News

  • Early indicators of potential applicants particularly strong for FMS

    Early indicators of potential applicants for Ontario universities this fall are showing some strong signals for Brock.

    It will be months before universities have a clear expectation of September enrolment, but the first round of data shows Brock’s numbers up by more than five per cent over 2017 in terms of Ontario Grade 12 students putting Brock among their top choices of universities to attend this fall.

    Figures released Monday, Jan. 22 by the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre (OUAC) show the number of Ontario Secondary School applications to Brock is currently 15,534, an increase of 773 from a year ago.

    The OUAC report shows Brock gained 5.2 per cent more applications from Ontario Secondary School students, and a 1.4 per cent increase in the volume of Ontario Secondary students selecting Brock as their first choice institution  — an increase in Brock’s marketshare.

    The OUAC report does not include applications from outside Canada, outside Ontario, nor students transferring to Brock from other institutions.

    Overall, Brock has received 17,768 applications to date, an increase of 1,290 (7.8 per cent) over the same time last cycle, providing a strong indicator that Brock is a top choice in a fiercely competitive market.

    This year’s early indicators for Brock are particularly strong for the Faculty of Mathematics and Science, the Faculty of Social Science and the Goodman School of Business.

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  • January 28: Deadline for Deborah E. Roast Entrepreneurship Award

    Applications are open for a competitive award that gives Brock’s entrepreneurial students an edge on the path to success. Established in 2014, the Deborah E. Rosati Entrepreneurship Award annually provides at least one student with $10,000 to become a full-time entrepreneur in the Spring/Summer term.

    The student who receives the award will work closely with BioLinc, Brock’s on-campus business incubator run by the Goodman School of Business, and gain access to physical space, support services, mentorship and networking opportunities from May to August.

    The award is open to any Brock student with almost any type of business concept. Co-op students are able to use the semester towards a co-op work term.

    Brock students Ethan Foy and Olivia Poulin were last year’s recipients, and they have both enjoyed entrepreneurial success thanks in part to their ability to focus their efforts to their businesses full-time last summer.

    Earlier this month, Foy won a $14,000 startup prize package at Monster Pitch, an entrepreneurial pitch competition hosted by the Brock Innovation Group in partnership with the Goodman School of Business and BioLinc. The fifth-year neuroscience student from Oakville won the competition by pitching LifePoints, his company that provides users with monetary rewards for time spent at fitness facilities.

    Students can apply for the Deborah Rosati award on the BioLinc website until Sunday, Jan. 28.

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  • Biological Sciences grad student develops computer codes to measure, track mitochondria

    Mitochondria are essential to human and animal life, but analyzing their ever-changing configurations through a microscope is a challenge. As they continually fuse and fragment, they affect how cells, and therefore bodies, work.

    Studying the tube-shaped organelles that provide energy to cells has recently been made easier through the work of a Brock University graduate student. Andrew Valente, a student in the Department of Biological Sciences with an interest in computer coding, has developed a set of tools that researchers around the globe can freely access to better measure and understand the movements of mitochondrial networks.

    “I use a lot of open source software,” he says. “I thought it would be a good idea to adopt open source code because then we can have everybody looking at it and verifying that it’s working correctly.”

    In an open source software arrangement, anyone can study, modify and distribute software for any purpose, which encourages widespread collaboration and free, public use.

    Valente, from Thorold, is studying the structure and movement of mitochondrial networks, and is developing methods to track them for his master’s program.

    Valente and his MSc supervisor, Associate Professor of Biological Sciences Jeff Stuart, are now collaborating with research teams in Italy and Germany, with several international students and postdoctoral fellows visiting Stuart’s lab to learn more about mitochondrial networks.

    Mitochondria create most of the energy that the body needs in order to live and support the functioning of organs. More than 220 illnesses are associated with mitochondrial dysfunction, according to MitoCanada.

    Read the full story here

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  • January 23: Exploring Careers in Oenology & Viticulture

    You’re invited!

    This intimate event will give students the opportunity to meet directly with oenology and viticulture industry professionals in a wide variety of positions. Students can improve networking skills, learn about possible career paths and secure employment (part-time, co-op/internship or post-graduate, full-time).

    DATE: Tuesday, Jan. 23

    TIME: 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

    LOCATION: Pond Inlet, Brock University

    REGISTER AT: careerzone.brocku.ca – Campus Career – Events

    For more information, please see Steven Trussler, OEVI Academic Advisor (IH 203) or email him at strussler@brocku.ca

    OEVI Careers_Jan 23

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  • January 18: Coffee Break with the President

    President Gervan Fearon invites Brock faculty and staff to kick off the new year by joining him for a coffee break, Thursday, Jan. 18 in Market Hall. Employees are welcome to drop in anytime between 2 and 3 p.m. to enjoy complimentary coffee, tea, sweets and conversation. No registration is required.

    With the majority of employees back from their holiday breaks, Fearon looks forward to catching up and having conversations with colleagues and meeting new people.

    “The event is purposely informal,” he said. “There won’t be any formal speeches or agendas. I want to chat and engage in conversation with faculty, staff and colleagues about their holidays, to introduce myself and provide faculty and staff with an opportunity to share and engage in dialogue.”

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  • January 24: Celebration of Excellence

    The accomplishments of faculty and staff within the Faculty of Mathematics and Science will take the spotlight during an upcoming celebration.

    The fourth annual Celebration of Excellence will take place Wednesday, Jan. 24 from 3 to 4:30 p.m. in Pond Inlet.

    Awards handed out during the ceremony include Distinguished Teaching, Distinguished Research, Distinguished Staff, Student Experience, Recruitment and Outreach, Distinguished Scholar and Lifetime Achievement.

    New this year is the Experiential Education Leadership Award, which will be presented to a faculty or staff member who has exhibited a passion for incorporating experiential education opportunities into their classes or placed an emphasis on providing first- and second-year students with experiential education opportunities.

    All are welcome and encouraged to attend.

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  • January 16: Master of Science thesis defence

    Daniel Hughes, a candidate in the Department of Earth Sciences, will present his Master of Science thesis defence by video conference on Tuesday, Jan. 16 at 10:30 a.m. in WH 147.

    His thesis is titled “Detecting spatial variation in hydrology and carbon export across a lake-rich permafrost landscape: Old Crow Flats, Yukon, Canada.”

    His examination committee members are Dr. Cheryl McCormick, Chair; Dr. Susanne Tank, External Examiner, (University of Alberta); Dr. Kevin Turner, Supervisor; Dr. Michael Pisaric and Dr. Francine McCormick, Committee Members.

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  • Grad’s cancer research continues at University of Cambridge

    “I wouldn’t be where I am today without my experience at Brock,” said Biological Sciences grad, Lucas Maddalena. “Having such a great relationship with my supervisors has been important for me, allowing me to keep growing as a student.”

    Maddalena credits the support of his Brock supervisors, Biological Sciences Associate Professor Jeff Stuart, whom he worked closely with during his time at the University, and Professor Jeffrey Atkinson in Chemistry.

    The research that began in Brock University’s labs has taken Maddalena (BSc ’12, MSc ’17) nearly 6,000 kilometres across the Atlantic to one of the world’s most renowned institutions. Maddalena crossed the pond this past fall in order to walk the halls of the University of Cambridge, where he has accepted a prestigious $300,000 scholarship to complete his PhD.

    The Thorold native was the only overseas recipient of the Cancer Research U.K. Cambridge Centre 2017 Non-clinical PhD Studentship Award, of which five were awarded in 2017. The scholarship covers three years of study, the typical length of a PhD program at Cambridge, and will support the costs of Maddalena’s research, as well as his living expenses.

    “It’s surreal. That’s probably the best word to describe it,” he said of this new chapter in his life, which has him researching within Cambridge’s Department of Medicine.

    His research continues the theme of his master’s work, which explored mitochondrial function and oxygen usage in the context of health and disease.

    Read the full story here

     

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  • Jan 15: Math Ed Seminar Series

    Math Ed Seminar Series

    Dr. Chantal Buteau
    Dr. Eric Muller
    Department of Mathematics & Statistics
    Brock University

    Dr. Joyce Mgombelo
    Faculty of Education
    Brock University

    DATE: Monday, Jan. 15

    TIME: 10am

    LOCATION: TA403

    Math Ed Seminar Series – Jan 15

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  • Jan. 12: Chemistry Seminar Series – Dr. John Golbeck

    Department of Chemistry – Seminar Series

    Dr. John Golbeck
    Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics
    Professor of Chemistry
    The Pennsylvania State University

    DATE: Friday, Jan. 12

    TIME: Noon

    LOCATION: H313

    Chemistry Seminar Series – Jan. 12, 2018

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