Media releases

• Community invited to dig into local history with archaeology field school

  Wednesday, May 11, 2022 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: 10 May 2022 – R0051

  After a two-year hiatus, Brock University students will again be digging up history in downtown St. Catharines — and the community is invited to come along.

  Archaeologist Kimberly Monk, Adjunct Professor with Brock’s Department of History, is leading an archaeological field school for both Brock students and community members at the site of the 19th-century Shickluna Shipyard. HIST/CLAS 3M60 Field School in Local Historical Archaeology will run as an intensive five-week course from July 11 to Aug. 12. No archaeology experience or previous knowledge is required.

  “I’m excited to reconnect with the community and share with our students and the public the experience of documenting this historic shipyard,” Monk says.

  One of two dozen shipyards established along the canal, the Shickluna site was built by Maltese immigrant Lewis Shickluna, who is credited with building and repairing more than 200 ships in the late 19th century. In addition to the shipyard buildings and basin, he also built cottages for the workers. The site is now empty land near the Burgoyne Bridge and Twelve Mile Creek.

  “Excavating deeper deposits will identify features contemporary with the shipyard and expose a larger quantity of cultural materials related to shipbuilding,” Monk says. “This is a rare opportunity to explore our marine history without donning fins and masks for diving.”

  This summer’s excavations will focus on two operation areas identified in 2019: a labourer’s house on the hillside and a boathouse near the river. During the first excavation season in 2019, the team was able to excavate down to the Edwardian (1901-1910) layer.

  “Operation Area 3 is a compelling research zone,” says Monk. “This is the location of the boathouse recorded as early as Marcus Smith’s map of 1851. The quantity of finds and intact structural timbers, in addition to both ash and other organic features within the soil, indicate a high activity area that holds particular interest to our understanding of the shipyard.”

  The field school is open to Brock students, community members and non-degree seeking students. Students who wish to observe the course and cannot commit to the full five weeks are also welcome.

  In addition to gaining practical skills in archaeological survey and excavation, course participants will be trained in how to identify and process artifacts in the lab. The course will also include lectures, workshops, archival research and a field trip to explore Niagara’s industrial heritage by visiting other key 19th-century sites along the Welland Canal.

  While the excavation site isn’t open to the general public for safety reasons, Monk is eager to connect the community with the archaeology work being done there. She is already planning a series of open houses to welcome the public on Aug. 10, 13 and 14.

  “This is a community project and we encourage the public to join us in documenting the history of St. Catharines,” says Monk. “The site contributes an important chapter toward understanding Great Lakes maritime history.”

  For more information about registering for the course, contact [email protected]

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  * Dan Dakin, Manager Communications and Media Relations, Brock University [email protected] or 905-347-1970

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  Categories: Media releases

• Brock Nursing experiencing unprecedented growth

  Monday, May 09, 2022 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: 9 May 2022 – R0050

  For more than two decades, Brock University has been educating future health-care workers through its renowned Nursing program.

  With National Nurses Week starting today, Monday, May 9, and International Nurses Day to be held Thursday, May 12, Brock Nursing is acknowledging the contributions of its faculty, staff, students and alumni while also celebrating a significant expansion of the 21-year-old department.

  “We have grown exponentially this year,” says Department of Nursing Chair Karyn Taplay. “Everyone connected to our program stepped up immensely to help make this year of transition a success; all are to be congratulated.”

  The 2022 International Nurses Day theme is ‘Nurses: A Voice to Lead’ and in response, the International Council of Nurses, which represents more than 27 million nurses worldwide, has issued a call to action to invest in nursing and respect rights to secure global health.

  With demand soaring, Brock has increased undergraduate intake from 80 to 180 students starting this fall. The increase in enrolment led to the addition of 11 full- and part-time faculty and staff positions, as well as 23 part-time clinical instructors to help teach students.

  “The important contributions and leadership Brock Nursing students and graduates provide to the health of citizens in Niagara, the Province of Ontario and beyond, help to address systemic gaps and improve quality of care for patients,” says Faculty of Applied Health Sciences Dean Peter Tiidus. “More broadly, the growth of our Nursing program and the learning opportunities we provide enables our graduates to embark on career paths that respond to the changing health needs of Canadians.”

  To accommodate the rapid growth of Brock’s Nursing program, a third Nursing simulation lab was recently constructed.

  “Brock’s Nursing simulation labs are safe learning environments that allow students to learn to proficiently care for their patients,” Taplay says. “Practising in the lab prepares students to learn basic skills they will use with every patient on every shift.

  “They also become skilled in high stakes, low frequency events they may not encounter during their academic career.”

  While the official opening of this new space will not take place until September, the lab is now being used to teach Brock’s first cohort of accelerated concurrent Bachelor of Nursing/Master of Nursing students. This 20-month, one-of-a-kind program was approved by the Ontario Ministry of Colleges and Universities in January and the first cohort of 23 students began classes last week.

  “The expansion of Brock’s nationally recognized Nursing program responds to the growing need for health-care professionals,” said Interim University President Lynn Wells. “Brock is proud to support the health-care system in Niagara and beyond with our talented faculty educating future nurses in modern on-campus learning spaces.”

  As part of the National Nurses Week celebrations, Brock has resumed its annual in-person Pinning Ceremony, an important right of passage for Nursing grads.

  “The tradition of pinning nurses is more than 100 years old and is the result of Florence Nightingale’s efforts to have nurses’ training recognized and formal programs developed,” Taplay says. “Every school of nursing has its own customized pin which symbolizes excellence in nursing and a commitment that each grad is prepared to serve the health needs of our communities.”

  The event will take place on Wednesday, May 11 in the Sean O’Sullivan Theatre beginning at 1 p.m. Visit the Department of Nursing website for more information.

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  * Dan Dakin, Manager Communications and Media Relations, Brock University [email protected] or 905-347-1970

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  Categories: Media releases