Articles by author: Brock University

• Brock’s Homecoming celebration primed for big return

  Thursday, September 15, 2022 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: 14 September 2022 – R0102

  With a mix of past favourites and engaging new offerings, Brock University’s Homecoming celebration is making a big return next week with a variety of in-person events and online sessions.

  After two years of virtual-only programming, more than 550 alumni and their guests will return to campus between Sept. 22 and Sept. 25 to participate in Homecoming activities. Registrations continue to climb steadily as Badgers ready to gather in person for the largest alumni event of the year.

  “Homecoming is the perfect time for our graduates to gather with each other and to reconnect with the University’s vibrant campus community, faculty and staff,” says Terry Cockerline, Director, Alumni Relations. “It’s a precious opportunity to celebrate the many ways Brock has enriched their lives and to share that joy with their peers and families.”

  The extended weekend celebration will include opportunities for Badgers of all ages to celebrate their connection to their alma mater, reconnect with friends, meet recent graduates and make new memories.

  This year’s schedule welcomes the highly anticipated return of alumni favourites, including the Grape Stomp, Steel Blade Classic, Alumni Recognition Reception, and Brock Night at the Niagara Grape and Wine Festival.

  Alumni VIP tickets to the Steel Blade Classic grant registered graduates, faculty and staff access to the club level of the Meridian Centre, swag, light refreshments and some of the best seats in the arena for the much-anticipated hockey game.

  Tickets to Brock Night at the Niagara Grape and Wine Festival will give attendees a fast pass into Montebello Park, a commemorative festival glass and drink token, and all-night access to The Grove and its upgraded amenities. Attendees will have the opportunity to savour local wine by alumni winemakers and old-fashioned barbecue away from the crowds.

  In honour of the return to in-person activities, a variety of new offerings have been added to the Homecoming events roster, including an engaging and educational coffee tasting experience hosted by Brock alumnus and 416 Coffee Co-founder Chris Battagli (BBA ’18), guided yoga sessions hosted by Brock alumna Sonia Reynolds (BA ’13), and a free skate in the state-of-the-art Canada Games Park co-sponsored by the Brock University Alumni Association and Goodman Alumni Network.

  Enhanced tour opportunities will also allow alumni to explore Brock’s evolving main campus, as well as its underground tunnels, the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, Canada Games Park and some of the most interesting pieces in the Brock University Library’s Archives and Special Collections.

  Brock’s Homecoming celebration will also serve as a conduit for some significant milestone reunions, including the 40th anniversary of the Recreation and Leisure Studies Department and the Nursing Department’s 20th anniversary reunion.

  “Alumni continue to be involved and engaged with Brock year-round,” says Cockerline. “They are a valued and integral part of the Brock community. We’re ecstatic to welcome our graduates back to campus for in-person Homecoming activities to honour and celebrate their ongoing relationship with the institution.”

  Brock University alumni, faculty and staff are encouraged to register online to participate in this year’s Homecoming activities.

  A full list of Homecoming events, including registration details, is available at brocku.ca/homecoming

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews: 

  * Doug Hunt, Communications and Media Relations Specialist, Brock University dhunt2@brocku.ca or 905-941-6209

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  Categories: Media releases

• Brock researchers say dress codes remain an issue in schools

  Monday, September 12, 2022 | By Brock University

  EXPERT ADVISORY: 12 September 2022 – R0101

  School dress code policies continue to disproportionately target girls, non-binary students and students of colour, according to Brock University researchers who have studied the regulations across North America for the past 20 years.

  Professors of Child and Youth Studies Shauna Pomerantz and Rebecca Raby say that when young people challenge dress codes for being sexist or racist — whether through gendered rules, prohibiting cultural fashion or enforcement that singles out body shapes and hairstyles — teachers and administrators need to take it seriously.

  “Any time a young person takes a stand against a rule that adults have written and put upon them, that is brave, hard and political,” says Pomerantz. “Schools often regulate self-expression into narrow terms, where ‘appropriate’ really means a white, middle-class and heterosexual comportment — and a lot of kids don’t want to do that.”

  Raby and Pomerantz believe school environments can and should support students as they form and negotiate identities.

  “There is extremely problematic enforcement happening in some schools and troubling arguments are being made to support problematic dress codes,” says Raby. “But other schools and school boards have radically changed their whole approach to dress codes in a way that recognizes and embraces the way young people might want to represent themselves and actively tries to get away from high-level policing.”

  She gives the example of the Toronto District School Board, where administrators responded to years of feminist activism from students with consultation, reconsideration and policy reform.

  As students and parents settle into the new school year, Raby and Pomerantz emphasize the benefits of listening to young people when they talk about their experiences.

  “Adults sometimes have a tendency to say these dress codes are neutral and that they’re for everyone’s safety, without actually listening to what happens to girls when they’re singled out, when teachers ask them to bend over to determine how short their skirt is or when they’re being sent home and missing school,” says Raby. “Teachers need to listen. Principals need to listen. And I think parents also need to listen when their kids talk about why they’re upset about a rule at school and what they want to do in response.”

  Raby says caregivers should also ask why young people want to dress or express themselves in certain ways and be mindful of the harm that is caused by shaming developing bodies and identities. Conversations at home can also explore issues arising from assumptions made by others, in addition to the all-important issue of consent.

  Pomerantz adds that working through the bigger meanings of topics like rules, enforcement and identity can be a positive experience for both parent and child.

  “We tend to think of rules as neutral, invisible or common sense — for the common good,” says Pomerantz. “But if we ask kids and ask ourselves to think about what the rules are, who writes them and who are they for, we often stop seeing them as neutral and realize these rules are teaching tacit — often negative — lessons all the time.”

  Brock University Professors of Child and Youth Studies Shauna Pomerantz and Rebecca Raby are available for media interviews on the topic.

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  * Doug Hunt, Communications and Media Relations Specialist, Brock University dhunt2@brocku.ca or 905-941-6209

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  Categories: Media releases