SFU MASTER OF ARTS IN APPLIED LEGAL STUDIES (MA ALS)
Thoughts on the Year to Come
Photo: Simon Fraser University
I
t is difficult to believe that more than a year has passed since I became the Director of the MA ALS Program and the BC Notaries Chair in Applied Legal Studies at Simon Fraser University. The year has been actionpacked, with the sudden emergence of COVID in Spring 2020 throwing in fresh challenges for all. Students and instructors in the Program have shown remarkable resiliency in responding to the challenges. As SFU moved to deliver all of its courses online in Spring 2020, we in the MA ALS Program were lucky to have a head start in the delivery of quality online education that enables and prioritizes engagement between instructors and students.
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Dr. Margaret Hall
TABLE OF CONTENTS
The year has been actionpacked, with the sudden emergence of COVID in Spring 2020 throwing in fresh challenges for all. That head start doesn’t mean we should rest on our laurels, however. As the University generally has moved online, a great deal of new information about and support for best practices in online course delivery has become available. The MA ALS Program has started the process of integrating some of these new techniques into our course delivery and will continue to do so moving forward. A top New Year’s 2021 Resolution for me is to continue this development with the objective of making the Program even stronger than it is today. BC Notaries Association
Technology changes, and the law changes, too. The goal is always to optimize student learning. I would welcome feedback from members of the profession as I continue this work. The year 2020 has also seen teachingfaculty changes in the Ron Usher Program. Ron Usher taught his last class for the MA ALS Program in Summer 2020. I would like to take this opportunity to thank him for his tremendous contribution to the Program and our students. Prof. Usher’s depth and breadth of knowledge relating to property law in British Columbia was truly incomparable; he will be greatly missed. Prof. Usher’s generosity and thoughtfulness in supporting the new faculty joining the Program in 2020 are also notable and much appreciated. Volume 29 Number 4 Winter 2020
