Here’s your timely & targeted compilation of key events, noteworthy news and important dates for the remainder of the week.
Note: any information related to changes due to COVID-19 found in this newsletter has already been communicated to the community and can be found at York’s YU Better Together website. All this information is accurate at the newsletter’s time of publication.
If you don’t have time to read This Week @ York, or would like to refer to it again, every edition can be found on the This Week @ York Archive web page.
Here are some other important items to keep in mind this week.
| 1 | Consent Week. Join The Centre for Sexual Violence Response, Support & Education as they raise awareness about consent this week. Check out their website for the list of events and workshops, and attend online panels, sessions and events open to the York community. Monday, September 28 to October 2.
The Centre has also developed the Building Safer Spaces Toolkit to educate students about important topics such as consent and oppression, and support the student community when organizing safe online events. It serves as a tool to ensure all mechanisms of support are considered and includes information about the importance of pronouns and challenging oppression at events, as well as an online events toolkit. There is also a step-by-step guide to navigating difficult online scenarios that may occur during events. |
| 2 | Orange Shirt Day is a day to honour the Indigenous children and families who suffered greatly because of the racist residential school system in Canada. Every Child Matters is the theme that runs through every Orange Shirt Day campaign. York encourages students, faculty and staff to participate in a moment of reflection on Wednesday, September 30, 2020, at 11 a.m., in our virtual and remote classrooms, in labs, and wherever people are, to acknowledge the devastating effects of the residential school system on generations of Indigenous peoples in Canada. We encourage all community members to use this opportunity to re-commit to be active participants in the process of reconciliation. |
| 3 | York's annual Virtual Graduate & Professional Studies Expo provides you with an opportunity to explore educational opportunities. Connect with recruiters from business and law schools, education programs, graduate studies programs, professional schools and colleges to learn about their educational opportunities and improve your chances of getting into the program of your choice. Thursday, October 1, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Registration required. |
| 4 | Attention first-year students! Register for the Unsinkable Youth Event featuring Monique Coleman. This event gives you a chance to celebrate YOU during this challenging time with celebrities including Olympian and Unsinkable founder Silken Laumann. This event is focused on your mental health as you go through this life transition in the midst of a pandemic. PLUS, just for registering, you'll be automatically entered for a chance to win $500 towards your tuition! Tuesday, September 29, 7 p.m. Registration required. |
| 5 | Focus Group Opportunity: Let your voice be heard! Join one of three one-hour focus groups run by the Career Centre and inform the design of an exciting new set of activities to help you make better use of the experiences, knowledge and skills you acquire throughout your coursework. Fill out the Student Focus Group Sign-up Form to take part in for one of the focus groups over Zoom. Wednesday, September 30, 10 to 11 a.m. |
| 6 | Learning Skills Services (LSS) Workshop: Time Management. Attend this workshop and learn key strategies to improve your academic achievement and confidence. Learn practical, personalized approaches to managing your time. Wednesday, September 30, noon to 1 p.m. Registration required.
LSS Workshop for first-year students ONLY: Starting off Strong. First-year students looking for the keys to academic success at university can attend this workshop and discover tools, tips and strategies to get started on the right path to achieving their academic goals. Thursday, October 1, 1 to 2 p.m. Registration required. Workshop: Reading & Notetaking. Join this workshop and learn more effective reading and notetaking techniques to help you stay on top of your course work. Friday, October 2, 10 to 11 a.m. Registration required. Workshop: Critical Thinking. At university, learning involves much more than just memorizing facts and figures. This workshop will help you push beyond purely descriptive levels of thinking to deeper levels of understanding, analysis, critical thinking and evaluation. Friday, October 2, 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Registration required. |
| 7 | Virtual Mental Health 101. This workshop, hosted by Health Education, will provide you with ways to support your peers with mental health concerns. Participants will learn tools to recognize, respond and refer students experiencing mental health issues and/or distress to appropriate campus and off-campus resources. It will also provide a safe online space for discussion and education about self-care practices, healthy boundaries and more. Wednesday, September 30, 1 to 2:30 p.m. and Thursday, October 1, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Registration required. |
| 8 | REDI Workshop: Requesting & Accessing Accommodations. Join this workshop and receive a detailed overview of the rights and responsibilities in the accommodations process based on the Ontario Human Rights Code, such as those involving disability (including mental health), creed (religion), and sex/gender. In addition to learning how to request and respond to accommodation needs, participants will learn strategies that will assist in increasing inclusion and accessibility in the York community. Wednesday, September 30, 1:30 to 3 p.m. |
| 9 | Professional Development Opportunity: Becoming YU Student Success Mentorship Program. Are you a student leader or a student who holds a volunteer position and/or job on or off campus? Are you looking for a mentorship opportunity? If so, you might be interested in the Becoming YU Student Success Mentorship Program. The program helps you set meaningful goals and identify your skills for future job interviews, provides you with professional development opportunities to become a better leader and helps you build other important career skills. Not available to officially hired work/study students with an existing staff supervisor. Application Deadline: Sunday, October 11. |
| 10 | View the York International Events Calendar for the full Virtual Coffee Break weekly schedule. YI’s daily Virtual Coffee Breaks are an online space for international and domestic students from across programs, Faculties, countries and cultures to connect and get to know each other! Student Leaders are on Zoom every weekday with different fun and interesting topics. When you sign up, a confirmation email with the zoom link will be sent to you upon registration.
Mature Student Event Schedule. Are you a mature student at York? Are you interested in meditation or attending a casual, drop-in café hour to meet other mature students or a mature student peer mentor? Check the schedule at the link above and attend any session you wish, via Zoom. |
WORTH REPEATING
Limited Study Spaces on Campus: Students living in proximity to campus, in undergraduate residences, York Apartments and The Quad, and those in on-campus courses have indicated a need for accessible, quiet spaces with reliable internet access to study and work on projects. In response to this need, York is making a limited number of student study spaces available to students on campus. Use of all study spaces will require pre-booking, via the study space online reservation tool.
To ensure your safety while on campus, we have instituted designated entrances for student access that will require your YU-card to gain entry. Please visit the Building Access on Campus web page for a map of designated building entrances and details about which buildings do not have YU-card readers and how to access them.
LinkedIn Learning Update. York’s current LinkedIn Learning license with eCampusOntario has expired. To ensure continuity of service, York is pursuing an independent contract to maintain LinkedIn Learning access for the York community. The University will provide updates to community as they are available. In the meantime, many public library systems offer access to LinkedIn Learning, including the Toronto Public Library. Check your local library’s site for details about access to the platform.
Ideas about how to improve This Week @ York? Email thisweek@yorku.ca.