provincial govern- ment approvals), the trio of new degrees are: Bachelor of Physical Education and Coaching (BPEC), Bachelor of Business Administra- tion (BBA) and Bachelor of Child and Youth Care (BCYC). They are just part of an impressive surge in program development at Douglas College. “There's a dynamic and energiz- ing environment around the Col- lege. Faculty are working hard to develop innovative new programs,” says Jan Lindsay, Douglas College's Vice President, Education. ‘Things started getting busy on the degree front in 2002 when provincial legislation expanded degree-granting authority to colleges. “With the advent of new degree-granting opportunities and additional funding from the BC government, Douglas College has been going through the most rapid expansion in programs over the last two years than we've seen since the inception of the College,” says Lindsay. Teaching and learning resea his fall saw the launch of the innovative research initiative, the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Project at Douglas College. Convened by Douglas Development, SoTL is different from discipline-based research in that it focuses on questions related to broader issues of teaching and learning. ‘The first step in the process was a meeting of College faculty members in the New Westminster Board Room on September 27. Instructors brainstormed ideas and generated stimulating research questions about teaching and learning. Three main themes arose from the discussion. Who are our students? What are they learning — both inside and outside of the classroom? Are we equipping them with the essential skills they need? “Tr’s all about connecting to the learner's experience. Life-long learning is not about just sitting in a classroom but also about what happens when students interact Rapid indeed — currently 31 new credentials have either recently launched or have reached various stages of development. Lindsay notes that not every proposed program is approved as each must pass through a rigorous feasibility and analysis process. However, the long list of confirmed programs and those in advanced develop- ment includes Douglas degrees, degrees partnered with other institutions, advanced citations, and post-degree credentials. Ad- ditionally, faculty members across various departments are developing creative ways to conceptually com- bine courses, such as the Summer Institute in Historical Fiction and the planned Connections project which links English, Math and Geography with a common theme. The Faculty of Child, Family and Community Studies launches two new credentials in January 2007. The Co-Occurring Dis- orders Advanced Citation offers skills for professionals working with people who have both mental health and addiction challenges. The Behavioural Interventionist Citation program (Classroom and Community Support) will train front-line practitioners who work with autistic children and their families. Both of these programs will be scheduled evenings and weekends to promote access for working adults. hee ‘The three Bachelors’ programs planned for Fall 2007 have all completed the College’s internal approval process and now await review by the province's Degree Quality Assessment Board. Once operational, the new BAs will double the number of Douglas College-granted degrees to six, joining Nursing, Psychiatric Nurs- ing and Therapeutic Recreation. The Post-Degree Diploma in Physical Education and Building Environmental Systems programs also recently launched at the College. Reviewing the new degrees, Sport Science’s BPEC degree will focus on preparing aspiring PE teachers for the K-12 system, allowing them to ladder into fifth- year university teacher credentials. Commerce's BBA will offer two majors: Financial Services and an Applied Accounting specialty designed for graduates fast-tracking into professional accountancy credentials. The CYC Bachelor's degree will address the growing demand for degree-level staff in educational and community child- and youth-service settings. Also on the slate for Fall 2007 is a new diploma in Legal Studies. ch alive and well Douglas Development's Lin Langley convenes a meeting of Douglas College faculty for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Project. with one another and with the instructors,” explained Douglas Development’s Lin Langley. The SoTL Steering Team is a multi-disciplinary group that will work closely with participants to help define a research ques- tion. Over a one-year period, participants will come together in monthly cohort meetings and work with others to engage in all aspects of the research process. Individuals can apply their research findings to activities such as conference presentations, peer-reviewed articles for publica- tion, or completion of the post- probationary faculty evaluation. If you are interested in joining the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Project contact Langley or Julia Robinson in Douglas Development at 604-527-54lI. Quote of the Month “Fallen leaves lying on the grass in the November sun bring more happiness than the daffodils,” - Cyril Connolly (English critic and editor, 1903-1974)