David Lam Gets a Personality, Finally

Thirty-six-million-dollar expansion to turn campus into health-sciences Mecca

Brandon Ferguson, News Editor

hanges abound at the David Lam ( campus, where Douglas College

has begun its $36.1-million expansion that will house up to 1,500 new fufl-time students in the health-sciences department. With the approval of a new Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Psychiatric Nursing, which goes along with the already adopted BSc in Nursing, Douglas hopes to forge a vibrant community at the long-neglected Coquitlam campus.

Some day, there may even be a pub night held out there.

The Honourable Ida Chong, former Minister of Advanced Education, said, “New construction will provide class- rooms, labs, academic offices, and library and study space to create more learning opportunities for students at Douglas College.”

Former MLA Richard Stewart, in one of his last acts as an employed person, added, “I’m excited to see the additional student spaces right here in Coquitlam. And this new state-of-the-art learning facility will allow Douglas College to take a leading role in educating future health practitioners.”

The expansion will also create more

jobs in food services, administrative

The HRGC-S Casual Labour Program: Who knew?

Max Hilland, Summer Employment Officer

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4 | www.theotherpress.ca

Susan Witter (left), Ida Chong (right)

duties, and school maintenance—Stewart may wish to fire off a résumé, after being bounced by NDP candidate Diane Thorne.

To make this 9,720-square-metre proj- ect happen, Douglas chipped in $4.1 million to go with the province’s $32-mil-

lion contribution as part of their “Golden Decade” and “25,000 new seats by 2010” public-relations campaign (I mean, strate- gy to solidify the future health of BC). College president, Susan Witter, gushed over the province’s generosity. “This is such wonderful news,” she said,

“The commitment made by the provincial government to provide funding for this building, along with 1,500 additional full- time student spaces here and in New Westminster, will be an enormous benefit to our students and the community.”

Provincial Liberal bullshit aside, Douglas has taken it upon themselves to restructure the sense of community in the College and correct the schism that exists between the two campuses. Of the 1,500 new student spaces coming to the college, 794 will go to the Lam, along with some 626 spaces in current health-science pro- grams. Miss you already Megan.

Blaine Jensen, vice-president of edu- cational services for Douglas College and noted snappy dresser, told slack-jawed student-union-meeting attendees that the changes were being made with the inten- tion of “creating a more vibrant and enjoyable atmosphere” on the David Lam campus.

Ahem...pub nights...ahem.

The new building—to be built on the south side of Lam where, right now, total- ly useless grass grows—will be completed in November 2007, and open for January 2008.

ith highschools , \ / across the Lower Mainland — breaking

for summer holidays, students will soon be eagerly searching for jobs in order to make some extra cash. As any student knows, the summer is a very competitive time for job hunting, often tak- ing several weeks of searching to find anything. In order to help students avoid this frustrating reality, the Human Resource Centre of Canada for Students (HRCC-S), open since May, is offering a program designed for those facing this barrier.

The program, which is called the Casual Labour Program (or the Odd Job Squad), is one of many services offered by the

HRCC-S, and has a specific objective: to offer flexible, casual (up to five days) labour to stu- dents. Because of the casual nature of the program, it is a perfect opportunity for those who are in the midst of search- ing for long-term employment and need to make some quick cash. As part of the Youth Employment Strategy, the target- ed age group for the program is 15-30. Those with little or no experience need not worry, as the program is designed to be suitable for everybody. Because of the wide range of jobs avail- able—from gardening to data entry—the Casual Labour Program helps you become a more versatile employee and

strengthens your résumé.

On the students’ end, all you have to do is sign up at the HRCC-S office. The employer is responsible for setting the pay and hours of work, and is required to abide by all of the Canadian Labour Laws. There are a number of returning stu- dents who successfully found work through the program, and have built relationships with employers who were pleased with their excellent work.

The HRCC-S office is located at 100-624 Agnes Street, New Westminster, and is open from 9am—4:30pm, Monday-Friday. For more information, call 604.666.1200.

July 13/2005