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News pages 3 to
from 24 August 2022
Student groups host cultural celebrations
Pakistani and Indian independence honoured
Matthew Merkel, staff
Two University of Manitoba student organizations held Independence Day celebrations in mid August. The Pakistani Students’ Association (PSA) celebrated Pakistani Independence Day on Aug. 12 and 14, while U of M student organization Laksh honoured Indian Independence Day on Aug. 15.
PSA president Saud Chaudhary said that with help from the Canada Pakistan Trade and Cultural Association (CPTCA) of Manitoba, the event was a huge success. The festivities kicked off with a formal flag hoisting on Aug. 12. City councillor Janice Lukes, Pakistani-Canadian Progressive Conservative MLA Obby Khan and Minister of Advanced Education, Skills and Immigration Jon Reyes were all in attendance.
Two days later, another celebration was held at Crescent Drive Park. Traditional songs and dances were performed. Pakistani street food was served as well.
Chaudhary said that he has received overwhelmingly positive feedback from the event attendees. He added that the PSA looks forward to hosting more events for the Pakistani community in the future.
For many international students, it can be quite difficult to live in a foreign country. Chaudhary explained that taking part in cultural events like Independence Day can help students experiencing isolation reconnect with their community.
“Whenever [students] leave their home country and come to Canada, they’re disconnected [from] their culture,” he said.
“It is very important to celebrate these types of days so that you remember where you are from.”
The day after the PSA event, Laksh, a U of M student organization for those interested in South Asian culture, held an Indian Independence Day party at the Richmond South Winnipeg Community Centre.
Similar to the PSA celebration, a flag hoisting, traditional music, dancing and food were all part of the festivities.
Laksh director of events Rushil Nain said that one of the celebration’s highlights was being able to showcase the different cultures within India. He said that the group hopes to hold similar events in the future, not only for Indian students but for other South Asian communities as well.
“It was really brilliant,” Nain said. “I have many friends at the University of Manitoba and all over Winnipeg who have been here for the past eight, nine years, and they really haven’t participated in or seen any Indian Independence Day celebration,” he continued. “So, we thought of it.”
UMSU international community representative Kunal Rajpal attended both the PSA and Laksh Independence Day events. He was happy to report that each event ran well, and that he ran into many old friends he had not seen for some time.
Rajpal was grateful to be able to celebrate his own Indian heritage, as well as experience his fellow classmates’ Pakistani culture. He said that these cultural gatherings are an important part of a strong student community. “All the family I have here are the people from my community,” Rajpal said.
“I have met such amazing people, both from my community and outside of my community, who have taught me so many things and made me a better person.
“That’s what happens here if we have events like this, where we are celebrating ourselves with the community. It strengthens that bond, and that’s what we need the most right now.”
— Saud Chaudhary, Pakistani Students’ Association president
news@themanitoban.com
U of M nursing college adds third intake of students
Program will be accelerated, adding additional term per year
Colton McKillop, staff
The University of Manitoba will be increasing its number of nursing students by 50 per cent starting in May of 2023 in order to address Manitoba’s shortage of nurses.
The bachelor of nursing program will also accelerate to be delivered over three terms per year, rather than the two terms currently offered, with 120 students added in the fall, winter and spring and summer terms.
The governing Progressive Conservatives began making substantial cuts to health care in 2017 and have continued to do so as recently as 2021, when they made cuts to acute care.
Although the province has devoted over $110 million in its 2022 budget to improve health care in Manitoba, medical workers’ unions said that the budget did not offer enough to deal with the staffing shortage.
The provincial government is now investing $19.5 million to add 259 nurse training seats at five postsecondary institutions throughout Manitoba — including the 120 seats added to the U of M.
The province plans to add roughly 400 seats over the next few years.
Netha Dyck, the dean of the college of nursing at the University of Manitoba, said that these changes will not affect the quality or content of education students receive and will allow students to complete their program ahead of schedule.
“We’re increasing our seat capacity, and we’re changing and decreasing the time to completion, so there’s really no change to our curriculum,” she said.
The nursing college’s curriculum is currently completed over seven terms and Dyck said this would not change, “it’s just that the time to completion will change.”
She said this would make more nurses available to the health-care system “a year ahead of regular schedule.”
Dyck expects that the majority of these will remain in the province.
“We do survey our graduates six months post-graduation and again 12 months post-graduation, and so we do have a sense for where our graduates are working,” she said.
“Our graduates are gaining employment in the province and they’re staying in the province.”
As of May 2022, 28 per cent of nursing positions at Grace Hospital were unfilled and 18 per cent of positions at the Health Sciences Centre were vacant.
The shortage forced the 22 federally operated nursing stations located in Manitoba’s remote Indigenous communities to only provide emergency care in these areas.
“Certainly there is a high vacancy rate in the nursing positions within the health-care system and the health regions across the province, and that is why we’re really pleased and excited to contribute to addressing
staff Colton McKillop / / photo
that shortage,” Dyck said.
Dyck said the nursing college is already working on recruiting “additional faculty and staff to assist with the delivery of the program and ensure quality education for our students.”
“We’ll be ready for when the additional students arrive in May of 2023.”
