College welcomes students during O-week 2018

WHITEHORSE—Yukon College will be welcoming over 660 new and returning credit students this term for orientation activities—a 14 per cent increase in registrations over this time last year. 

This includes 145 international students hailing from countries such as Japan, India, Brazil, Bosnia, Spain, Columbia, South Korea and China, and 13 students entering the first made-in-Yukon degree program, the Bachelor of Arts in Indigenous Governance. 

Orientation Day kicks off on Tuesday, September 4. Some of the week’s activities include a family barbecue featuring Arctic and Dene games, a city tour and visit to the Yukon Wildlife Preserve, campus tours, a campfire with Elders, a used textbook sale, a community street fair, a sexual consent workshop and an ice cream social. 

"The three goals of Yukon College O-Week are to connect all students with opportunities for academic, social, and community integration. We do this by introducing them to academic and personal supports, arranging fun, social activities where they can connect with each other and make new friends, and through opportunities to become involved in the wider community,” said Jennifer Sugden, Enrolment Services Officer. 

“Achieving these goals can result in higher retention and greater academic success for students,” added Sugden.      

During O-Week there will also be an opportunity for students and college employees to shape a new substance use policy for the College. 

On Thursday September 6 at 4:00 p.m. in the Innovation Commons there will be a presentation by the Government of Yukon’s Community Justice and Public Safety Assistant Deputy Minister Allan Lucier and Director of Cannabis Implementation Patricia Randell, followed by a discussion about student and employee concerns around cannabis use and updating the College’s substance use policy. 

“In updating and renewing the college policy we want to be sure to include input from students and employees as well as informing them of the latest information about the legalization of marijuana scheduled for October 17,” said Sugden. 

The new substance use policy is expected to be in place in December. The college is planning regular communications with students and employees throughout the term about how legalization of marijuana will be handled on campus in the interim. 

A full list of orientation activities can be found on the Yukon College Facebook page. 

The first day of classes is Wednesday, September 5. Fall term registration is still open - the last day to register for fall term credit courses is Friday, September 7.   

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