The Queen's Journal, Volume 143, Issue 2

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the journal

Queen’s University

Vol. 143, Issue 2

ACADEMIC FREEDOM

T u e s day , J u n e 3 0 , 2 0 1 5

since

1873

TOWN GOWN

Teacher’s Scramble crossing to arrive in fall City councillor believes pedestrian safety key for University District association questions University’s actions Administrators will meet with accused professor to discuss a new settlement J acob R osen News Editor The University’s attempts to prevent the release of a report on alleged violations of academic freedom are unprecedented, according to the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT). In the agreement between the University and Professor Morteza Shirkhanzadeh — who the University had accused of workplace harassment — a provision was made which nullified the agreement if CAUT released a report on the case. The report, published in April by CAUT, investigated the University’s actions against Dr. Shirkhanzadeh. It concluded that the University violated the professor’s academic freedom by disciplining him for posts on his personal website (as previously reported in The Journal). The University had directed Shirkhanzadeh to remove 30 posts in which he accused senior Queen’s professors of research misconduct and plagiarism. David Robinson, executive director of CAUT, said it’s the first time he’s heard of a university entering a binding contract to prevent a report from being released by a third party. “[It] was an attempt to prevent CAUT, a separate organization that’s not legally bound by any of the contractual issues, from publishing a report,” Robinson said. “The fundamental question is ‘what is the University afraid of?’ ... Why would they be so obsessed with having this report come to light?” he said. The move came after a series of allegations and counter-allegations from Queen’s and Shirkanzadeh. On Aug. 26, 2014, Shirkhanzadeh, the Queen’s University Faculty Association (QUFA) and Queen’s University See Independant on page 5

Pedestrians will be able to cross diagonally at the Union St. and University Ave. intersection come September.

S amantha F igenshaw Assistant News Editor Starting this September, the Union St. and University Ave. intersection will become the first all-way “scramble” crosswalk in Kingston. On June 16, the Kingston City Council passed a motion unanimously in favor of a new crosswalk to improve better pedestrian safety on campus. The motion was brought to council by Sydenham District Councillor Peter Stroud, who identified the project as one of his key platform points while running for council in 2014. According to Stroud, the decision came six months after he initially brought it to the attention of council. “If you cross against the traffic, you’re taking a risk. The scramble crossing is the safest way to protect the pedestrians at this intersection,” Stroud said. A scramble crossing stops all traffic simultaneously, which lets pedestrians cross in all directions until traffic resumes. The project will likely cost the City an estimated $130,000, but Stroud said it will be worth it for the increased pedestrian safety. The City plans to implement the crosswalk for Sept. 1 as students return for the fall semester this year. The intersection will be the first all-way crossing in Kingston. It was inspired by those

found in the downtown core of Toronto, according to Stroud. Along with the intersection changes, Stroud said he’s been working with City Councillor Jim Neill to introduce improved winter sidewalk safety initiatives. “It was not a coincidence these two motions came from me. In my campaign I advocated very strongly for pedestrian safety,” Stroud said. Stroud worked alongside current AMS Municipal Affairs Commissioner (MAC) Matt Kussin, ArtSci ’16, and former MAC

PHOTOS BY ANISA RAWHANI

Ariel Aguilar Gonzalez, ArtSci ’16, to implement the project. According to Kussin, the AMS began lobbying for the project last year. “We’ve received overwhelmingly positive feedback,” Kussein said. The announcement on the AMS University District Facebook page received 247 likes and 27 shares, as of Monday night. Along with the intersection, Kussin said that AMS is finishing a study conducted with Urban and Regional Planning to determine design guidelines for the University District.

The intersection at University Ave. and Union St. will have the scramble crossing.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE FEATURE

EDITORIALS

OPINIONS

ARTS

LIFESTYLE

Students are moving out of “monster” homes

Education path to reconciliation of residential schools

Street harssment should be considered a criminal offence

Skeleton Park Arts Festival is bigger and better

Celebrating 26 years of Kingston Pride

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Online:

queensjournal.ca

@queensjournal

facebook.com/queensjournal


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