A lot of big things happened at Queen’s this year- donations, new buildings, the revitalization of old buildings, and more. The Queen’s Gazette has captured these events well in it’s recent year-in-review. But to me, it’s not the buildings or the money that make Queen’s, well, Queen’s. It’s the people, and their projects and achievements. So, after scrolling through a year’s worth of Gazette stories (they write a lot!), here is my take on the best Gazette stories of 2016.
Convocation Success a Team Effort: This behind-the-scenes look at what, and who, goes into planning convocation is by far my favourite article of the year. By. Far.
Research on the Radio: Grad Chat, a weekly radio show on CFRC hosted by the School of Graduate Studies, invites grad students to share their research with the public, teaching the students how to communicate with media, and the public about the research topic.
Driven to Make a Difference: Claire Gummo’s work on sexual violence prevention at Queen’s, among other things, led to her being named Queen’s 57th Rhodes Scholar in November. I can say “I knew her when”!
Drum corps a ‘labour of love’ for postal manager: Donald Dean, Manager, Queen’s Postal Services, was inducted into the World Drum Corps Hall of Fame this year. Did you know a Kingston drum corps won the World Championship back in 2004?
Peer advisors provide crucial link to experiences abroad: An in-depth look at the peer advisor program run by the International Programs Office that will make you wish you were going on exchange.
Daring Rescue: Back in February, a car crashed into Lake Ontario, and two Queen’s students jumped into the lake to pull the driver out. This is their story.
A Q to Remember: 3373 students, staff and faculty came out to break the world record for the largest human letter (a Q, obviously) during University Orientation. And they succeeded!
From Barista to Dragon: A profile of alumna Michelle Romanov, who started the Tea Room while on campus, has since gone on to start several successful businesses, and is a Dragon on the Dragon’s Den. She was back on campus to receive an alumni award.
From Heartbreak to Graduation: Graduating is hard enough without losing your mother to cancer, and becoming the legal guardian for your two younger brothers. Without the support of a major bursary, Melanie Gray (Artsci’16) probably wouldn’t have made it across the stage this year.
Coming Full Circle: Jennifer Tomasone started at Queen’s as an undergrad, and has now returned as a professor. This is basically the story of her life, and a fascinating look at the opportunities Queen’s can provide.
Out in the World, In All Directions: Musician, composer, actor, writer, film director, producer, radio and TV host, bankteller, graphic designer, yoga instructor, researcher, writer and mediator. That’s not just a list of job’s but Paul Chaput’s (PhD’15) life history.
Fuelling Success: So many things went wrong for a team of Queen’s engineering students while competing at the Shell Eco-marathon, but they still managed to pull off a win, finishing at the top of their division for most energy-efficient vehicle.
Queen’s also welcomed, and the Gazette profiled, several new employees, many of whom I work with on a regular basis: Jyoti Kotecha, Director, QUIC; Corinna Fitzgerald, Assistant Dean (Student Life & Learning); and Barbara Lotan, Sexual Violence Response and Prevention Coordinator.
Finally, as a student affairs professional, I’d be remiss if I didn’t share the stories of our division’s work: Health Promotion hosted the first ever conference for Peer Health Educators and professional staff, we hosted SOAR with expanded advising opportunities for students, Career Services launched their grad maps, Mike Domitriz gave a presentation on sexual violence during Orientation Week, we welcomed the Class of 2020, Learning Strategies continued to help students make it through exams, and Athletics and Recreation recognized nearly 400 academic all-stars. And that’s only what we wrote about.
