Saint Mary's University - A Hub of Activity!
The fall season is in full gear and Saint Mary’s University is hub of activity. Saint Mary’s University and Nova Scotia are a whole lot healthier as Dr. Richard Homburg announced a gift of $5 million from Homburg Canada Inc. to the Hearts & Minds Capital Campaign. The big announcement was made on September 20 in the Loyola Conference Hall at SMU. The event attracted droves of students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends of the University. The gift represents one of the single largest gifts in the University’s 205 year history and will support The Homburg Centre for Health & Wellness. As well, this gift, which acknowledges the leading role Saint Mary’s has taken in social health, wellness, and sport, is the latest chapter in Dr. Homburg’s support to Saint Mary’s which began in 1985. “Education and international mobility are the keys to success in the world,” said Dr. Homburg, who is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Homburg Invest Inc. and The Homburg Uni Corp. Group. “At the core of success is the health and the wellness of all us, of all ages. I believe that the Centre represents an opportunity in encouraging and fostering success, whether it be a championship football team or a healthy community,” he said as the room of more 200 people rose to give the widely acclaimed international business guru a standing ovation. The Homburg Centre for Health & Wellness will be comprised of The Tower, the new Dauphinee Arena, and a new building to connect the two.
The event was truly a memorable one and it also garnered lots of media attention from across Atlantic Canada and across Canada. Nice to see someone like Homburg, who is a well know international business person, reach out and give SMU such a nice gift. The University is grateful for his kind support!
It was great to see the Chinese ambassador to Canada on campus last month. In turn, he too was thrilled to be on our campus.
“China is proud to be working with SMU,” said His Excellency Lu Shumin during his visit with SMU officials. He had the chance to meet Dr. J. Colin Dodds, President of Saint Mary’s and faculty and students at SMU from China. “Saint Mary's University has a long-standing relationship with China, having had partnerships and projects that date to the early 1980s as well as academic programming focusing on China,” he explained. “We have certainly benefited and will only continue to grow with the help from Saint Mary’s.
On September 30 the University hosted three celebrations all wrapped into one: Chinese National Day, the Mid-Autumn Festival, and 25 years of Saint Mary's University-China relationship. All sorts of people turned out for this special event that lasted over two hours. A special cake marking the occasion was a hit too.
The event was raved about among those who attended.
“This event makes me feel right at home,” said Jee Lee, a first year student from China. “I am impressed with the University’s long-standing relationship with my country,” added the 21 year-old who is enrolled in the Faculty of Arts (Asian Studies). “This connection with China proves how the University is a globalized institution — a place where education has no borders.”
Just recently student from the Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT), Zhuhai Campus visited SMU to take part in the University’s English Language and Canadian Culture (ELCC) program at the Teaching English as a Second Language Centre (TESL). The International Activities Office at Saint Mary’s played a key role in the students visit to our campus. All the students who took part in this program enjoyed their time on campus and of course with having the opportunity to explore Halifax and the Province of Nova Scotia. It’s programs like this that lure in people from away — many of whom vow to return and also keep our province in mind for business and trade purposes down the road which only benefits our region, indeed.
There are all sorts of neat research projects going on at SMU that no doubt will boost Nova Scotia’s name on the global scene — a real benefit for our province.
-The Offshore Energy Technical Research Association (OETR) announced that Dr. Georgia Pe-Piper, a 26 year veteran of the Geology Department at Saint Mary’s, was awarded a $300,000.00 research grant to study the river patterns and associated sediment dispersion of the Lower Cretaceous deltas of the Scotia Basin offshore of Nova Scotia.
-Dr. Marcin Sawicki has received a fellowship in Space Science from the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). He has been awarded $180,000.00 from the CSA which will allow him to carry out research that explores the formation and evolution of galaxies at epochs when the universe was only a fraction of its present age. The main goal with the Space Science Fellowship award is to enhance the amount and quality of space science research done at Canadian universities.
-Dr. Pawan Lingras has been getting lots of attention with his first loves, which are mathematics, computer science, and engineering. His latest love: shopping. Not so much for the products themselves but for the huge databases retailers collect about their transactions. These databases offer the ability to understand consumers and to serve them better, thereby increasing revenues and profits. Dr. Lingras and his team of researchers are developing software that groups customer potential and loyalty. Their techniques allow for “fuzzy boundaries” between groups and can predict changes in customer loyalty, lifestyle, and probability of attrition. The researchers took six months of spending patterns provided by one retailer, then, using the number of visits as a surrogate for loyalty, they discovered five different groups. He and students at SMU will continue with this research that is bound to get the attention of retailers in Nova Scotia and perhaps even beyond.
Things have been busy on the alumni front. The Saint Mary’s Alumni Association hosted its annual Homecoming Weekend from September 20 to 23. Every event attracted droves of alumni which made the occasion extra special. This year’s Homecoming Reunion Years acknowledged the classes of 2002, 1997, 1982 and 1957. The Vanier Cup Champions of 2001 & 2002 were also saluted by alumni. The University has well over 30,000 alumni from all around the world. Alumni from all around the globe came home for this year’s reunion. There were lots of events to take in at this year’s Homecoming Weekend like the Husky Howl Tailgate Party and a pile of sporting events. Our Huskies football team dominated the Concordia Stingers in front of over 6,000 fans, and our other varsity teams — soccer and field hockey — proved themselves as tough competitors on the field. Another big highlight of the weekend was annual Sport Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. Those inducted were John Gallinaugh, Father George Leach, S.J., and Lee Thomas. Ed Coolen, Class of 1939, was presented with a special plaque from the Saint Mary’s Sport Hall of Fame and Heritage Centre. He played for the Saint Mary’s football team during the 1930s. All team members have passed away except for Coolan. At the ceremony, members of the Saint Mary’s Sport Hall of Fame and Heritage Centre highlighted the achievements of Dr. Elizabeth A. Chard, who passed away on May 5, 2007 after a short battle with cancer. Dr. Chard was a member of the Steering Committee for the Hall. She was the first woman to be inducted into the Hall in as a “builder” of varsity sport at SMU. On Friday, November 16 at 6:30 PM the University will host a dinner in memory of Dr. Chard, “Touching Lives: Celebrating the Life of Dr. Chard.” The event will be held in the Loyola Conference Hall, and the keynote speaker is David Sykes (BA, BComm ’94), All Canadian Huskies Quarterback, Rhodes Scholar, and two-time Russ Jackson Award Winner. For those who want more information and to purchase tickets, please call (902) 420-5606.
One of our alumni, Momodou Sabally, just released a new book that presents an inspiring account of the Saint Mary’s University Extension Program (SMUEP) in The Gambia. His book is entitled Homegrown: The Student Experience of a Unique Canada-Africa University Program (now available through AuthorHouse). Sabally was born in Banjul, The Gambia, and currently resides in Atlanta. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the Saint Mary’s University Extension Program. His book is truly fascinating as it tells the story of how the SMUEP was developed and then named The University of The Gambia. This initiative demonstrates the University’s commitment to community outreach.
On the topic of community outreach, members of our Huskies Football Team and students alike have been busy giving back to others. It’s wonderful to see students taking leadership roles and showing how much they care about the community they live in.
Players from the Huskies football team recently participated in the Great Habitat Build 2007 at 270 Rossing Drive in Lower Sackville, NS. This initiative was spearheaded by the Nova Scotia Home Builders Association (NSHBA), which will allow the Condran family (Donna, Jeff, Jace, Kailey, Kyler, Jaron and Realene) to move into their new R-2000 home in the next few weeks. The SMU Huskies spent for four long hours laying sod at the new home. “Our boys worked very hard, and the family was thrilled we were there helping them out,” said Mike McLean, Defensive Coordinator for the SMU Huskies football team. “The family certainly appreciated us helping make their dream home become a reality. All of our players who took part in the Great Habitat Build 2007 are very proud to give back to their community.”
Members of the Saint Mary’s Huskies football team are also busy this semester promoting their Bullies Never Win Program to high school students throughout the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM). While they are busy winning on the field, they want to make high school students winners too and demonstrate that bullying in our society is wrong.
“The Saint Mary’s Huskies receive a tremendous amount of support, so it’s our turn to give back to the community and promote our Bullies Never Win Program,” said McLean.
As well, Saint Mary’s is playing a major role in the Halifax Explosion Memorial Gala. A large number of people turned out for a news conference on campus that was held in late September where officials announced the details of the Halifax Explosion Memorial Gala Concert, entitled “The Legacy.” The Halifax Explosion Memorial Gala Concert will take place at 7:30 PM on December 1 in the McNally Theatre Auditorium (McNally Building).
So, as you can see, SMU has been active with many initiatives — all of which make Nova Scotia shine on the world stage.
