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Memorial University of Newfoundland

As Newfoundland and Labrador’s only university, Memorial has a special obligation to the people of this province. Established as a memorial to the Newfoundlanders who lost their lives on active service during the First and Second World Wars, Memorial University draws inspiration from these shattering sacrifices of the past as we help to build a better future for our province, our country and our world.

We are a multi-campus, multi-disciplinary, public, teaching/research university committed to excellence in everything we do. We strive to have national and global impact, while fulfilling our social mandate to provide access to university education for the people of the province and to contribute to the social, cultural, scientific and economic development of Newfoundland and Labrador and beyond.

The Memorial experience goes beyond academics; it invites a discovery of self, community and place. At Memorial, we celebrate our unique identity through the stories of our people – the work of scholars and educators, the ingenuity of students, the achievements of alumni – and the impact we collectively make in the province, the country and the world. Memorial is the natural place where people and ideas become.

Memorial University has more than 18,500 students and 5,200 faculty and staff spread across four campuses and nearly 85,000 alumni active throughout the world. From local endeavors to research projects of national concern, Memorial’s impact is felt far and wide.

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When four- and five-year-old children are provided with a full day of schooling, space is freed in child-care centres that is instantly filled by younger children. (Allison Shelley/The Verbatim Agency for EDUimages)

Children’s early learning belongs in neighbourhood schools

David Philpott, Memorial University of Newfoundland

Access to schooling for four-year-olds is inconsistent across Canada. Families need to know children are immersed in high-quality early learning, and they shouldn’t be exhausted searching for it.
Artwork created by public school students about the availability of healthy foods in schools. (Sara Kirk)

School-approved Cheetos? Why we must protect school food from corporate interests

Sara F.L. Kirk, Dalhousie University; Amberley T. Ruetz, University of Saskatchewan; Rachel Prowse, Memorial University of Newfoundland, and Steve Machat, Dalhousie University

An effective national school food program can help build the foundations for a healthy population. That’s why Ottawa must limit the influence of the food industry on a national school food program.
Psychologists can be found in the public system (for example, schools, hospitals, public health offices), but increasingly are choosing to work in private practice, fee-for-service, clinics. (Shutterstock)

In Canada’s two-tiered mental health system, access to care is especially challenging in rural areas

Conor Barker, Mount Saint Vincent University; Krista C Ritchie, Mount Saint Vincent University; Sara King, Mount Saint Vincent University, and Veronica Hutchings, Memorial University of Newfoundland

Rural Canadians face challenges accessing mental health services, and an exodus of psychologists from the public system may make matters worse.
Early play-based learning helps children develop skills and knowledge before elementary school, and provides an essential foundation for learning in later years. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Lars Hagberg

Newly linked data can reveal academic development from kindergarten to high school in 150,000 students

Jeanne Sinclair, Memorial University of Newfoundland; Magdalena Janus, McMaster University, and Scott Davies, University of Toronto

A study following Ontario students between 2004 and 2012 can help policymakers ensure all students get the supports they need when they need them.
Focusing on grades or scoring doesn’t help students learn and retain information and causes pressure and stress. (Unsplash/Elisa Ventur)

How ‘grade obsession’ is detrimental to students and their education

Nathan Rickey, Queen's University, Ontario; Andrew Coombs, Memorial University of Newfoundland; Christopher DeLuca, Queen's University, Ontario, and Danielle LaPointe-McEwan, Queen's University, Ontario

Teachers in a study identify ‘grading obsession’ as a top challenge in education. Some are fighting back and dedicating class time to student self-assessment and peer assessment activities.
Support for use of health data is conditional on whether the use has public benefits. (Brittany Datchko/Graphic Journeys)

How can health data be used for public benefit? 3 uses that people agree on

P. Alison Paprica, University of Toronto; Annabelle Cumyn, Université de Sherbrooke ; Julia Burt, Memorial University of Newfoundland; Kimberlyn McGrail, University of British Columbia, and Roxanne Dault, Université de Sherbrooke

There are concerns about how health data are used, but research shows support for uses with public benefits by health-care providers, governments, health-system planners and university-based researchers.
Climate conferences provide platforms for collaboration among countries, venues for interaction across levels of governance and critical events to mobilize civil society and media coverage. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

COP27 failed. So why continue with these UN climate summits?

David Tindall, University of British Columbia; Maria Brockhaus, University of Helsinki; Mark CJ Stoddart, Memorial University of Newfoundland, and Marlene Kammerer, University of Bern

There have been 27 UN COP meetings. Despite these negotiations, the planet is on target to exceed emission thresholds for global warming. Given these failures, why continue with this process?
Reflection Rooms are evidence-based, participatory art installations that help people express emotions about death and dying. (Shutterstock)

Reflection Room: Exploring pandemic-related grief in long-term care homes

Celina Carter, University of Toronto; Barry Stephenson, Memorial University of Newfoundland; Elizabeth Kalles, University of Waterloo; Justine Giosa, University of Waterloo, and Paul Holyoke, University of Toronto

Reflection Rooms support people making sense of experiences related to dying and death. They provide an immersive space to read stories written by others and write and share their own stories.
In-depth interviews with former youth in care described barriers and challenges to attending post-secondary education once they received a tuition waiver. (Shutterstock)

Health of former youth in care could be bolstered by stronger tuition waiver programs

Jacquie Gahagan, Mount Saint Vincent University; Dale Kirby, Memorial University of Newfoundland; Krista C Ritchie, Mount Saint Vincent University, and Kristyn Anderson, Dalhousie University

To understand how tuition waivers and associated supports can help former youth in care complete post-secondary education and positively affect their health, evidence-based practices are needed.
George River Caribou outside of Nain, Nunatsiavut, Labrador. (David Borish)

What the declining caribou populations — and total hunting ban — mean for Inuit communities in Labrador

David Borish, Memorial University of Newfoundland; Ashlee Cunsolo, Memorial University of Newfoundland; Inez Shiwak; Jamie Snook, Dalhousie University, and Sherilee Harper, University of Alberta

Support for Inuit and other Indigenous-led strategies for conservation and community well-being must be prioritized.
One child constructed a city out of cardboard boxes from his recent move to Canada. He shared this with classmates, free from the language barrier that made in-person school a struggle. (Shutterstock)

How some children prospered in pandemic online learning

Anne Burke, Memorial University of Newfoundland

Researchers studying ways to foster children’s inclusion in society worked with teachers to adapt classroom practices, like dedicated dialogue circles, to online learning.
People gather outside Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland’s office in Toronto for a rally led by current and former international students calling for changes to immigration rules during COVID-19 in September 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/ Tijana Martin

Canada is foolish to snub international graduate students and scholars

Katrina Plamondon, University of British Columbia; Melisa Valverde, Memorial University of Newfoundland, and Susan J. Elliott, University of Waterloo

International students are not only ideal candidates for settlement in Canada, they’re also vital to our prosperity. So why is it so difficult for them to come to Canada, especially those from Africa?
Two-eared listening is a critical element for Western advocates of restorative justice. (Shutterstock)

Two-eared listening is essential for understanding restorative justice in Canada

Chief Mi’sel Joe, Indigenous Knowledge; Dorothy Vaandering, Memorial University of Newfoundland; Rosemary Ricciardelli, Memorial University of Newfoundland; Sulaimon Giwa, Memorial University of Newfoundland, and Sylvia Moore, Memorial University of Newfoundland

Two-eared listening is based on the idea of learning and understanding, a willingness to be suspend judgement and the desire to communicate respectfully.
Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to Russia’s commissioner for entrepreneurs’ rights during a meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow on May 26, 2022. (Mikhail Metzel, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Russian roulette in Ukraine: Is Vladimir Putin powerful, or just lucky?

Anton Oleinik, Memorial University of Newfoundland

Russia’s war in Ukraine calls for drawing a line between power and luck. Putin, who was widely considered among the most powerful people in the world, may have been simply lucky.

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