News & Events

Article from March 11th issue of Yfile

York alumni Michael Blouin (BFA  Spec. Hons. 1984), John Blair (BA Comb. Hons. 1988) and Jennifer Derkitt (BFA Hons.  1991), along with York English and education Professor Rishma Dunlop, are all finalists for the 2009 CBC Literary Awards.

Professor Rishma Dunlop

Dunlop’s “Paris Notebook” and Blair’s “Fishing for the Moon” are both competing in the creative non-fiction category, while Blouin’s “fidelity” has been nominated in the poetry category and Derkitt’s “The Homecoming” in the short story category.

Eighty English-language finalists were chosen out of 6,000 submissions in three categories – creative non-fiction, poetry and short story. The winner in each category will receive $6,000, while the second prize winner will receive $4,000.

Dunlop, the 2009 recipient of a Canada-US Fulbright Visiting Research Chair in Creative Writing, is the author of four books of poetry: White Album (Inanna Publications, 2008), Metropolis (Mansfield Press, 2005), Reading Like a Girl (Black Moss Press, 2004) and The Body of My Garden (Mansfield Press, 2002). 

She received the 2003 Emily Dickinson Prize for Poetry and her radio drama, “The Raj Kumari’s Lullaby”, was produced by CBC Radio in 2005. Her poems have appeared in anthologies and journals, including Blackbird, the Literary Review of Canada, CV2, Canadian Literature, Descant, Event, Grain and The Comstock Review.

John Blair

Currently head of the English department at Town Centre Private High School in Markham, Blair wrote “Fishing for the Moon” in memory of his father. He is the author of Fissure Rock (Xlibris, 2004), and he also wrote, directed and produced the play Noble Hockey Legend, which was performed at St. Vlad’s Theatre in Toronto. In addition, he is the director of a new acting school opening this July – Toronto Acting Place. Blair’s short story “Dad Dreams” was a runner-up for the 2003 Literati Short Story Contest.

Blouin has been published in many Canadian literary journals, including Descant, Arc Poetry Magazine, The Fiddlehead, The Antigonish Review, Event, The New Quarterly, Grain and Queen’s Quarterly. He is the author of the poetry collection I’m not going to lie to you (Pedlar Press, 2007) and the novel Chase and Haven (Coach House Books, 2008), a haunting story of suffering and love, made of thousands of small impressionist facets that refract the quiet spectrum of the beauty and the detritus of two entwined lives. Chase and Haven won the 2009 ReLit Award for best novel.

In addition, Blouin was the winner of the 2003 Diana Brebner Prize for Poetry from Arc Poetry Magazine, as well as the Lillian I. Found Prize for Poetry from Carleton University. His work has been shortlisted for a National Magazine Award.

Derkitt started her shortlisted story “The Homecoming” when she was still a student at York as an exercise in one of her creative writing classes. About the same time, her short story, “Visions”, was chosen as a Judge’s Choice award winner in the Toronto Star’s Sunday Short Story contest.

After graduating, Derkitt says her focus switched to screenwriting. “I found representation at Gersh [Agency] in Beverly Hills, and moved to Hollywood. I then opened a script-consulting firm, and that segued into literary management,” says Derkitt. “In 2008, I began writing full-time again.” 

“The Homecoming” is part of a collection of short stories, Company B, which Derkitt is currently writing about Canadian soldiers in France during the First World War. She is also in the process of finishing her first novel, Becoming Dead, what she describes as a high-concept horror.

“The CBC Literary Awards nomination is such a great honour,” says Derkitt. “I’ve always admired the CBC’s power as a unifying force. It helps bind Canada together and makes the country unique. I couldn’t hope for a more prominent and beloved organization to give a nod to my work.”

Awards host Shelagh Rogers will unveil the English-language winners chosen from the finalists Thursday, March 18, at 11am on CBC Radio One’s show “Q” with Jian Ghomeshi. Christiane Charette will announce the French-language winners that same day on La Première Chaîne de Radio-Canada.

Interviews with the winners will air on a special broadcast of “The Next Chapter”, hosted by Shelagh Rogers Monday, March 22, at 1pm. The winning works will be published in Air Canada’s enRoute magazine and read on CBC Radio’s “Between the Covers” from April 12 to 16. They will also be available as a podcast on iTunes, the CBC Podcasts page or CBC Books page as of April 14.

For more information, visit the CBC Literary Awards Web site.

It’s no secret that broaching the subject of the political situation in the Middle East can be a difficult task, especially for those who try to approach it as moderates earnestly looking for solutions. But a group of York students, staff and faculty, taking their cue from a successful project they’d seen first hand, has found one way to start the dialogue – talk about something else.

In this case, that something is the health of students and the community, situated in a multicultural and highly political context. It is the central theme of an art/performance project by the Health as a Bridge to Peace club at York. The group’s first exhibition, Photo-Voice: What is Health?, will be held on Wednesday at 6:30pm in the Undergound at York’s Student Centre on the Keele campus. Students will present their work in dramatic scenes punctuated by the photographs they took.

The Health as a Bridge to Peace Student Club, which was formed in 2007, grew out of the experience of several members with the work of Harvey Skinner, dean of York’s Faculty of Health. Skinner had organized a similar project in 2005 for the Canadian International Scientific Exchange Program (CISEPO), where he is director of research.

Inbal Marcovitch, a graduate student and special programs & registration assistant with Research & Field Development in York’s Faculty of Education, was an intern with the group and had the chance to learn about the group’s experience of using photography to explore the common health issues of Bedouin, Israeli and Palestinian high school students. Marcovitch quickly partnered with Lavina Sadhwani, a fellow student and colleague. The project was also modelled on similar projects by Global Youth Voices at the University of Toronto.

“A dialogue about health creates a space where people can relate to each other and learn to be more compassionate, rather than always thinking of people of different backgrounds in terms of ‘the other’,” says Marcovitch. “Harvey’s project worked very well, so we adapted it and integrated drama, as well as extending it to integrate photography with a dramatic element.”

Sadhwani, a graduate student in the Faculty of Education and administrative assistant, governance & policy, in York’s Faculty of Health, collaborated with Marcovitch to use Skinner’s work to bring Photo Voice: What is Health? to fruition. “It is remarkable to hear the shared experiences of our participants,” Sadhwani says. “In using Skinner’s framework, participants went from being strangers to referring to the group as family in less than three hours. This project has generated a lot of interest on and off campus.”

With the support and mentorship of Skinner as well as Noel Badiou, director of the Centre for Human Rights, and David Layton Brown, master of Calumet College, the group started recruiting willing participants last fall and began a series of 11 three-hour sessions held on Wednesday evenings. The volunteers had no background in theatre or visual arts and learned photography techniques from Joel Walker, a Toronto-based psychiatrist and photographer who is one of the early pioneers of photo therapy. Sessions included technical instruction and discussion about the stories behind the students’ photos.

The added element of drama came thanks to Kathleen Gould Lundy, coordinator of Destination Arts at York University, a joint venture of the Faculty of Education and the Faculty of Fine Arts. Destination Arts undertakes to foster partnerships among artists, educators and the community. Gould Lundy has been a teacher, consultant and co-ordinator for over 30 years in the Toronto District School Board. Working through the drama allowed the group to integrate their visual stories into a collage of poetry, storytelling and movement presented as a dramatic piece.

“The basic goal of the project is to create a safe environment for York students of different backgrounds to share stories of their own health, culture, community and identity,” says Sadhwani.

Although they didn’t start out with it in mind, the group quickly saw the relevance of their project to the themes in the draft provostial white paper on the future of the University. To underline that relevance, Health as a Bridge to Peace is also mounting a separate side element where students will be asked to sign a Pledge for Respectful Dialogue. The pledge will be circulating throughout campus, following the show.

“It’s important to talk about difficult issues, but it’s a question of how we do it,” said Marcovitch. “The idea is to aim for the mainstream of student opinion, which doesn’t want the conflict played out on campus and wants to debate, think, learn and expand bounderies in a way that respects our humanity – through a respectful dialogue,” said Marcovitch. “Hopefully they will influence the extremists on both sides.”

For more information on the club and the Photo-voice project, visit their Health as a Bridge to Peace Facebook page or the HBP blog.

On Thursday, January 28^th, 19 students from CW Jefferys Collegiate and Cardinal McGuigan Catholic High School celebrated their successful completion of the Westview Partnership Advanced Credit Experience (ACE )Program.  The graduation ceremony, held at Michalengelos restaurant on York campus, was attended by the parents, friends and families of the students, as well as by York faculty and administrators from both high schools.

The evening consisted of dinner, speeches, a visual retrospective of the students’ time at York and the presentation of certificates of achievement to each of the students who completed the program.  During his valedictory address, Andre Fernandez from CW Jeffreys thanked his parents and family members for their ongoing support and talked about the importance of the program. “The ACE program has truly been an experience of a lifetime.  Coming from high schools just down the street to the big university campus was a serious transition.  We felt a sense of freedom, as though we were on a different level”, commented Fernandez.  “Sitting in big lecture halls, taking notes, writing an essay worth a huge chunk of our mark, the challenges and transitions were clear, we were no longer in high school”.

Over the past 6 years, over 200 students from local high schools have participated in the ACE Program.  The program, which is part of the Faculty of Education’s Westview Partnership’s post-secondary path programs, provides opportunities for senior high school students to gain firsthand exposure to post-secondary education and targets students from local high schools who show the academic potential for university or college but who, due to systemic barriers may lack either the confidence or resources to proceed.  Students who complete the program are also eligible to receive bursaries amounting to $5000 from the York University Faculty Association. 

Students spent the fall semester at York enrolled in a first-year university credit course in philosophy while completing their high school diplomas.  The expectations for the students were the same as would be expected of any first-year university students.  They attended tutorials, completed the same assignments, wrote the same exams and were expected to keep up with the course readings.

In addition to taking a university course, students in the program also had to complete a cooperative education placement at York for which they received 3 high school credits.   Over 25 different offices and facilities across campus provided work placements for the students in the program.  “The cooperative placements are another invaluable part of the ACE program where students learn another very important set of skills such as teamwork, responsibility and taking initiative”, commented Jackie Robinson Coordinator of the Westview Partnership.  “The placements also give students an understanding of business protocols and office procedures as well as helping them to make valuable connections for their future”.

Pedro Rodrigues, head of the History and Canadian Studies department at Cardinal McGuigan Catholic High School and Elise Davidson, a history and philosophy teacher from CW Jefferys Collegiate, were the ACE Program teachers who worked with the students and coordinated the program.

 “The ACE program is invaluable to our students because it gives them the confidence to realize that university is the place for them and that they can be successful here”, said Elise Davidson, one of the ACE Program Teachers.  “All the ACE students grow and develop so much during their time here on campus and the graduation ceremony is a fantastic opportunity to acknowledge the students for all their hard work and dedication and to celebrate their success.  These students deserve a lot of recognition for coming to York while still in high school, and for doing so well”. 

Established in 1992, the York/Westview Partnership is a collaboration between York University, Seneca College, the Toronto District School Board and their shared community.  The partnership offers programs and activities designed to promote equity in public education and increase access to post secondary opportunities for students living in the neighbourhood.

Thursday, March 25th
9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Friday, March 26th
8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
York University, Winters College Dining Hall, Room C001B

This  two day conference for teacher-candidates, affiliated mentor-teachers, community partners, and distinguished professionals from the youth justice system, will look at restorative approaches to Justice and Education which are sustainable community building tools that help keep youth out of trouble and make the city of Toronto a better place.

Visit the Peacebuilders website.

Download the registration form.

2:00PM – 3:30PM
Senior Common Room, 021 Winters College

This workshop will provide participants with an understanding of the TakingITGlobal web site http://www.tigweb.org/resources/, an online resource that helps to connect people with organizations and provides additional resources that support work in a number of positive, pro-active areas.  The web site  is a tool and a resource for teachers who are:

- Undergraduate students who are looking at making connections to internation organizations that work on positive, humanitarian and environmental causes

- Graduate students who are looking for organizations with which to complete research and/or work on humanitarian and/or environmental causes

- Teachers who are planning on internationalizing their curriculum at the elementary, secondary or post-secondary levels

The TakingITGlobal web site was initially set-up by York University Alumni!

Please RSVP by March 15, 2010 to international@edu.yorku.ca .