Whitehorse, Yukon – The pilot Heritage and Culture Certificate Program will be initiated with a noon hour tea at Yukon College. Yukon College and partners Government of Yukon’s Department of Tourism and Culture, Vuntut Gwitchin Government, and Yukon First Nations Heritage Group will welcome program developers and students to the program launch and orientation.

The tea will take place at Yukon  College:   

Date: Thursday, September 02, 2010

Time: Noon  

Where: Samay Thia Harry Allen Centre (First Nations Lounge Room C1404). The lounge is located just past the main Front Lobby in the C wing to the right

The Klondike Institute of Arts and Culture School of Visual Arts (KIAC SOVA), located in Dawson  City, changed its name this week to the Yukon School of Visual Arts.

The change reflects the school’s growing territorial impact and differentiates the school from other arts groups in Dawson City.

“SOVA has transformed our community and enriched the territory,” said Karen Dubois, KIAC Executive Director and SOVA Governing Council Member. "Clearly the school is now larger than just the Klondike, and this name change reflects the significance this small school has for all Yukoners."

Whitehorse – Yukon College has invited motivational speaker Kevin Burns to inspire employees at their in-service during professional development day, August 25th.

Whitehorse – The Student Services group and First Nations Initiatives at Yukon College have been busy demonstrating to peer academic communities their new partnership model. Yukon College endeavors to use integration as a vehicle to bring the diverse student and staff population together. The integration model was presented to the academic community at Northwest Community College (NWCC) and at the national Canadian Association of College and University Student Services (CACUSS) conference in Edmonton in June.

Whitehorse – Jude Wong, recipient of a 2010/11 Garfield Weston Entrance Award, has chosen to study at Yukon  College, from among 100 institutions.

Wong has enrolled in the Business Administration program this fall and will incorporate electives from Liberal Arts and the Multimedia Communication program.

As a dance artist, she has recently wrapped up a number of projects and training events and is looking forward to her fall semester at the College. “My studies at the college will allow me to invest and expand on the skills I have developed in the arts community in order to further my involvement with the arts and cultural sector,” says Wong.

Whitehorse – The Northern Climate Exchange will now offer support and expertise to Yukon Government decision makers to ensure the inclusion of climate change considerations in projects, planning and decision making processes. In cooperation with the Climate Change Secretariat, and with support from the Yukon Government, the Northern Climate Exchange has hired Lia Johnson in a newly formed position – Information Analyst - to take the first step towards mainstreaming climate change into governments’ and agencies’ decisions.

Johnson received her undergraduate degree in Biomedical Science at the University of Waterloo, where she completed a thesis on the effect of climate change on invertebrates in the lakes of the Old Crow Flats.

Whitehorse – For the third consecutive year, nine students will arrive from an elite Japanese university to learn ESL and outdoor survival skills in Yukon. Waseda University, located in Tokyo, Japan, enrolls over 54,000 students each year.  Each year students are offered the opportunity to travel to the Yukon to take part in a seven day back-country hike. It’s not a program for the faint of heart.

Waseda students nervously sign up for the opportunity to learn leadership, communications and outdoor skills through hiking in the Yukon wilderness. Students enroll expecting a demanding program that will provide them with a deep, personal challenge.

Whitehorse – Registration is underway at Yukon  College for the first ever Yukon First Nations Heritage and Culture Certificate Program. The project is supported through the Northern Strategy Trust and its partners Yukon Government, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, Yukon  College and Yukon First Nations Heritage Group. The shared partnership has worked on developing a culturally relevant and accessible program that focuses on northern heritage and culture issues. The Yukon First Nations Heritage Group is comprised of the 14 Yukon First Nations.

Whitehorse – Yukon College Board has had two new members appointed by the Yukon Department of Education, both effective as of July 1, 2010 until June 30, 2013. Their first board meeting will take place in early September.