Town & Gown Association of Ontario

As commuter student populations continue to grow on many campuses, we will discuss emerging practices, share programming initiatives, and identify how we can create environments that provide commuter students with a sense of belonging on post-secondary campuses and their communities. This webinar is curated for post-secondary staff who work directly with engaging commuter students in campus and community activities and others with an interest in this topic. Send questions in advance to Kathryn Hofer at khofer@uoguelph.ca.

In one of the final events of the University of Stellenbosch’s centenary year, the rector of the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa, Professor Wim De Villiers, convened a ‘town and gown’ conference on 29 and 30 November 2018. The myth of the ivory tower was shattered. The conference illustrated that there is no longer a zero-sum calculation between civic engagement and academic excellence. In fact, it was revealed that in the Global North the closer the co-operation and the better the understanding of the separated but connected roles of town and gown, the greater the rewards for both parties.

A new study has found that six research-intensive universities across Canada—Dalhousie University, l’Université de Montréal, l’Université du Québec à Montréal, the University of Toronto, the University of Alberta, and the University of British Columbia—are “experiencing increased requirements for accountability, and increasing pressures to respond to government priorities.” Co-author Glen Jones attributed greater capacity for research and knowledge mobilization, as well as the fact that more people are attending universities, as major factors in this trend. Trust—or lack thereof—between governments and institutions is also said to have contributed to the pattern of decreased autonomy cited in the study. The authors note, however, that the relationships between universities and provinces have undergone distinct historical trajectories that differ on a case-by-case basis. 

UVic, SFU, Heiltsuk Nation collaborate to launch website The Heiltsuk people, Simon Fraser University, the University of Victoria, the Hakai institute, and Greencoast Media have launched “Húy̓at: Our Voices our Land,” a website that illuminates thousands of years of Heiltsuk Nation voices and history. The website is the result of over eight years of collaboration between the partners and grew from the community’s desire to present their connection to their lands and seas for their own communities and others. “With this publicly accessible website, we’re sharing our inseparable connection with our homelands as it holds true for all First Nations up and down the coast,” said Heiltsuk Chief Marilyn Slett. 

Canadore College launched “Biigiiweyan,” a seven-week Indigenous interprofessional cultural safety training program for students and health care professionals. The program covers topics such as colonization; Indigenous worldviews, healing, and wellness practices; respect, relationship, reconciliation, and accessing health resources and services; spiritual wellness practices; and cultural safety, advocacy and transformational change. “The program explores Indigenous approaches to healing and wellness and supports healthcare post-secondary students and current practitioners in connecting with Indigenous health services and practices in our community,” said Patricia Chabbert, Business and Indigenous Relations Manager.​