Student Engagement Gala celebrates student and staff contributionS to success > Douglas College recognizes achievement across community Jamal Al-Bayaa Staff Writer n April 20, students, faculty, and staff met to recognize and celebrate the hard work that goes into creating an engaging student experience at Douglas College. Groups in attendance included the Zambia Leadership Program, Student Ambassadors, DSU Student Representatives, the Life at DC social media team, and peer tutors from the library’s Learning Centre. The evening was hosted by Lucas Britton, a now graduated music student and student ambassador; and third year student Meredith Graham, who graced the audience with a mashup of “Hello” by Adele and “Let It Go” from the Frozen soundtrack. After opening with a First Nation territory recognition, alumni Renee Naidu gave the opening speech. Now graduated and successful in her career, she spent the speech reminiscing over how student engagement brought her to the career that she has today, and explained why she felt so passionately about getting involved at school. She gave further recognition to the Student Ambassadors, crediting them with building her confidence as a leader. According to Eric Glanville, head of the Office for New Students, Naidu did more than just learn how to speak and be confident during her time at the Ambassadors. “She got hired as student staff at the ONS, and within a year she was running everything in the program,” said Glanville. “She had created the tightest student relationships that the program had seen in a long time. People respected her.” Naidu utilized these skills when she went to Zambia a few years ago, creating educational programs for young children, and organizing and encouraging community engagement to help promote development in the region. As a result, she is currently working with children, exactly how she envisioned she would be when she began the Child, Family, and Community studies program at Douglas. After some more speeches by faculty, 14 groups were recognized for leadership and student engagement on campus. These groups included the DSU Psychology Society, the Cultural Connections and International Volunteers, and the Douglas College Business Administration, which just recently organized the FortisBC Climate Change: Beyond the Headlines event Evergreen Line: Staying on track? > Stations near completion, yet line runs over the budget Mercedes Deutscher News Editor ransLink users will soon have an opportunity to take a sneak peak at the Evergreen Line prior to its opening. On April 25, the public was allowed to go and observe the recently completed Inlet Centre Station, with a test train stopped at the station. Similar viewing are expected to take place in the near future. “Inlet Centre Station features an innovative design that allows passengers convenient, safe access from each side of Barnet Highway,” Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development Peter Fassbender said in a press release. “It also offers a direct view of some of the environmental enhancements that have been developed along the Evergreen alignment, including fish and riparian habitat.” It is a trend that will be followed by most Evergreen stations. Plazas will be built around the 85 per cent complete stations during the summer, starting in mid-May. These plazas will include bike racks, sitting areas, and public art. Jacob Bros. Contracting will build these plazas, which will each cost $1.5 million. Yet the decision to build plazas comes with some backlash, since the transportation project has been already pushed from a summer 2016 to an early 2017 opening. Negotiations are currently taking place as well to determine where funding for budget overruns will come from. The line was expected to originally cost $1.4 billion, but problems with tunnel boring and sinkholes have added to the budget. “You know, on a project this complex, there are always things that come up that weren't anticipated in the early days,” said Fassbender to CTV News. “I know those have been dealt with by the contractor and the project authority. This project that happened on April 1. At the end of the night, the awards were given out to their deserving recipients. The categories were “outstanding contribution to Student Engagement by a college unit or department,” “Outstanding contribution to student engagement by a faculty or staff member,” and the “Leader of the Year” award, which was given to two students this year. The award for contribution by a department was awarded to the Bachelor of Science in Nursing Program (BNS) for will be on time and on budget.” It has not yet been revealed just how much over the budget the Evergreen Line will be, or if the responsibility for the budget overruns will fall on the provincial government or the construction companies, as the province has maintained that governmental coverage Image by MinistryofTranBC via YouTube Image via Douglas College Student Services on Flickr significantly enhancing the number of students majoring in nursing. They did this by supporting programs such as the BNS peer mentorship program, and “constantly thinking of ways to improve the student experience,” as said by the recipients in their thank you speeches. For contribution to student engagement by a faculty or staff member, Daniela Pacheva was awarded for her tremendous work in the supporting and mentorship of students. The Leader of the Year award saw Ruab Waraich and Marissa Martin as the two recipients of the recognition and $1,000 prize. The full list of students mentioned as Student Leadership groups: DCBA Douglas College Psychology Society Cultural Connections and International Student Volunteers DSU and the DSU Crew DSU Athlete’s Student Council Aboriginal Student Resource assistants Zambia Global Leadership Program Peer Health Educators ONS Student Ambassadors BSN Peer Mentorship Program Sport Science Student Council Learning Centre Peer Tutors Sport Science Peer Mentorship Program Life at DC Social Media Team of costs comes with the fixed contract price, and additional costs should be borne by the constructors. This will likely be clarified when the BC Liberals release their 2017 budget. Still, overall optimism around the Evergreen Line remains high as the line nears completion. “This construction milestone is bringing us closer to completing the longest transit system in Canada,” said Port Moody-Coquitlam MLA Linda Reimer ina press release. “We're proud to invest in this project, which will meet the demands of a growing population, provide communities with well-designed public spaces, and connect the Tri-Cities communities to the Metro Vancouver transit network.”