Learn more on-line about the Governance Law and Management Degree available at Athabasca University by browsing the new virtual home pages for the Governance, Law and Management (GLM) and Public Administration degree programs

The new site is located at: http://bpa-governance.athabascau.ca/contents/index1.html

AU’s existence confirmed at June 13 and 14 Convocation ceremonies

“I admit I traveled to convocation not only to receive my degree, but to confirm that Athabasca University exists,” Bachelor of Administration graduate Ramona DeRose joked with fellow graduates, family and friends in her Address by a Graduate at Athabasca University’s Undergraduate Convocation ceremony, June 14.

DeRose was one of the degree program graduates who traveled to Athabasca last weekend to see for themselves that the institution does indeed exist, to participate in the Convocation ceremony, and to meet the professors, tutors and classmates who have played such an integral part in their education and lives. Seven hundred and sixty-three students graduated from their respective degree programs this year, and over 300 of them took in ceremonies, luncheons, pancake breakfasts, and other events in AU’s biggest event of the year.

In her speech, DeRose reflected on how much distance learning can seem a lonely experience, yet it takes many people in order for one person to earn a degree. She shared her memory of a moment with her son that happened while she sat working on an Economics course. He asked why she bothered to go to school, and DeRose turned the question back to him, asking why he practiced soccer.

“Because I want to get better,” he replied.

“Me too,” she responded.

“Although we are celebrating the end of our days as undergraduates,” DeRose continued, “we must recognize that the commitment to learning, and the desire to become what we are capable of becoming is our true achievement. For it is in the striving that we learn, and in the struggle for knowledge that we reveal our true potential.”

Parts of her address echoed the words of her graduate counterpart, Bill Robinson, the Master of Arts – Integrated Studies student who delivered the Address by a Graduate at Friday’s ceremony. He reflected on the path that he and his fellow distance learners have shared over the past few years of their lives.

“As many of you will attest, I have developed what I feel are very close bonds with many other students and staff in the program,” Robinson said. “I believe that these relationships are built on the shared challenges and successes we all face as we work our way through the various Graduate programs. I cannot tell you the pride I have felt when I witnessed one AU student offering advice and assistance to another when things may not have been going well.

“Tragically, I lost my father during the later part of my degree program,” he continued. “However the support I was shown from the other students and professor was truly outstanding.”

Edmonton construction giant Robert Stollery attended the graduate Convocation ceremony, June 13, to accept an Honourary Doctor of Laws. In his address, Stollery encouraged graduates to examine their own definition of success, and he imparted a message of the importance of lifelong learning, and the role of volunteering in creating the kind of world we all want to live in.

“You must look to the future with enthusiasm and confidence,” Stollery urged grads. “Work hard and smart and remember that old Eskimo proverb, “?Only the lead dog sees the landscape.’

“Indeed today’s graduates not only have the ability to lead, you have the responsibility to lead. Rather than complain about the acts of government and corporations, get involved in any way you can, and you can have a part in building the kind of Canada you, and your children want to live in.”

Canadian broadcasting star Vicki Gabereau lent levity to the June 14 undergraduate ceremony as she accepted a Doctor of Letters. She charmed the audience with her description of her own struggle with education – including a high school mathematics mark of 2 per cent – and discussed the education her life has delivered.

Governing Council Chair Robert Fulton started reaching for a pen and application form when Gabereau asked, “Can I enroll?”

In his address, AU president Dr. Dominique Abrioux congratulated the graduates on their accomplishments, outlined the most recent accomplishments, and urged the AU community to continue striving to improve.

“Athabasca University cannot afford to rest on its laurels and to be satisfied with past accomplishments,” Abrioux said on Friday. “We must accelerate our transformation into the electronic learning environment, and use this as an opportunity to continually improve upon the quality of the learning and the services we provide to our students.

“We must further develop our international reputation for excellence in research and distance and online education,” he continued, “for without such a reputation our domestic market will be at risk, as will be the added value associated with an Athabasca University degree that today’s graduands have worked so hard to earn.”

Balbinder Atwal, a Bachelor of Nursing graduate who came looking forward to meeting her professors and tutors reported she won’t forget her first real graduation event.

“I think it’s very important for me and my children to see that this is the result of hard work,” she said. “And it is a celebration for your hard work. It’s the beginning of good things. It’s a closure in that you’ve finished your studies, but it opens a lot of doors. Education is really important in a person’s life.”

Miss the ceremonies? The proceedings were taped this year and will be available for viewing at a later date. You can also read the complete Convocation speeches by clicking on the below.

Dominique Abrioux
Undergraduate ceremony (http://www.athabascau.ca/insider/2003/speech_dominique_2.htm)
Graduate ceremony (http://www.athabascau.ca/insider/2003/speech_dominique_1.htm)

Robert Fulton – (Still in Transcription Department)

Graduate speeches
Bill Robinson (Still in Transcription Department)
Ramona DeRose (http://www.athabascau.ca/insider/2003/speech_derose.htm)

Honourary degree recipients
Robert Stollery (http://www.athabascau.ca/insider/2003/speech_stollery.htm)
Vicki Gabereau (Still in Transcription Department)

There was a decidedly positive energy in the Wedgwood Room of the Fairmont Hotel Macdonald on March 19 as more than 70 AU MBA alumni, students and CIM faculty and staff gathered for the annual AU MBA Edmonton Alumni and Student Dinner.

The Honourable Murray Smith, Alberta’s Minister of Energy, provided a snapshot of his ministry’s work on many of Alberta’s critical energy issues – the deregulation of Alberta’s energy marketplace, environmental regulations, energy conservation initiatives and Alberta’s growing role as a ‘safe and secure’ energy provider.

“Alberta’s energy reservoir includes the second largest oil reserves in the world as well as natural gas, coal and electricity,” Smith said. “We also have the expertise, the leadership and the infrastructure to reliably supply energy to our customers within Canada and the United States both now and in the future.”

Minister’s Smith presentation was followed by a lively question and answer session.
Comments from alumni and students reflected the importance of events such as this to build the AU MBA student/alumni community and keep alumni connections alive.

AU MBA alumni and CIM staff: Lana Lougheed, MBA graduand; Peter Robertson, MBA ’02; Butch Brennan, MBA ’02; Chris Wheaton, CIM admissions coordinator; Mark Tempest, MBA ’01 and Patricia Sorochan, CIM admissions coordinator.

INSECTS, SPIDERS AND OTHER THINGS NICE?

Robert Holmberg, Associate Professor, Biology, reports on upcoming activities of Science Outreach – Athabasca.

Terry Thormin of the Alberta Provincial Museum’s Bug Room will be presenting Alberta Bugs: The Good, The Bad and the Ugly on April 8 from 7-9 pm at the Nancy Appleby Theatre in Athabasca.

From giant waterbugs to sawtoothed grain beetles, Terry will show slides and talk about insects and other arthropods about which the public regularly asks him questions. Following the presentation, Terry, assisted by members of Science Outreach – Athabasca, will show you some live exotic animals from the Bug Room Gallery and answer questions about insects in general.

Terry has worked for Alberta Provincial Museum for 25 years, currently as an entomologist and supervisor of The Bug Room. He is a naturalist specializing in birds, insects and plants and has traveled extensively in the American tropics. He has appeared on CBC Radio, and many television stations, including the Discovery Channel.

The next presentation by Science Outreach – Athabasca:

A Naturalist in the American Tropics
Speaker: John Acorn, the Nature Nut
May 22 – 7-9 pm – Nancy Appleby Theatre (Athabasca)

To help support expenses, admission will be charged for these two presentations: $3 – children (2 and under free) and $5 – adults. Tickets can be obtained from Athabasca IDA, Value Drug Mart, or members of Science Outreach – Athabasca: Linda Lindballe (6653), Robert Holmberg (6203) or Wayne Brehaut (6737). For more information check out the web site ( http://scienceoutreach.ab.ca/).

Dan Coldeway died in Madison, South Dakota on March 26, 2003. He leaves behind many colleagues and friends at Athabasca University and around the world.

We, in the Centre for Distance Education especially, have many memories. Dan came to Athabasca University in 1977 when both he and the University were very young. As the head of Instructional Development, his contributions to the developing University were numerous.

Distance education was a new field. AU was engaged in developing three courses but had little in the way of systematic processes. There was no curriculum development process; there was no course development process. There were no delivery systems. Rather, students enrolled in the courses for an indeterminate time while courses were still in production.

Often, students were ready to proceed to the next unit before it had been written. Telephone tutoring had not yet been implemented. The original thinking included interdisciplinary curricula to be taught using the newspapers. Not surprisingly, distance education and life at AU was exciting, challenging and, at times, overwhelming.

When Dan arrived, he was not much over 30 years of age. He was a big, bright, energetic and enthusiastic man with ideas and vision. He came to AU from a private consulting firm as an expert in Instructional Systems Design (ISD). Almost immediately, Dan embarked on the implementation of a systems model to facilitate the planning, designing, development, implementation and evaluation of AU’s programs and courses. His work remains in the form of the Seven Phase Planning Model still in use.

But Dan did much more, for example, he received significant funding from Alberta Advanced Education – for the REDEAL Project – this project produced a large number of publications – the first major research generated and published at AU. Dan’s contribution here might be argued to have ‘single handedly’ put AU on the map with respect to publications in distance education. The REDEAL Project also funded the initial hiring of several of AU’s key academic faculty, several of whom are still with us today.

Dan continued his contributions to the literature throughout his time at AU and was one of the most cited authors in the field for over a decade. Just after re-location to the town of Athabasca, Dan was instrumental in the creation of the Centre for Distance Education (1986). He was the prime mover in obtaining more than a million dollars of Canadian Federal Government support for the Training for Improved Performance (TIPs) project, which was a major contributor to AU’s development in Athabasca. Indeed, parts of the TIPs materials have continued to be used in the Master of Distance Education program up to the present time.

Of course, Dan was also instrumental in the creation and implementation of the MDE program itself, which opened in 1994. While a professor at AU, Dan also taught through the University of Wisconsin (Madison) summer programs for many years and, as an adjunct professor, he taught and conducted research at the University of Alberta.

Dan was a high profile distance educator. His research and publications are likely to continue to have an impact, to remain an enduring legacy and to reflect well on Athabasca University for years to come. During his 23 years at AU, Dan influenced many students, staff, faculty and administrators both at AU and elsewhere. He’ll be remembered not only for his academic contributions but also for his joie de vivre, wit and humour as well as for his skills as a raconteur, musician and athlete.

We are planning a permanent academic memorial in Dan’s memory and hope to be able to announce this over the next few weeks.

We all wish the best for Dan’s family and assure them that his memory and his laughter will remain with us for a long time to come. We appreciated Dan, in all his variety and complexity and will continue to miss him.

Human Resources is pleased to accept nominations for the President’s Award for Tutoring/Mentoring Excellence, the Craig Cunningham Memorial Award for Teaching Excellence, and the Sue and Derrick Rowlandson Memorial Award for Service Excellence. These awards recognize outstanding contributions by Athabasca University staff members for teaching, instructional service, or service excellence. Nominations should be forwarded to the Coordinator (joycel@athabascau.ca), Staff Development in Human Resources by April 23.

President’s Award for Tutoring/Mentoring Excellence – Recognizes up to two individuals each year for excellence in instructional service to AU students. CUPE employees, graduate instructors, and academic coaches are eligible for nomination by AU staff and/or students. Graduate teaching recipients are recognized in June at a staff recognition function and undergraduate recipients are recognized at the Learning Services Conference in the fall. Forms and procedures, as well as information about the nature of the award, eligibility, criteria, nominators/seconders, and the review committee and is available at:
http://www.athabascau.ca/policy/humanresources/160_003.htm

Craig Cunningham Memorial Award for Teaching Excellence – Awarded annually to one faculty member in recognition of excellence for past achievements in teaching at AU. Faculty members (regular/term, part/fulltime) who have continuous service of at least three years are eligible for nomination by AU staff and/or students. Recipients are recognized at the staff recognition event in June. Check out:
http://www.athabascau.ca/policy/humanresources/160_002.htm

Sue and Derrick Rowlandson Memorial Award for Service Excellence – Awarded annually to up to two staff members or teams in recognition of their continual provision of exceptional service to AU and members of the AU community. Support and professional staff (AUPE, AUFA, excluded, permanent or temporary/term) who have continuous service of at least three years are eligible for nomination by AU staff and/or students.
Check out:
http://www.athabascau.ca/policy/humanresources/160_001.htm