Saint Mary's 1977-78 men’s basketball team inducted into NS Sport Hall of Fame

Members of the Saint Mary’s Huskies 1977-78 Men’s Basketball Team.

In photo: Head Coach Brian Heaney, Assistant Coach Willie Follette, Managers, John Landry and Calvin Smith, Trainer Richard Bishop and the players, Ron Blommers, Bruce Holmes, Tom Kappos, Derrick Lewis, Ross Quackenbush, Roger Tustanoff, Mike Solomon, and Frank White.

You could not make this stuff up.

It was a packed house with 11,000 fans jammed into the newly-minted Metro Centre in downtown Halifax in 1978. Two Nova Scotia university basketball teams were locked in a pitched battle to win the national championship.

Fans were divided with half cheering for Saint Mary’s Huskies and the other for the Acadia Axemen. Both teams were stacked with talent, spirit and a hunger for victory.

Acadia took the lead early in the game, but Saint Mary’s fought back and defeated their opponents to win the CIAU title 99-91.

On Friday, Nov. 2, the 1977-78 Men’s Basketball Team was inducted into the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame, 40 years after a victory that will go down in history as one of the most exciting university sporting events in Canada.

All but a few of the team members returned to Halifax from all over Canada and the US to receive their honour at the Halifax Convention Centre.

They were presented with their honour by Owen Carrigan, who served as President of Saint Mary’s University that year and Doug Wright, a long-serving member of the Saint Mary’s Sport Hall of Fame Committee.

“It was the greatest game ever played at a college level in Canada,” said Coach Brian Heaney. “That CIAU national title took basketball to another plateau in Canada.”

Even 40 years later, players and fans remember that night. Saint Mary’s was the host team and seeded last. The magic ignited when they defeated the top-ranked Manitoba Bisons (92-81) who were favoured to win the championship. In the next round, they beat the University of Victoria Vikings with a score of 82-79.

That earned them a spot in the final against the Acadia Axemen. It was a grudge match and a showdown of hometown rivals, according to player Rick Plato.

“If you wrote it up for a movie you wouldn’t believe it. We were two power houses, tough, determined, confident skilled and talented,” he said.

With a victory and winning score of 99 points, they set the record for most points scored in a final game. That record was not broken until 2016.

“It was the time of our lives,” remembers player Tom Kappos. “We were a bunch of 18-year old Canadian kids, and this entire stadium was overflowing with people, fans, emotion.”

That game and season didn’t just change varsity basketball in Canada. It changed the lives of certain players too.

“It changed my life after being in the US,” said player Frank White. “People here were warm, welcoming, kind, they treated me with love and respect. Everyone had such a sense of purpose. In our hearts, we knew we were going to win that game.”

Player Ross Quackenbush, who later went on to coach men’s varsity basketball at Saint Mary’s, called that night the highlight of his career. Looking back at pictures, he laughs about the styles of 1978.

“Back then it was the time of short shorts and long hair. Now the shorts are long, and the hair is short.”

Whatever the fashion, that night was all about basketball. Player Ron McFarland received the Most Valuable Player award, finishing with 38 points.

The Saint Mary’s team were victorious in a game that will never be forgotten by either team or the 11,000 fans.

The Saint Mary’s team were: Ron Blommers, John Brown, Bruce Holmes, Derrick Lewis, Tom Kappos, Ron McFarland (MVP) Rick Plato, Ross Quackenbush, Art Screaton, Mike Solomon, Roger Tustanoff, Mark Vickers, and Frank White; (Coaches) Brian Burgess, Brian Heaney, and Willie Follette; (Managers) Hector Corkum, John Landry, Calvin Smith and Allan Wentworth; (Trainer) Richard Bishop; and, (Team Doctor) Dr. David Petrie Sr.

We’re all in this together: Collaborating on social studies education

More than 300 social studies teachers took part in “Calling All Citizens”, their annual provincial conference hosted October 26 for a fourth year at Saint Mary’s University. 

“I think we would all agree that social studies education is more important now than ever,” said Maureen McNamara, a Cape Breton teacher and president of the Nova Scotia Social Studies Teachers Association (SSTA). “We must continue to help our students not just to understand our rapidly changing world but their role as citizens. In doing so, we must create safe spaces for discussion and debate, not argument and polarization.”

The event included a trade exhibition, 30 workshops – including 10 led by Saint Mary’s professors and staff – an AGM and several off-site sessions at locations such as the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia and the Millbrook Cultural and Heritage Centre. The day began with a spirited keynote on fostering ‘civic competence’ and community service in Canadian schools, by Dr. Alan Sears, Professor of Social Studies Education at the University of New Brunswick.

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, welcomed the teachers to campus and highlighted the sessions led by Saint Mary’s professors and staff: “We're talking about Mi'kmaq music and art, human resilience in the face of mental health challenges, competencies related to intercultural learning, strategies for accommodating racial and religious differences, field schools in The Gambia, and even sessions off-campus such as the hands-on archaeology at Grand Pré National Historic Site,” she said.

Nova Scotia teachers, museums and educational organizations lead the other workshops.  

“Together, this roster offers teachers of all grades a rich professional learning day that can only benefit our students in the end,” said Wendy Driscoll, conference co-chair. “The SSTA is proud of our partnership with Saint Mary's University because it brings together teachers and professors for the common purpose of student achievement.”

These connections are a highlight of the annual event for Joe Bellefontaine. The Grade 9 teacher at Riverview High in Sydney has also taught with the Chignecto and Annapolis Valley school boards, and has a SMU Bachelor of Arts degree in geography and geology.

“People in universities are leaders in their field, so it's great to see their ideas and what they’re working on,” he said. “They have access to different resources, and they're really willing to talk to teachers and to make those connections with public school systems.”

For more highlights, see @NSSSTA on Twitter and the conference agenda. 

Saint Mary’s rises up the rankings in Canadian Research Universities report

Saint Mary’s professor Dr. Christa Brosseau, Canada Research Chair in Sustainable Chemistry & Materials works in the lab with Ph.D. student Najwan Albarghouthi.

Saint Mary’s University is rising up the research rankings, according to Canada’s Top 50 Research Universities 2018. In 2018, Saint Mary’s is Nova Scotia’s second largest research university by research income and one of eight universities driving significant increases in research and research funding in Atlantic Canada.

“Saint Mary’s University is home to innovative research that impacts not only our institution but contributes to addressing problems of global importance,” said Dr. Malcolm Butler, Vice-President, Academic and Research.

Saint Mary’s learning-centred environment places a high value on the process of research and innovation, as students, as professors, as researchers, ensuring that the university is not simply transferring knowledge but creating it. The university hosts nine Canada Research Chairs ranging from astronomy to international finance, contributing to this knowledge transfer and creation. Saint Mary’s receives over $8 million annually from outside funding sources including the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada (NSERC), Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), and Canada Research Chairs. 

“Fiscal 2017 was a very strong year for Atlantic universities,” said Ron Freedman, CEO of Research Infosource Inc.  “Five universities – a mix of large and small – performed very well, with research income growth well in excess of the national average.”

Total Atlantic university research income in Fiscal 2017 rose to $357.5 million from $311.7 million in Fiscal 2016.  Nationally, combined research income of Canada’s Top 50 Research Universities jumped by 6.8% to $7.33 billion in Fiscal 2017 from $6.87 billion in Fiscal 2016 - the most substantial gain in a decade. 

Canada’s Top 50 Research Universities List 2018 ranks full-service universities based on their total sponsored research income. To obtain a more balanced picture of how universities are performing, the Research Universities of the Year (RUY) rankings take into account key measures of research success.

To learn more about the Research Universities of the Year (RUY) report, click here.

Peaceful Schools International launches new books to help children navigate conflict

Resolving conflict can be tricky enough for adults, but a new series of books published by Saint Mary’s University aims to help children better understand and resolve conflicts respectfully and peacefully.

Peaceful Schools International launched the trio of books on October 19, in conjunction with the university and the Saint Mary’s University Students’ Association (SMUSA). All three were written by Amelia Penney-Crocker, a Grade 8 student at Oxford School, while her two best friends Ruby Jangaard and Marin DeWolfe created the engaging illustrations.

Amelia first got involved with Peaceful Schools when the charitable organization – housed and supported at SMU – gave a presentation to her elementary school, which later participated in a Peace Conference here on campus.

“Then I was lucky enough to go to Belfast with the Peaceful Schools team from Saint Mary’s,” said the budding author, who also won the 2016 Woozles writing contest and co-wrote an article about Syrian refugees for Our Children magazine. “It was interesting to see the way kids from other places have a different experience with conflict.”

The idea emerged to create a fun educational resource written by children for children, and “I hope that me writing them and me being a kid will help to connect to other kids in a better way,” she said.

The books are Animal School, The Enchantress from Canada and The Fairy Ring. They examine ways to peacefully de-escalate conflict, address hurtful insults, share difficult feedback, and reach out to adults for guidance on standing up for yourself.

The stories were created for local elementary schools and the Northern Ireland Conflict Resolution Program, now in its 14th year of providing conflict resolution training to SMU students in the faculties of Arts, Science and Commerce. Through the program, the books – and skits based on them – will be shared with children in HRM and more than 100 classrooms throughout Northern Ireland, explained Patrick Guerra, SMU’s student coordinator for Peaceful Schools International. The next trip overseas is scheduled for this February.

 Commending the book’s creators as “our next generation of scholars,” President Dr. Robert Summerby-Murray said “we want to celebrate their work particularly as it relates to peaceful schools, and the idea that education around conflict resolution and understanding peace is important for all of us, at all levels of our educational institutions.”

The launch event also acknowledged inspiration and support from Dr. Hetty van Gurp, founder of Peaceful Schools International. She was recently appointed to the newly established Provincial Advisory Council on Education, which replaces the seven dissolved regional school boards.

“What this means is at a provincial level, we will now have the input of Peaceful Schools International promoting the definitive inclusion of peace education in the curriculum, and this has been one of the central goals of the organization all along. So we are very grateful for everything Dr. van Gurp has done to make this a reality going forward,” said Bridget Brownlow, SMU’s Conflict Resolution Advisor and President of Peaceful Schools International.

Saint Mary’s to offer archaeology field school in Cuba to the general public

The ruins of the mansion house at Cafetal Angerona.

The ruins of the barracks complex at Cafetal Angerona.

Saint Mary's University archaeologists at work at Cafetal Angerona.

What began as the archaeological opportunity of a lifetime for students, is now being offered to the general public.

Saint Mary’s University is looking for twelve people with a keen interest in archaeology to participate in excavating historical artifacts at Angerona, a Cuban national historic site and former slave plantation, 80 kilometres west of Havana.

“This expedition builds on the great research partnership we have established over the past two years with Havana’s Cabinet of Archaeology and the College of San Geronimo,” said Aaron Taylor, an alumnus of Saint Mary’s and the program’s instructor. “Sharing this opportunity with people who want to take part but aren’t current students is a big part of this. This field school offers the opportunity for community members to share their passion for archaeology and participate in field research.”

The expedition will be examining the ruins of a previously unknown building behind the plantation’s mansion house and also exploring the walled barracks compound to learn more about the daily lives of the people who were enslaved at Angerona. During the 19th century, Angerona was one of the largest slave plantations in the Americas—yet little is known about the day-to-day lives of the people who lived there.

This project is a non-credit course to introduce participants to archaeological field methods, Cuban history, and life beyond the resort. The course is offered by the Studio for Teaching and Learning at Saint Mary’s as part of the university’s Open Archaeology Initiative. Open Archaeology engages members of the public in archaeology through short courses and community-engaged research.

The field school runs from Feb.17 to March 3, 2019. For more information or to express interest in participating visit digatsmu.ca.         

Collaboration agreement signed between Saint Mary’s and LAU

Saint Mary’s President Dr. Robert Summerby-Murray shakes hands with LAU President Dr Joseph G. Jabbra

Saint Mary’s University and the Lebanese American University (LAU), have signed an agreement that will open doors to more collaboration between the two institutions.  The agreement allows for a variety of new opportunities including academic and professional exchange, joint research and short-term academic programs.

LAU President Dr. Joseph G. Jabbra welcomed Saint Mary’s President and Vice-Chancellor, Dr. Robert Summerby-Murray, to the Jamil Iskandar Conference Room at LAU’s Byblos campus on October 9, 2018, to sign the agreement.

President Jabbra is known to many on campus from his time spent as both an active member of the political science department and as the Vice President, Academic and Research from 1980 to 1990. In April 2017, President Jabbra received a Doctor of Civil Law, honoris causa, from Saint Mary’s.

Saint Mary’s President Dr. Robert Summerby-Murray and LAU President Dr Joseph G. Jabbra sign the collaboration agreement between the two universities.

Saint Mary’s University has a well-established commitment to cultural diversity and encourages and supports the development of a global perspective. This new collaboration supports Saint Mary’s commitment to international and intercultural education and the global connectivity of the university and the university’s research partnerships. Saint Mary’s is recognized as a Canadian leader in these areas with extensive international outreach and collaboration by way of institutional linkages with universities around the world. This agreement with LAU marks another opportunity for students, faculty and staff to benefit from global perspectives and partnerships.

At the signing, Dr. Summerby-Murray emphasized the importance of the collaboration and the strong foundation that is already in place between both institutions and countries. The end of the event was marked by the exchange of gifts between the two presidents. The partnership is expected to begin shortly, with a representative of LAU expected to arrive on campus later this month.

Saint Mary's researcher part of group looking to get a glimpse of the hot universe

Dr. Luigi Gallo, member of the XRISM science team and professor of astronomy and physics at Saint Mary's University. (Credit: Ryan Taplin)

Many people think of space as a cold and empty place, but some structures in the universe are incredibly hot. In fact, at the centre of most galaxies lie supermassive black holes, whose surrounding regions can reach millions of degrees.

X-rays can be described as a hot, high-energy form of light that the human eye cannot see. Many kinds of astronomical objects, like massive stars, black holes, and clusters of galaxies, emit X-rays. Because Earth's atmosphere shields us from this cosmic radiation, astronomers must send observatories into space to study these exotic objects.

Today, CSA astronaut @Astro_Jeremy celebrated Canada’s longstanding ties with @JAXA_en, announcing the role of @smuhalifax and @UWaterloo researchers in XRISM, a JAXA-led X-ray astronomy mission: https://t.co/JxmsoVNbml. Photo: NASA pic.twitter.com/rY7CRoJwhv

— CanadianSpaceAgency (@csa_asc) October 12, 2018

Led by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) is a new space observatory that will take a closer look at the hot, often violent ways that galaxies form and stars burn out.

The XRISM observatory will feature two scientific instruments, Xtend and Resolve, which must be tested and calibrated before installation and launch. NASA has chosen to perform these tests at the Canadian Light Source, an synchrotron facility in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, that is capable of generating X-rays.

In addition to these efforts, the Canadian Space Agency is also supporting the participation of Canadian scientists:

• Dr. Luigi Gallo, of Saint Mary's University, on the XRISM science team

• Dr. Brian McNamara, of the University of Waterloo, on the Resolve instrument team

Members of Canada's astronomy community will be able to compete for guest observer time, an exciting opportunity to conduct cutting-edge research into cosmic sources of X-rays and to shed light on the structure of our universe.

More information can be found be found here at the Canadian Space Agency website.

Three exceptional athletes join the Saint Mary’s University Sport Hall of Fame

Three exceptional athletes from three different sports joined the Saint Mary’s University Sport Hall of Fame, as part of Homecoming 2018. Frank Yakimchuk (football), Mark Locken (hockey) and Brian Thompson (basketball) entered the hall on Saturday, Oct. 13.

“The annual hall of fame ceremony recognizes the accomplishments of exceptional athletes and celebrates their legacy as Huskies and in university sport,” said Scott Gray, Saint Mary’s University’s director of athletics and recreation. “This weekend we will honour three great athletes, and show our student-athletes of today the success that lays ahead of them in the future.”

A product of St. Patrick’s high school, Frank Yakimchuk was an offensive lineman for the Huskies from 1971-1975.  He was a member of the 1973 Vanier Cup Championship team and was named a conference all-star during the same season.  Yakimchuk often played both offence and defence throughout his time at SMU and was drafted to the CFL in 1974. 

Mark Locken, a London, Ontario native, remains one of the most decorated Saint Mary’s players in men’s hockey history.  In the 1982-83 season, Locken was the first Saint Mary’s player to win the national Most Valuable Player award.  He was a two-time league MVP, 4-time conference all-star, and a three-time member of the CIAU All-Canadian team.  Locken was without a doubt one of the most dominant players in the league and the country during his time at Saint Mary’s.

Rounding out the list is basketball standout, Brian Thompson. Thompson, a former captain of the Huskies, played five seasons from 1987-1992.  A four-time conference all-star, Thompson remains the top scorer in Saint Mary’s men’s basketball history, amassing 1679 points during his career.  In his final season in 1992, Thompson was named to the CIAU All-Canadian team, was third in the nation scoring, and led the Huskies to a conference title and a national silver medal finish.

Our place in the universe: The 2018 Dan MacLennan Memorial Lecture

Saint Mary's University presents the 4th annual Dan MacLennan Memorial Lecture in Astronomy: "Our Place in the Universe" with Dr. Jason Kalirai, Astrophysicist, Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI).

Dr. Jason Kalirai, Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)

From Galileo, to Edwin Hubble, to scientists using NASA's Space Telescopes, our understanding of the fundamental question, "What is our Place in the Universe" has been overthrown numerous times. Join Dr. Jason Kalirai as he journeys the cosmos and shapes a roadmap to answer the next installment of this question: Are We Alone?

Our Place in the Universe
Friday, November 9, 2018
Halifax Convention Centre, 1650 Argyle St. 7 – 9 p.m.

Click here to register.

About Dr. Jason Kalirai:

Dr. Jason Kalirai is an astrophysicist at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, MD, and recent recipient of Maryland's Outstanding Young Scientist award. He obtained his PhD in astrophysics in 2004 from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. His research interests include studying the lifecyles of stars and how they impact the galaxies in which they reside. He is a frequent user of the mighty Hubble Space Telescope and many large ground-based observatories. Dr. Kalirai is also the Project Scientist for STScI and is actively involved in motivating and building bold future missions for space exploration, such as NASA's James Webb Space Telescope. Dr. Kalirai is passionate about engaging the public and students about the importance of science and the wonders of the Universe. For his work, he has received numerous awards.

Visit Dr. Kalirai's website

About the Dan MacLennan Memorial Lecture in Astronomy:

The Dan MacLennan Memorial Lecture in Astronomy celebrates the spirit and vision of Dan Alexander MacLennan, a remarkable, life-long learner who discovered a new world view through the lens of Saint Mary’s University’s telescopes.

Fence signage offers glimpse into the future The Dauphinee Centre

The Dauphinee Centre is sporting a new look thanks to new fence signage on the build site.

Installed in time for Homecoming, the signage showcases various members of the Saint Mary’s community, acknowledges donors, and helps promote the centre slated to open in time for the 2019 hockey season.

The signage is designed to reflect the fact that centre will make a significant contribution not only to varsity athletics but to the wellness of our entire community, with 50% of its usage capacity dedicated to community groups. SMU varsity athletes Marc Terriault and Siobhan Birch are featured wearing their Huskies gear. Another panel pictures Tyler Naugler, Assistant Coach, Men’s Hockey with his daughter as they walk by the Homburg Centre. The Saint Mary’s student body is represented with a photo of students Mohammad Ashiq, Jesus Hernandez, Jillian Taylor, Ashley Brewster and Sehmat Suri.

Additional panels highlight the Saint Mary’s University branding, and promote the arena name as well as the Pseudio Link and the Barbara Holmes Gathering Centre.

Saint Mary's researcher begins search for historical clues beneath RA Park

A view of Halifax drawn during the town’s first few months and published in 1750. The wooden town wall is partly complete, and the perimeter fort at the later site of RA Park is circled.
NOVA SCOTIA ARCHIVES

Dr. Jonathan Fowler’s work to uncover pieces of Halifax’s early military history was recently featured in the Trident, the newspaper for CFB Halifax.

The archaeology professor is hoping to locate pieces of the town wall and perimeter forts that once stood in Halifax from 1749-1763, which according to his research, lie under RA Park.

“It’s been on my mind for a long time, but this year is the first time we’re taking it to the field-work level and it’s quite exciting,” said Fowler.

See full story at: https://tridentnewspaper.com/searching-history-beneath-ra-park/)

SMU faculty participate as scientific experts at G7 Oceans Inspiration Expo

Dr. Danika van Proosdij speaks at the G7 Oceans Summit

Three Saint Mary’s University faculty members were invited to participate as experts at the G7 Oceans Summit at the Halifax Convention Centre, in parallel with the G7 Joint Ministerial Session on Healthy Oceans, Seas and Resilient Communities.

The summit, and the G7 meeting, generally focused on oceans – with the three themes of the gathering being: plastic reduction, sustainable fishing, and coastal resilience. Professors Dr. Danika van Proosdij, Dr. Cathy Conrad and Dr. Tony Charles represented the university, working with 200 other global experts to develop the framing and guiding document on Oceans for the G7 ministers meeting that followed.

This collaboration was thanks to an ongoing partnership between the Canadian Government’s Environment and Climate Change department (ECCC) and the Community Conservation Research Network (CCRN) led by Dr. Tony Charles and based at Saint Mary’s University.

Dr. van Proosdij was a panellist for the “Resilient Coasts and Communities” event, speaking about her Natural Infrastructure to adapt to climate change impacts. She has worked in Canada, and on the Indian Ocean and Caribbean, primarily on vulnerability assessment and recommendations of implementation.

She was also a judge at the Clean Coastal Challenge, where youth pitched and designed sustainable coastal communities. The communities had to be sustainable, circular economy, renewable energy and healthy lifestyles.

Saint Mary’s was the only university with a booth at the Oceans Inspiration Expo, a public G7 event with presentations by Sylvia Earle and Alexandra Cousteau. The booth featured the work of the CCRN, on local communities around the world that are conserving their environment and sustaining their local economy, as well as several other university ocean and coastal initiatives.