The University of Ottawa has welcomed incoming international exchange students despite the cancellation of outgoing exchanges. Arriving in Ottawa in early January, these students have not had the ordinary exchange experience.
News
As the year comes to an end, we decided to look back on significant stories the Fulcrum published in 2021. Instead of simply republishing the stories, we thought we’d do something different and offer readers a behind-the-scenes look at how some of the year’s biggest stories came to be.
The University of Ottawa’s Food Services has announced it will be ending the dining hall’s takeout program on Dec. 8.
Five U of O students teamed up to bring eco-friendly and accessible menstrual products to campus — and this is just the beginning.
“The Committee is therefore against the exclusion of words, works or ideas in the context of respectful academic presentations and discussions whose educational goal is to promote the dissemination of knowledge,” wrote the Committee on Academic Freedom in its report.
The challenges and opportunities presented by the task of converting commercial spaces to residential ones.
“You are at the heart of student life” — El Himri reflects on her role as clubs and services commissioner of UOSU and speaks to what her predecessor should know.
“We’re leading consultations with the student body and with different stakeholders and will relay those comments to HRO. And I would be surprised that this was the last UOSU has to say on this file, given the nature of the document that was presented,” said UOSU president Tim Gulliver.
The University of Ottawa’s Heart Institute released false data which was quickly picked up by vaccine hesitant groups to validate false beliefs that the COVID-19 vaccines are highly deadly.
Last month, the University of Ottawa made it mandatory for incoming students, faculty, and staff members to certify their vaccination status using the COVID-19 Vaccination Declaration online tool, whether they intend to come to campus or not.
Students have not been able to access any public documents pertaining to the UOSU’s 2021-22 Board of Directors (BOD). This includes meeting minutes, subcommittee minutes and Executive Committee members’ reports which were public in the Union’s first two years of existence on its Google Drive. Why?
“What I actually found on Russell Ave was closer to a small riot,” said first-year student Greg Coleman.
The Ottawa Police Service (OPS) have identified all ten individuals shown in photos from the night of the Panda Game on Oct. 2. New photos have been released identifying more individuals of interest in the investigation.
“I received the news that I received a job offer as a TA and my god was I happy … I am about to cross a new bridge to a new life that I am excited about. Sad and scared for sure, but relieved. Relieved I am leaving the Union in the most amazing hands,” El Himri wrote in an email explaining the reason for her resignation.
“There are systemic issues to what these students face. So now is the time to address that,” said Sana Almansour, the University of Ottawa Students’ Union interim equity commissioner.
In theory, professors are supposed to plan and adapt their courses to make sure students who are in both learning spheres get the same level of attention and education. Nevertheless, this has not always been the case and the university has taken its fair share of flak from both students and professors.
COVID-19 safety measures have been implemented during the move-in process and in residences.
Egerton Ryerson, the school’s namesake, was one of the architects of the residential school system.
Nour El Huda, the University of Ottawa’s Students’ Union’s (UOSU) former operations commissioner, detailed allegations of acts contrary to the Ontario Human Rights Code as well as general poor corporate governance by UOSU’s 2020-21 Executive Committee in her letter of resignation back in November 2020.
“Membership has been focused on faculty members since the issues to be looked at have direct impacts on the work being conducted by our professors and researchers,” wrote U of O manager of media relations, Isabelle Mailloux-Pulkinghorn in an email to the Fulcrum.
“They’ve known about the virtual format since we first registered for graduation months ago. There’s no reason they couldn’t have let us know sooner what was going on,” said Rachel Van Lanen, an imminent graduate of the U of O’s theatre program.
With the 2020 U.S. presidential election still undecided more than 40 hours after the end of polling in most states, the Fulcrum decided to look back this week on the 2011 SFUO election that took more than a night to determine all the winning candidates.
The University of Ottawa is predicting significantly large deficits that will impact students and staff alike in its updated 2020-21 projected budget. The budget takes into account the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on enrolment and how it will lead to huge financial losses for the U of O in the 2020-21 academic year.
In a year riddled with crises, the attention of university administrations is understandably divided. But as the global COVID-19 pandemic has wracked the student population with isolation and grief, it’s now more important than ever that the university’s efforts to address the mental health crisis are not lost.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced $9 billion in financial support for post-secondary students and recent graduates on Wednesday after thousands across the country said gaps in existing COVID-19 emergency measures meant they were slipping through the cracks.
