Volume M9, Issue No. 10, October 24, 2011

Intercom is published regularly and serves to inform Vanier staff and teachers of notices and special events. It is posted on the Vanier College Website and distributed electronically. Submissions should be sent to intercom@vaniercollege.qc.ca. Submissions should be in WORD, and sent as an attachment. No formatting or bullets. Deadline: 4:00 p.m. on the Wednesday preceding publication.

Vanier Community Connection Day – November 1, 2011 Vanier Community Connection Day – November 1, 2011 (formerly known as PED Day) Designed for all Vanier teachers and staff, this year we will celebrate our first Vanier Community Connection Day, VCC Day, on Tuesday, November 1, 2011. The theme of the day is Student Centeredness. We are encouraging everyone, teachers, staff, professionals, and administrators, to participate in the Grand Welcome Circle and the discussion team activities in the morning. Lunch will be available for those who participate. There are workshops in the afternoon. Check out the schedule of the day’s activities on the PDO webpage. There is no cost for the activities, but registration is required. As with all activities during working hours, staff must have their supervisor's approval before registering for these VCC Day activities. Here is the link to the VCC Day Registration Form. The deadline to register is Thursday, October 27, 2011. Mark your calendar, November 1, and plan to attend our new and exciting, VCC Day!

Wilma Brown, Pedagogical Development Office

Critical Dates for Planning for 2012 – 2013 Capital budget requests due Friday, January 27, 2012 Operational budgets due Wednesday, February 29, 2012 For procedure information ask your supervisor or coordinator or consult Intercom September 5-9.

Bev Chandler, Vanier Communications

Closings for VCC Day November 1, 2011

Please note that there will be no services on Tuesday, November 1

st at the Sports Complex. The only activities that will run are

those associated with VCC Day. The Fitness Room and Employee Fitness programs will not be available so sign up for Aqua Fit or Zumba Dancing if you want your daily workout.

Linda Macpherson, Sports Complex

Please note there will be no services in the Print Shop, Mail Room or Vanier Communications Tuesday morning, November 1, 2011, so that staff may attend some VCC events. Services will reopen at 1:30pm.

Bev Chandler, Vanier Communications

Road Closures near Vanier due to Construction

Please be advised that major construction work will start on Ste-Croix between Cote-Vertu and Decelles on the 28th of October and should last for approximately 3 weeks. The corner of Decelles/Ste-Croix will remain open to traffic. All southbound traffic will be rerouted through Basile-Moreau. All Northbound traffic will be rerouted to use Decelles up to Decarie and continue Northbound. The ongoing citywide construction project aims to replace the aging aqueducts, sewer lines and add a bicycle lane. Construction has been divided into phases in order to minimize the impact it has on traffic. At this time, the main entrance of the college as well as the entrances on Basile-Moreau will be unaffected. Further disruptions during subsequent phases of the project are expected to take place and the Vanier community will be informed.

Loïc Boyer, Security Services

Open House 2011

Teaching Tip: Encouraging Participation in Class Discussions A good classroom discussion can help students brainstorm on a topic, reveal gaps or misconceptions to the teacher, and get students involved in constructing knowledge. Some teachers, though, live in fear of that deafening silence when a discussion topic falls flat. Even when the discussion gets going, we have to deal with one or two students monopolizing the conversation. How can we encourage students to participate more, and more richly, in class discussion? Be patient The silence might make you uncomfortable, but try not to give in to the impulse to fill it with your own words. Give students some time to process the question and formulate their responses. Research has shown that a 20 second pause significantly increases participation by quieter students. 20 seconds can feel like a long time for a class to be quiet, but try it out – you may like the results. Strength in numbers space space space space space space Ask students to discuss the topic in small groups first, then report their collective ideas to the larger group. You can do this informally, or use the Think-Pair-Share technique described in a previous Teaching Tip.

No opt out space space space space space space Another technique that encourages the participation of the students who might be taking it a bit easy is the ‘No Opt Out’. Each student can respond to the question or previous discussion or to say s/he has nothing to contribute yet – in that case, come back to that student before the end of the discussion.

If you’re having trouble keeping some enthusiastic students from dominating class discussions (which does discourage shy students and lets lazy ones off the hook), check out this previous Teaching Tip – and get more details on this week’s Teaching Tip in the online version on the PDO web page.

Wilma Brown, Pedagogical Development Office

Contest: Black History Month Poster

«A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots (Marcus Garvey) ». For Black History Month, the Black Studies Major in conjunction with the Positive and the Non-Stereotyped Minority Representation Project are organizing a contest for students to design a poster that will represent the true meaning of Black History Month. The poster must reflect the valuable contribution and positive role models of members of the Black community.

The deadline to submit your entry is Wednesday, November 23th, 2011 at Student services C-203. The winner will receive a prize of $400.00. In addition, the winning poster will be featured as the 2012 official Black History Month poster at Vanier College.. For more information, please contact: Danielle Altidor (7463) or Mark Prentice (7652).

Danielle Altidor, French Department

Follow up to Depression Screening Day 2011

Vanier College Counselling Centre’s Depression Screening Day, held on October 5, 2011, was a well-attended and highly successful event. Once again, we would like to express our appreciation to Janice Clarini and her class of third year Special Care Counselling students, whose hard work and enthusiasm contributed to the tremendous success of the day.

Hundreds of students participated in the event. 150 filled out the Depression Screening Questionnaire, while others picked up information on a variety of mental health topics. Responses from the questionnaire revealed that a significant number of students exhibited symptoms of depression, but had never sought professional help. Twenty students followed up with appointments for counselling. For many, this day provided an important first step towards seeking help from the Counselling Centre.

Carmine Rossignoli, Student Services

20th Annual Bridge-Building Competition Twenty years and many kilograms of spaghetti later, the Learning Centre, followed by the Math and Science Centre have been consistent in presenting a unique spectacle: the annual bridge building competition! Come be a part of history as you view the variety of spaghetti bridges created by Vanier students and try to guess which design will win the award for Craftsmanship and Aesthetics. Then the fun begins as we load weights on each of the bridges to determine which one will withstand the greatest load and win First Prize for the greatest efficiency ratio (load/mass of bridge). This is an event not to be missed! Details: Wednesday, November 9 from 12:30 PM – 2 PM in the Marketplace. Sign up deadline is October 31. Please mention this message to interested students.

Safiya Simon, Mathematics and Science Centre

Last Call: Montreal Alouettes Tickets October 30 A limited number of tickets ($27.00 tax incl.) for the game between the Montreal Alouettes vs. the Calgary Stampeders on October 30 at 1 PM are still available. The deadline to purchase tickets is Tuesday, October 25. Contact Jonathan Goldman (7098) for more info.

Jonathan Goldman, Vanier Communications

Newspaper/Magazine Subscriptions now Delivered to Mailbox

Departmental Subscriptions to newspapers and magazines that were previously kept at Security will now be distributed to your Vanier mail box in the Print Shop B-121.

Loïc Boyer, Security Services

Parking talk

The parking lot continues to represent angst and frustration for some, continuity and comfort for others, injustice for still others. It is one of our most contested spaces. This year, Vanier changed the fundamental structure of the parking lot management. Come hear about the changes to the rules that are put into effect as well as what is happening with the extra revenue from the parking lot. Come voice your concerns and hear others’ concerns as well.

Loïc Boyer, head of security at Vanier, will be presenting some of the changes to the parking regulations. This will be followed by an open discussion about parking and transport issues in and around Vanier. Representatives from the Borough and Saint-Laurent’s Centre de Gestion des Déplacements will be present as transportation experts to partake in this discussion. Richard Dugas, Vanier’s sustainability officer, will present some of the incentives being developed to promote use of public transit by members of the Vanier community.

Come express yourselves and discover the complexities of the issue in this solutions-focused forum of open discussion. Universal Break, October 26th, 12:30 to 1:30, Amphitheatre.

Richard Dugas, Student Services

An Invitation to Vanier’s First 100 Mile Dinner VERT (Vanier’s Environmental Response Team) is organizing a 100 mile dinner. The concept is based on Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon’s bestselling non-fiction book, The 100 Mile Diet, about how they lived in Vancouver for one year eating only local produce. These motivated students want to highlight the advantages of eating local. By showcasing a variety of food from the Montreal area, they hope to open your eyes to the myriad possibilities for foods that can be grown and prepared locally. They hope to convince you that eating locally is not only the environmental option, but also the best health and economical option. The dinner will be held Friday October 28 from 6 to 9 PM in the Student Mall. Tickets can be purchased at the VCSA or at Student Services. The all you can eat buffet will feature a Thanksgiving type meal with foods such as: Turkey, mashed potatoes, vegetables, gravy, apple pie, fish in a herb garlic sauce, chicken sausages, vegetarian chili, potato and leek soup, and tomato based vegetable soup.

Richard Dugas, Student Services

OPUS & Cie is coming to Vanier College! The employer – STM partnership to encourage use of public transit through partial subsidization of the OPUS card is coming to Vanier. Watch this space next week for details and conditions.

Richard Dugas, Student Services

How to Apply for PAREA Grants: Upcoming Online ARC PAREA Workshop ARC PAREA Workshop online December 13 and 15, 2011, from 9 AM to Noon. Lise St-Pierre, Professor at the Université de Sherbrooke, is giving an online workshop on how to apply for PAREA grants. The workshop is in French, but PAREA grants can be given for English research. Link here for more information in French or read Lynn Lapostole's article about these workshops in English.

Caroline Hanrahan, Office of the Academic Dean

Bridge Building CompetitionBridge Building CompetitionBridge Building Competition Wednesday, November 9

th, Marketplace at 12:30 pm

VANIER’S 20th20th ANNUAL

The Challenge:

BUILD A BRIDGE OUT OF SPAGHETTI WITH THE *GREATEST EFFICIENCY FACTOR.

REGISTRATION DEADLINE:

Monday, October 31st

Cash Prizes!

1st $125 2nd $75 3rd $35 4th $25

TO REGISTER:

PLEASE SEE > SAFIYA, MATH & SCIENCE CENTRE, F-540B

OR REGISTER ONLINE > WWW.VANIERCOLLEGE.QC.CA/MSC (REGISTRATION FOR ACTIVITIES)

Rules are online: www.vaniercollege.qc.ca/msc

* Efficiency Factor (load / mass of bridge)