Immigration, the University, and the Tolerant Second-Tier City

BackgroundThe ongoing geographical shift in immigrant settlement patterns and the related settlement experiences of immigrants outside of the largest national cities continues to be of interest to policy makers, practitioners, and researchers alike. This paper explores recent immigration to Kitchener- Waterloo (K-W), a second-tier city (STC) in Ontario, through the conceptual lens of the creative community and the role of the university. PurposeQualitative research on immigrant settlement in Kitchener-Waterloo (K-W), Ontario has revealed the important role played by the region’s universities in attracting immigrants, but also in creating the feeling of a safe and welcoming space. This paper explores these findings in light of recent scholarship on the links between social diversity, the creative city, and economic development, and applies it specifically to the context of immigration to STCs. MethodsBetween 2004 and 2006 semi-structured interviews were conducted with visible-minority and European non-English-mother-tongue immigrants. Questions were asked of participants concerning their reasons for settling in the area, their experiences with regard to service delivery and other municipal functions, and their general perspectives on the nature of the community. In all, 21 immigrant couples were interviewed, with the majority being of South Asian origin (N =42). Two focus groups were held with European and non-European women (13 respondents). In addition, seven service providers and municipal and regional government officials were interviewed, In total, 62 respondents were included in 30 interviews/focus group sessions. Key Findings and DiscussionThe paper argues that greater qualitative assessment of the specific nature of STC communities, their community qualities, and the resources present can complement more abstract quantitative indices. Such attributes can, in fact, be used to highlight the specific roles played by key actors in the community, in this case universities. In the case of Kitchener-Waterloo, its universities attract immigrants to the region, and assist in their subsequent integration by creating spaces that are perceived as being safe and free from discrimination. The findings hint at some interesting strategies that are being used by skilled international workers, such as applying simultaneously for student and permanent immigration visas. This strategy should be seen as a method being employed by some immigrants in order to overcome international credential devaluation. RecommendationsPolicy implications are offered in relation to how universities, and, by extension, international students, factor into how Canada’s immigration policy is evolving in response to the demand for skilled immigrants. The recommendations are: Expand the reach of universities and colleges in second tier cities; Develop further means to integrate international students into the immigrant regionalization model; and Critically examine the use of international students as a talent pool while simultaneously advancing a neoliberal education funding regime that under invests in higher education

The Cowl - v.32 - n.12 - Jan 23, 1980

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Volume 32 – January 23, 1980. 12 pages

Rainbow Company Youth Theatre Program Evaluation

A.D. Consulting was tasked to conduct a program analysis and evaluation of Rainbow Company Youth Theatre (RCYT), a nationally recognized award-winning youth theatre program who has been operating for almost 40 years, under the auspices of the City of Las Vegas Office of Cultural Affairs. Based on the feedback received from RCYT staff, A.D. Consulting determined that the program evaluation question would be, does participation in Rainbow Company Youth Theatre meet the objective of the organization, which, although not formally stated, is to improve the lives of youth served, and ultimately make “better people”. The evaluation conducted had the following objectives: ❖ To quantify the impact that RCYT has on participant’s lives. ❖ To gather and analyze data to justify continued and additional funding of program. ❖ To produce a tool that RCYT can use to continue to measure outcomes. A.D. Consulting used a mixed methods design including both qualitative and quantitative research methods. We administered surveys using multiple methods to youth, parents and alumni. Content in surveys was based on researched processes for youth program evaluation, measure parent satisfaction, as well as explore other programmatic areas of interest. In addition to surveys, we recorded observed behavior of all parties and we conducted interviews with a parent and her son who had participated in classes offered by RCYT in the past. We also surveyed youth theatre programs throughout the country, and received two responses that were used for a benchmark analysis of budget, programmatic and mission/objectives characteristics

Lessons Learned: Can a Principled Mechanism for Improving Health Equity be Integrated into a Budgetary Process?

Health equity is the social justice lens that public health institutions across the United States have increasingly embraced as a mandate, however there are few jurisdictions addressing how to prioritize funding toward that end. The practical translation of a social justice concept necessitates the creation of a budgetary tool and an implementation process that identifies those with the highest levels of health disparity and social disadvantage. Using the San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH) as its central case, this paper argues that for health delivery systems to be socially just and to achieve health equity, these systems must not only establish the principle that health equity is important, they must prioritize their funding to achieve it. The broad public health mission to protect and promote the health of all will create ethical and methodological challenges when it comes to prioritizing one group’s needs over others. This paper addresses the first steps toward creating a budget prioritization method that is feasible for managers to administer while also being transparent to the public, summarizes lessons learned, and discusses ethical dilemmas that jurisdictions will face when implementing health equity into a budgetary process

SPEC Kit 346: Scholarly Output Assessment Activities

This SPEC Kit explores current ARL member library activities that help authors manage their scholarly identities, provide options for creating and disseminating scholarly outputs, offer strategies to enhance discoverability of scholarly outputs, help authors efficiently track scholarly outputs and impact, provide resources and tools to help authors assess their scholarly impact, create publication reports and social network maps for reporting purposes, and offer guidance and training on new trends and tools for reporting of impact. This study covers library assessment services and resources, training, staffing models, partnerships with the parent institution, marketing and publicity, and future trends. This SPEC Kit includes examples of training materials, job descriptions, descriptions of assessment services, examples of assessment reports, and research guides on scholarly output metrics