| : ’
q f e March 1999

  

The Douglas College Newsletter

m@ New Westminster Campus, David Lam Campus & Thomas Haney Campus

MLAs take a closer look

 

Closely examining funding issues that affect Douglas College and other post-secondary
institutions are (I-r) Board Chair Neal Nicholson, MLA Graeme Bowbrick, Student Society
President Dave Seaweed, MLA Joan Sawicki, Education Council Chair Meg Stainsby, Douglas
College President Susan Witter, DCFA President Kevin Barrington-Foote, and MLA Fred
Randall. The MLAs met with College representatives on February 12th, discussing the increase
in demand for College programs, difficulty with inadequate funding to support technology,
and the need for additional funding to open the David Lam Campus in the summer and

weekends.

Douglas College's unique role

Douglas College President
Susan Witter hosted a Forum
on February 10 and the theme
that emerged from the
discussion was clear: at Douglas
College we continue to do what
community colleges do best.
The combination of high
university transfer rates, access
to education for under-educated
adults, specialized career
programs, small classes and
enhanced contact between
instructors and students offers
the community a unique blend

of educational services.

“When I talk to any of our
students the question I like to
ask is why did you come to
Douglas College? And the
answers are almost always the
same: small classes, good
faculty, and the quality of the

interaction between faculty and
students,” says Witter.

Discussions during the forum
ranged from the responsibility
of a public institution to
provide quality education, to
the need to examine what
prevents students from getting
into the programs they want, to
the flexibility of Douglas
College to accommodate a new
world of learning.

Institutional Research and
Planning Director Bob Cowin
remarked that “one of our
distinctive features is the way
we've been able to blend and
integrate — all of our faculties
provide university-transfer
(UT) courses or prepare
students for entry to UT. We
are breaking down the

distinctions between UT and
career and just providing
education.”

The traditional notion of
success at college is often the
completion of a diploma or
certificate. Carrying the
conversation forward into a
definition of success, Physics
instructor Jennifer Kirkey says
that “students who take five
classes at Douglas College and
then go on to university with a
clear idea of what they want to
do next are a success, not a
failure. And this means that we
as a College are successful
because UT is part of what we

do.”

While part of the discussions
centered on the College’s
unique role, Witter also talked

 

 

IN

Douglas College

    

TelReg for College
employees

Summer 1999 registration
\ for College employees

starts in March. To receive
priority registration, please
make sure you fit into one
of the following

categories:

1. If you attended classes in the Winter semester, call
Vib Jose at 5527, identify yourself as a College employee

and tell her you plan to register for the Summer semester.

2. If you are a College employee with a student number
and you did not attend classes in the Winter semester,
complete an Application for Readmission form to
reactivate your student number. Be sure to identify
yourself as a College employee when reapplying.

3. If you are a College employee without a student
number, complete an Application for Admission form
and submit your official high school transcript to the
Registrar's Office. Be sure to identify yourself as a College
employee when applying. You must do this before March
8 to receive priority registration.

If you are in doubt as to the fee exemptions you qualify
for as a College employee, please check with the
Personnel Office.

about the demographics of Douglas College, BCs education and
training system, external and internal issues, new opportunities and
directions, and her own personal values. For those who weren't able
to attend the forum, copies of the overheads used in the
presentation are available from Ginny Batke in room 4900.

Celebrating unsung heroines

Since 1911, International Women’s Day has celebrated the
courage and strength of women, and today’s events are no
different. On March 5, Douglas College’s Women’s Centre
celebrates the day around the theme of “Visions and Voices:
Sisters in the Circle,” addressing diversity in the College
community. The festivities begin with dinner, followed by a
ceremony honoring unsung heroines of Douglas College. The
keynote speaker is Viola Thomas, President of the United
Native Nations. Tickets are $15 for students, $20 for College
employees and guests. Doors open at 5:30pm and

the celebration begins at 6pm. Tickets are
available at the New Westminster Campus
Women’s Centre, room 4810, fourth floor
South. Call 5148 for more information.

 

 

Quote of the Month

“Don t go around saying the world owes you a living.
The world owes you nothing. It was here first.”

Mark Twain