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A summer spent in Africa seems to be held in higher regard than one spent in Romania or Central America.
It’s become an unwritten rite of passage in North American society for today’s young humanitarian to engage in the ultimate act of charity: traveling to a developing country to volunteer.
However, not just any developing region will do. To obtain that awe-inspiring repute, Africa has become the continent of choice.
Students on the brink of those four glorious summer months...
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The administration’s rationale for increasing class sizes and cutting contract academic staff (CAS) needs to be questioned.
The administration’s presentation to The Cord a few weeks ago suggested that students should consider themselves lucky that class sizes have only increased by 13.5 per cent, since the teaching workload norm for faculty decreased from five courses to four – a drop of 20 per cent.
Why didn’t the administration point out that the new collective agreement normalized what was already a...
Read moreWhen was the last time you went on Facebook, creeped photos and took note of how many people from your high school have children, are pregnant, are married or are engaged?
The general reaction to these sorts of people – among my social circle at least – is ridicule and a general disbelief that many of our peers have decided to take their lives in a direction that is completely out of sync with what most students our age are...
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Maya Uemura
Now is an important time for Laurier, as we are in the midst of dealing with budget cuts that totaled $8.9 million this past year.
Significant cuts are being made across the board; the faculty of arts, for instance, has been asked to cut $500,000 for the 2010-11 academic year.
With an increasing deficit, cuts are unavoidable, so it is important to decide where they can be afforded and where they will be damaging to our university as an educational...
Read moreBen Sandiford
Our education system teaches us very little about other cultures and civilizations, leaving us to stumble blindly through the events that shape our world.
The question of whether or not the West is evil is certainly...
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Recently, the national news broadcaster CTV has picked up a local story about the naked snow woman on the front yard of 251 Albert Street.
Permanent residents in the Northdale community are complaining about a sculpture that a group of students, both men and women, created.
How is it that a nude woman made out of snow can cause so much controversy? It is more than common to see various forms of art, from photographs to sculptures and paintings, which...
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Trina Schmidt
Wherever you were on Sunday afternoon, you probably witnessed an unprecedented outpouring of Canadian pride.
Streets were blocked, viewers were brought to tears and people who don’t even like sports rose to their feet when Sidney Crosby scored the game-winning goal in overtime during the men’s hockey finals.
And whether you celebrated with drinks, hugged total strangers or took to the streets of Waterloo, it’s hard to deny that it was the moment we’ll all remember for the rest of...
Read moreWith last year’s summer student unemployment rate reported at a staggering 20.9 per cent, students should be applying for jobs early – meaning now.
In an effort to focus on school during the year, many students opt not to work while they are enrolled in classes. This means that many only have four months to make all the money they need to live on throughout the year, as the avenues of financial assistance – such as the Ontario Student Assistance...
Read moreANTIGONISH, N.S. (CUP) — Last month, Canada’s daily right-wing rag, the National Post, ran an editorial lamenting the perseverance of women’s studies programs in universities across the country.
The Jan. 26 editorial “Women’s Studies is still with us” offered a skeptical take on reports that women’s studies programs are in decline, saying “We would wave good-bye without shedding a tear, but we are pretty sure these angry, divisive and dubious programs are simply being renamed to make them appear less...
Read moreIf you want to be successful, you get some form of post-secondary education – we live in a society where this really isn’t a question. We’re brought up to believe that that’s just the way things work, and it’s different today than it was 25 or 50 years ago.
\With the increasing necessity of post-secondary education in the workforce, Laurier has seen a rapid expansion in enrolment in the past few years.
Laurier – which is now a medium-sized school...
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Maya Uemura
Media across the world have coined the 2010 Vancouver Olympics as one of the worst Olympics in history. The Times of London went so far as to print a headline that read “The Wreckage of a Tarnished Games.”
As Canadians, we have a right to defend ourselves and, in particular, the fact that our Olympics are extremely successful when you look at them in context of other Games.
It’s true that Vancouver has been experiencing abnormally high temperatures, which the...
Read moreDespite all the information young people are exposed to today through television, the Internet and Smartphones, we still seem to hold a level of disengagement and overall ignorance of current events.
That’s not to say we’re completely disengaged from important issues.
Looking close to home, each year we manage to somehow surpass quorum for the Wilfrid Laurier University Students’ Union elections.
This year an astounding 20 per cent of our student body were not only aware that the election was...
Read moreTo declare a majority, one must have more than 50 per cent of the vote and Walker’s success was dictated by receiving 43 per cent.
Following the yearly student herding that is the Wilfrid Laurier University Students’ Union election in early February, a new president...
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Film is not simply a superficial form of entertainment, it is a way to draw attention to important issues that people aren’t necessarily thinking about and discussing.
I am one of the few students fortunate enough to have experienced Laurier’s film program. While it is a small faculty under the English department banner, it was exactly what I had imagined my university experience to be: it is full of eager students and professors and has contributed vastly to my knowledge...
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Trina Schmidt
Even though it is only February, the university should be able to provide students with a better idea of the courses being offered over the summer. This information affects whether students may choose to remain in Waterloo and take courses – leases and job arrangements are often finalized around reading week.
Course offerings for the fall and winter semesters are always out well in advance; this is even more necessary for the summer semester.
While all faculties should be represented...
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