Susan Walker with her sons Hart, 7, and Andrew, 5, her husband, Don Murdoch (right) and Susan Walker's brother, Paul, all flanked by painting donated to York.

The family of Edwin Walker, a founding member of York's Board of Governors, has donated a painting to the University through a bequest by his wife, Marion.

The gift was presented to York in memory of Mr. Walker at a dedication and appreciation ceremony held in November in York President Lorna Marsden's office. Members of the Walker family including Paul Walker and Susan Walker, Susan's husband Don Murdoch (liaison officer in York's Faculty of Fine Arts) and their sons Hart and Andrew, were on hand to present the painting to Marsden and Gary J. Smith, vice-president (university advancement).

Edwin Walker was president of General Motors Limited. In addition to serving as a founding board member, he served on various committees of the board including the 1960s Building Committee. He was also instrumental in securing a donation to York from his friend, Samuel McLaughlin, founder of what would become GM, who established the McLaughlin Foundation. The Walkers were active in the life of York attending cultural and fundraising events.

The artist, Edward Seago (1910-1974) was one of the most popular British land and seascape painters of the 20th century. He was largely self-taught and was a keen yachtsman who travelled widely. He was born and raised in Norfolk and lived his adult life in the same area.

The donated painting is called October Afternoon in Gorlaston, c. 1950 - an impressionistic scene of a harbour with the town to the right of the canvas, children at the water's edge in the foreground, boats going in and out of the harbour in the middleground, executed in a pearlized brown-gray-green palette with an expansive cloudscape.

By Chris Stewart and Roman Koniuk

What do you picture when you imagine an astronomy experiment? Maybe you see a white dome on a mountaintop in Hawaii, or the large radio dish at Arecibo. Maybe you imagine a lone astronomer out in a field with a small optical telescope that fits on the back seat of an old Toyota

hatchback. It's a fairly safe bet, however, that you wouldn't think of a huge tank of water hidden in a mineshaft more than two kilometres underground.

While most astronomy is about viewing faint objects millions of light-years away, researchers at the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) are not peering into the heavens, they're working deep underground. They're not looking at distant stars; they're studying the Sun, our nearest star. And they're not using sunlight for their investigations, they're looking for elusive particles called neutrinos.

What all this has to do with old mine shafts and tanks of water, we'll get to in a minute. First, let's get acquainted with neutrinos. You may have heard the Sun described as something like a giant nuclear reactor. Deep inside the Sun, the heat and pressure are so great that nuclear reactions are occurring at an enormous rate. In the process, huge amounts of energy are released. We feel this energy as warmth on our faces, and see it each morning in a blaze of colour.

What we don't see, though, is that along with all that light and heat, the Sun is pouring out a staggering quantity of particles known as neutrinos ("little neutral one"). Neutrinos have no electric charge, and are incredibly light. They possibly even have no weight at all! In fact, billions of neutrinos are streaming through your body right now. You don't notice this spray of particles, because normal matter is essentially transparent to neutrinos. A neutrino could easily pass through the entire Earth unhindered. In fact, there is only a fifty-fifty chance that a neutrino would collide with even one single atom as it streamed through a block of lead the size of a galaxy! With so many neutrinos passing through you each second, only a couple will actually scatter off the particles inside your body in your entire lifetime.

These same properties make neutrinos incredibly difficult to detect. Since the chance of a neutrino interacting with an atom is tiny, we have a choice: we can either make a small detector and wait an incredibly long time to see a neutrino bounce off it, or we can make a very, very large detector, and give ourselves many more chances of seeing a neutrino collision.

One kind of neutrino detector is little more than a huge swimming pool of water surrounded by very sensitive light meters. Very occasionally, a neutrino collides with one of the vast numbers of water molecules, which then emits a flash of light. The pattern of light flashes tells us something about the number and energy of the solar neutrinos reaching the Earth.

It isn't quite this simple, though. A stray cosmic ray from space could easily collide with a water molecule and cause a flash, which would be indistinguishable from a neutrino collision. One way to guard against such accidents is to bury the detector underground. At SNO, the water tank is deep, deep underground; over two kilometers down a mineshaft. At these depths, no cosmic rays can reach the detector, but the neutrinos can with ease.

Astronomers know enough about the nuclear reactions in the Sun to calculate how many neutrinos they ought to be seeing. Strangely, past experiments have only found about one half of the expected number of neutrinos. This is the infamous "Solar Neutrino Problem". It could mean the experiments are all wrong, which isn't very likely. It could mean we don't really understand the Sun's behaviour, but our knowledge of the Sun has been confirmed in so many different ways. The only remaining possibility is that we don't fully understand neutrinos.

Some theories have been suggested that allow the solar neutrinos to spontaneously change into different particles en route from the Sun. This strange quantum-mechanical effect would account for the "missing" solar neutrinos. SNO's clever design is sensitive to these new particles, and so has a chance of settling this problem once and for all.

SNO has been up and running since May this year. Every once in a while, their light detectors show a flash inside the giant tank of water, betraying a neutrino's death. Isn't it ironic (...don't you think?) that, to understand the Sun, researchers find themselves deep down a mineshaft, two kilometers below the surface of the Earth?

Chris Stewart is a PhD student in physics and astronomy and Roman Koniuk is Chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at York University.

By Susan Scott

Visitors to Atkinson's open house check out online courses in the college's new multimedia laboratory.

York has partnered with computer companies IBM and Lotus Canada to invest $1-million to expand Internet-based learning and distance education programs through Atkinson College. The initiative is a pro-active attempt to anticipate the swell of students expected by 2003.

"A substantial growth in the 18- to 24-year-old population, increasing rates of participation in university education, changing workplace demands for higher education among working adults, and the enrolment swell anticipated for 2003 - all these elements have precipitated this growth in what is an academically sound and creative way to teach and learn," said Atkinson College Dean Ron Bordessa. It's estimated 33,500 additional high-school students will be seeking opportunities at Ontario universities in 2003 when the "double cohort" hits. That's the term used to describe the double grouping of students - those graduating Grade 12 and OAC - expected to be enrolling in university programs.

The investment includes:

1. $400,000 for four tenure-stream appointments (faculty) devoted specifically to distance education

2. $250,000 for investments in York's computer server infrastructure with IBM

3. $200,000 for additional technical personnel

4. $75,000 for investments in software with Lotus Canada

5. $75,000 for a re-furbished and state-of-the-art Distance Education Computing Support Unit.

Atkinson held an open house in November to showcase its Internet-based learning programs and distance education programs and acknowledge the support of its private-sector partners on the project.

A new multi-media lab in the lower level of Atkinson features 15 seats for students in the new Applied Information Technology certification program at the college. As well, another renovated room has six seats for both student training and for faculty members to use to develop their Internet courses.

Atkinson is also planning to offer its bachelor of administrative studies degree program and bachelor of arts degree program (in Public Service Studies) entirely online by 2001.

Currently, Atkinson offers 27 Internet-based courses including an introductory course to human resource management, a Canadian history course, a nursing course on perspectives on health care and health promotion, and courses on social science and psychology.

"We know we will be facing a substantial demand for post-secondary education and creative adaptation is needed to meet that challenge in teaching and learning," said Michael Stevenson, vice-president (academic). "Atkinson is a flagship faculty and I commend the college for being a pathfinder in this area. The delivery of courses over the Internet represents a tremendous opportunity for the enhancement of the learning experience. Internet courses at York have proven to be extremely popular, with the result that students taking these courses yield better grades than traditional correspondence courses and achieve as good or better results as in-class lectures."

Internet courses allow students to study in a guided self-study mode at home. Instead of regular classroom attendance, students work through the text and online course materials specifically designed for academic self-directed studies. Like students in traditional classrooms, Internet students must submit written work on time and write supervised exams. Their courses are exactly equivalent to those offered via classroom instruction, cover the same subject matter and academic content and appear on the student's transcript in exactly the same way as other courses.

By Cathy Carlyle

Len Barrie used this graphic to illustrate the effects of aerosol pollution on the earth

The Harold I. Schiff lecture series was set up in honour of Professor Emeritus Harold I. Schiff who was York's founding dean of the Faculty of Science in 1968. Among his numerous achievements have been his major contributions to the development of techniques for measuring trace constituents in the upper atmosphere and to the interpretation of the physics and chemistry of the stratosphere.

Have you ever wondered whether air pollution controls have any effect? The public has heard about the negative effects that aerosol spray propellants have on the earth's atmosphere. There are now strict regulations about the use and disposal of substances like that - but have these regulations helped cut down on the destruction of the ozone layer?

They have, according to Len A. Barrie, adjunct professor at York's Centre for Atmospheric Chemistry and recently scientist with the Atmospheric Environmental Service. It doesn't mean that people can let down their guard, but it does give hope the air quality and earth's overall health will recuperate. Speaking in November at the 9th annual Harold I. Schiff lecture, Barrie discussed the key role that aerosols have in biogeochemical cycles. They play a part in numerous processes, including climate change and the production of acid rain and urban smog, he said.

Contrary to what many people think, not all aerosols are generated by people using hair products or running air conditioners. By definition aerosols are "suspended particulate matter found in the atmosphere," said Barrie, and occur naturally as sea salt, soil dust, boreal forest-fire smoke and volcanic ash. Other human-generated aerosols are formed from the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels. Particles range in size from the diameter of a molecule to that of a fine mist. "Those of middle size close to the wavelength of sunlight scatter light most effectively and that is what we can see as aerosol pollution in the air," he said.

When semi-volatile organic substances (such as PCBs) are released to the atmosphere, they partition between the gas and aerosol phases, he explained. Part of the mass attaches to aerosol already in the air. "This partitioning depends very much on air temperature going to more particles the colder the air is. This in turn affects the time a chemical remains in the atmosphere, since aerosols are generally shorter-lived than gaseous organic gases."

He spoke about the industrial pollution from Asia and Europe that is adversely affecting Canada's High Arctic in the winter and early spring. "The remnants of acid rain is causing a haze there ­ something I and scientists from the United States, Norway and Denmark noticed in the late 1970s. By the mid 1980s we had information on the source and extent of the pollution and the possible impact it was having on the climate." The Arctic aerosols contain soot and are therefore dark, he said. When over white snow, they absorb sunlight and add heat to the atmosphere. At that time of year, visibility plummets to about 20 kms from 150 kms in summer. In contrast, when such pollution drifts over dark oceans, the particles scatter light mostly and increase input to the atmosphere, explained Barrie. Combined with halogens released from sea salt on the frozen Arctic Ocean, this pollution cocktail results in a serious ozone depletion near the ice surface.

In an international study in the 1990s, Barrie and AES colleague William Schroeder noticed that there seemed to be a connection between ozone depletion in the High Arctic ground and low levels of mercury in the atmosphere. "The lifetime of this form of inert mercury is usually about a year. However, we found that it was depleted in three days when the ozone levels were low in spring. At the same time, colleagues at the Freshwater Institute in Winnipeg measured mercury levels in Arctic snow that greatly exceeded those in snow further south.

"In brief, the transfer of mercury between the atmosphere and the earth is being short-circuited," said Barrie. "Canada is also putting a major effort into studying the effects of aerosols on climate, with input from five universities and 20 researchers here (AES). We're going to study Canadian climate models ­ simulations ­ taking aerosols into account. Barrie said that data will be stored in Canada's largest research computer operated by AES in Montreal."

Barrie closed by saying, "We don't think broadly enough in setting pollution controls. Action in one area is often amplified because of the beneficial consequences in many areas. For instance, in Germany when they strictly regulated automobile exhaust emissions and sulphur in fuels to prevent damage to regional forests, that improved urban air quality and therefore people's health in cities. We would also find that if we reduced pollution in Asia and Europe, we would reduce the Arctic haze and possibly reduce surface ozone depletion and mercury inputs to the region. Issues to do with air pollution are inter-dependent."

Len Barrie, while remaining as adjunct professor at York, will soon be assuming a new position as chief atmospheric scientist of the Atmospheric, Science and Climate Research Group of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the Environmental Molecular Science Laboratory in Washington State.

By Susan Scott

The Gazette recently had an opportunity to speak with York University President Lorna Marsden about her vision for the University in the coming year. Marsden is at the half-way point of her presidential mandate and discusses highlights to date and challenges still ahead.

As you reach the halfway point in your term, what do you believe have been the three or four highlights? Why?

The highlights for me come in a series of achievements rather than in any "big bang" achievements. There is the great pleasure of clicking on the Web page on Sunday mornings and reading all the success stories: seeing what the students and faculty have accomplished; the athletic results from Saturday; the fine arts performances for the coming week; the ongoing evidence that York is a vibrant community of people who are at the top of their fields and the top of their form.

The 40th anniversary is a significant event. It has brought a lot of people back to the University who have been away too long. The anniversary issue of the alumni magazine, Profiles, has brilliantly told that story. This significant anniversary has helped build a clarity around the University: our goals, our mission, our many accomplishments and the people who made it all possible.

I have a presidential mandate that was set out with the Board of Governors when I was hired. I have a quarterly review with the board and I'm able to report that we are making progress on almost all of those goals set out in the mandate.

This year, the big issue is to begin to build a solid research profile in a way that we haven't been able to do before. It's a complex process that will become more visible over the next couple of years. The decision to create a position of vice-president of research and innovation is another clear signal about the new importance of the public recognition of our research achievements. Over the years, many fine people have served as associate vice-president of research. But this is a different time. We need somebody whose mind is entirely focused on the visibility of the research and creativity that goes on here and whose job it will be to bring that message to the public in all its aspects including granting organizations, the private sector, the not-for-profit sector and the general public. This is a major step on which I will be spending quite a bit of time.

As York celebrates its 40th anniversary this year, what do you think this has meant for the York community?

Celebrating the anniversary has caused people to stop and think a little bit about the origins of this place and how it works. York has solid roots in community values and experience.

We spent 18 months working on the University's mission statement which clarified the nature of what we do. Out of that, a whole series of strategic plans are being built. As you may know, there's an academic document (Strategic Planning for the New Millennium), prepared by Michael Stevenson, vice-president (academic affairs), which draws on the strengths of the past but also brings us forward. The other strategic plans are built around the academic goals and objectives as expressed in the University's academic planning documents.

The 40th anniversary also brings a real consciousness of the 50th anniversary and what needs to happen as York approaches its half-century. One of the remaining events of the 40th year is the selection of the University historian, somebody who will prepare a history of the institution which will be ready for the 50th anniversary. This history will describe the founding years and the growing years and begin to bring a level of consciousness to all the things York has achieved. Our plan is to choose an historian before the end of the 40th year - that's March 25th. I think it's a fascinating project because there are so many aspects to it. I believe we have a compelling story to tell.

York is fortunate that so many of our founders are alive and well. It's wonderful to have our founding president, Murray Ross and the major subsequent presidents here on campus. Both President Emeritus Ian Macdonald and President Emeritus Harry Arthurs contribute in so many ways to the growth and development of York and I rely on them for counsel many times a year.

Would you comment on your presidential duties and responsibilities and how these have an impact on members of the York community, namely students, faculty and staff?

In a large university such as this one, my responsibilities really have quite a lot to do with the relationship of this University with governments at all three levels (municipal, provincial and federal) and indeed international governments. A large part of my job is to raise our profile and be present in the community at all times. Because of that, clearly, a lot of my time is spent outside the University.

It also has to do with managing a large and complicated business operation which the University is with our large annual budget, our many commercial and business relationships and our complex employee relations and contracts.

It means connecting to the arts community, the philanthropic community and the many other groups in the community who feel - or who want to feel - part of York. Of course I don't do that alone, the deans and the vice- presidents are vital and they do a magnificent job. However, I would say that personally, I do attend events probably five or six nights a week for the University. It's a seven-day-a-week job and is really focused on having connections with all aspects of University life.

It's a job that has a range of responsibilities associated with it. On the internal side, a lot of my time is spent on audit and financial issues, on planning and mobilizing our strategic planning and focusing those efforts. I meet regularly with student representatives from the York Federation of Students (YFS) and Graduate Students Association (GSA) and, of course, anytime they want to meet with me. I walk around the University every day and I talk to a lot of interesting people who have no clue I'm the president of the University. During these walks around the campus, I get a lot of feedback which I greatly appreciate. All of this is working with great people with many skills and talents, with such a wonderful sense of humour (at least in many cases), with style, with passion and commitment. York really zings!

This academic year, the University and its unions successfully reached new agreements, although not all without some anxiety. As some of the agreements are only for one year, what lies ahead for labour negotiations at York in the coming year?

First of all, I'm really pleased we were able to reach all these agreements this year. I think the real key here is to get the nature of our labour relations onto a footing that will carry the University forward. We've got really good people working hard on both sides of the table in our labour negotiations. Looking ahead, I am determined that we will create a different kind of climate, one where people have trust in one another and can work together to see our plans fulfilled.

We've announced that acade-mic staff relations is moving to a new unit which, when created, will be led by someone whose sole responsibility is to see that all our relationships with our unionized groups are improved. That person's charge will be to find common grounds for these labour relations. We need to continue to find different ways of working together. We do have to make sure each group can pursue its principles and we can debate our differences in a civil fashion. This isn't to say there won't be differences of opinion; of course, there may be, but I think we have to find more constructive ways of working out our relationships with our employee groups. Looking ahead to the next set of negotiations, there's lots of scope for early discussion and reaching conclusion. There were some tensions last year but I think the fact that we successfully completed negotiations is an important and encouraging landmark.

In various forums around the University, people have expressed their concern over what they perceive as "corporate creep" within the University: the increasing presence on campus of companies selling products and services, and the seemingly increased courting of corporate donations and big-business partnerships here. There's also the issue of naming buildings to honour major donors. How would you answer these concerns?

Perhaps people have forgotten Matilda of Tuscany. She used her personal resources to win her fight with the neighbouring principalities by creating a law school at the University of Bologna in the 11th century. Good for Matilda, good for the University of Bologna and good for scholarship! University history shows that we are foolish to depend on one source of support only. We need government grants and benefactions, but equally we need private benefactors and tuition. It would be dangerous for the University to depend on only one source of support. Our autonomy is crucial to the future of scholarship and science. While the professions may have their autonomy defined in law, most professors and students do not, and so by a clear set of policies and guidelines, by vigilance and constant hard work, York University has managed to build the great institution we are today.

We are very proud to have buildings named for our founders including Ross, Lumbers, Curtis, benefactors such as Schulich and McLaughlin and inspiring figures in Canadian history such as Bethune and Vanier.

We have an endowment largely committed to the support of students through scholarship and bursaries. This has been built through the generosity of thousands of individuals. It has more than doubled our capacity to help students financially.

We have nearly 150,000 donors to York - some giving very large gifts, some very small, and many in the middle. We'd like to have 300,000 supporters. We're grateful to each and every one of our donors and they all fall under the same rules. Some individuals have been remarkable in their gifts to this institution, and they have given generously without conditions and with a depth of concern for the quality of scholarships and professionalism that doubles our gratitude.

As for sponsorships, these allow us to fund services and projects that would otherwise be unfunded or draw upon even greater fees to students. York has a remarkable balance and we aim to keep it.

Of course we hope that students will continue to support the University when they have graduated because every alumnus/a who gives back to York helps us maintain our independence from the overwhelming dependence upon government or particular donors.

We hear a lot about the "double cohort" and its potential effect on universities starting in 2003. How will this event specifically affect York and what are we doing to prepare for it? How can students, staff and faculty help?

At this point in time, we are preparing as much as we can. We have been part of a provincial study on this issue and have been making presentations within the University's administrative forums, to the board, the University Senate, and anywhere else people will listen. The real issue is not the double cohort, but the demographic growth, the "echo boom" (the children of the baby boom generation) that's putting another 90,000 additional students into the Ontario university system between now and 2010.

First, we have been working with the deans and their teams to see where growth should occur if it takes place. Second, we have put in applications for the province's Super Build program (the provincial government program that provides funding for new buildings and other capital projects). Third, we are working very hard to increase operating funding to hire more faculty.

When I'm out at a gathering, the single most common question I'm asked is 'will there be enough room for my son or daughter at your university?' As yet the answer to that is unclear because of the operating funding question.We can't get more students if we don't have faculty and can't get faculty if we don't get more operating money.

Now if York gets the same proportion of the growth as we are a proportion of the university system - right now York has 12 per cent of the students in Ontario - we would take an additional eight to ten thousand students. But, here we sit in on the edge of York Region which is the fastest growing region in the country in the 18 to 24-year-old age group. Can we just take eight or ten thousand? Or will we be asked to take more? It's too soon to tell, but I think it's important that students, faculty and staff have a really good grasp of our demographic situation and be prepared.

You see our planning going on in land-use planning, parking, student services and residences. People can find out more about this by looking at our presentations at senate. It's a whole project, a layered process and we expect that by the spring or early summer we'll be in a better position to provide an update to the York community.

But, make no mistake: to take "every qualified and motivated student" who wishes to enrol at York, we will need more faculty. To attract more faculty we will need more operating funds - not available through tuition, not available through private donors, only available at this point in York's history through operating funds from the Government of Ontario.

You referred at the outset to the strategic planning report by Vice-President Stevenson. Would you explain how this report fits in with other planning documents the University has prepared?

During my first 18 months at York, we spent a lot of time reviewing our mission and creating the statement that was eventually passed by senate and the board, and which is highlighted on York's Web site. Once we established our mission, how do we make it real?

The University has an academic plan. It is some years old and while we have been following its goal, it is very general in many aspects. So we need to focus, we need strategic planning. The centre for strategic planning at York is the Academic Policy and Planning Committee (APPC). As soon as our mission was finalized, I asked Vice-President Stevenson to build on the existing plans and documents to articulate a focused plan to achieve the goals developed within the community. He has done this in a document titled Strategic Planning for the New Millennium which APPC is now using in its deliberations. But what happens every year? The other side of that equation is the Planning, Budget & Accountability (PBA) report published for the first time this year. In one set of covers, the PBA tells every member of the community what the annual plans and goals were, how they were budgeted and whether or not they have been achieved. That is our administrative accountability to the York community. From the academic plan, other planning documents around enrolment, finance and communications begin to take shape. By the end of this academic year, we will be able to see how to make our academic goals a reality through complimentary plans: enrolment, finance and advancement. On a year-over-year basis, through the PBA report, the community will know if these plans are being fulfilled, discarded or simply stalled.

What other specific challenges face York this year and over the next couple of years? How are we preparing?

Well, I've already discussed our major challenge of advancing our research profile, however, I can't overemphasize that because it really will be a major focus. One of the other challenges is the initiative by the federal government called the 21st Century Chairs for Research Excellence. (The Canadian government announced this initiative last fall to fund new research Chairs at Canadian universities.) It's a marvelous project, although I don't have the answer about exactly how many Chairs we will receive. What I can say is that there are two stages we must go through: one, we have to make proposals and two, those proposals have to be accepted by peer review. I am confident this process will speak strongly to our research excellence. It's going to be a highly competitive process; every university in the country will be targeting those Chairs. So far, our Associate Vice-President of Research Nick Rogers, has been meeting with the deans and working hard on this project. Everyone is anxious to move forward.

One of our successes is the way we have mobilized support in the University for the work led by Bob Gagne, our new executive director for information technology. He has a three-year mandate to keep York's competitive place in computers, networks and systems. York has been a leader already and it will be Gagne's job to use what's available to make our achievements continue. One of our great part-time faculty at Atkinson College gave a strong presentation on enhanced technology and learning she uses in her accounting courses. All of us who attended got a sense of the excitement about how we could enhance our own courses for our students.

Another pioneering role for York is in our long-standing and multiple arrangements with the Ontario colleges. Together we can make life a lot easier for students who want both the degree and the certificate, for students who want particular courses for their career development, and for accessibility to Ontarians. York is a positive place for students through this work.

On the Super Build Program, the provincial government has set $600-million aside to assist universities and colleges in creating more physical space for the demographic growth. York submitted six proposals and now awaits the government decisions on these. The criteria were clear: to accommodate growth, to contribute to economic development with the community, continue academic excellence, and raise private sector funding. In addition, one category was for joint projects with other institutions and we have submitted one jointly with Seneca College. The government has stated it will fund a portion of these plans. If we are successful in this competition we will have to raise millions of private-sector dollars and engage at the same time in detailed planning for these much needed buildings.

It's a great time for York; there are new opportunities and the biggest of them all is to take a giant leap forward to achieve our academic dreams.

Students are concerned about high tuition costs. If you were speaking to students now, what would you tell them about what York is doing about this issue?

I would agree this is a big concern and I share it. This University has never accepted the notion that universities should charge anything the market will bear. On the other hand, we have two sources of income - operating funds and tuition. Our primary concern is quality of each student's education. The quality of a student's education depends heavily on the faculty members who are attracted to work at York. Faculty members need research facilities, libraries and good salaries to come and to stay at York. It's a competitive world and to create good education we must have the funds to attract and keep the best students and the best faculty - and so we need the best staff to bring it all together. Therefore we need to mobilize resources to do that. Our preference is to receive increased operating funds from the government. We have no desire to raise tuition costs. However, this government has made it clear it sees a shared cost with students. One major focus of our National Campaign was for endowments to create more scholarships and bursaries to relieve students in financial need. We did very well, but that work never ends, we're always looking for more support.

Explaining some terms and where to find information Super Build Growth Fund This is a provincial government program first announced in the 1999 Ontario budget. Then, last fall, Dianne Cunningham, minister of Training, Colleges and Universities announced the $600-million for new capital (building) projects for post-secondary institutions. Proposals must include plans for private sector funding. Super Build will consolidate all of Ontario's infrastructure spending under one government program. 21st Century Chairs for Research Excellence As part of its throne speech last fall, the federal government announced its intention to fund 1,200 new research positions at Canadian universities over the next three years at a cost of $180-million per year. The program builds on and expands research programs by the three federal granting councils, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), Medical Research Council (MRC) and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). York and other Web sites http://www.yorku.ca/admin/comm/prez/index.html This site has details on President Lorna Marsden's duties and responsibilities as mandated by the Board of Governors and recent announcements of interest to the York community. To view the document, Strategic Planning for the New Millennium: http://monkey.circus.yorku.ca/ planning/strategic. For information from the Council of Ontario Universities (COU) which represents the interests of the province's universities: http://www.cou.on.ca.

By Susan Scott

The waters were muddied - or cleared depending on one's view - a little further as people waded into a discussion at a symposium at York about establishing a chiropractic degree program at the University.

Chiropractic is either "quackery", or a discipline that deserves further academic research. (See sidebar article titled, "What is chiropractic?" for a definition, professional standards, regulatory and insurance information.)

This isn't the first time the subject has surfaced. In fact, discussions about launching an affiliation with the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) have bubbled around campus for several years. More recently, in the spring of 1998, the University Senate, based on a recommendation by the Senate's Academic Policy and Planning Committee (APPC), approved a proposal to proceed with a plan to offer a doctoral chiropractic degree program at York, in affiliation with CMCC. However, this past spring, Senate passed another motion putting that decision on hold in favour of having the APPC establish an "impartial" body to review the idea of a chiropractic degree program.

Also last spring, the APPC initiated planning for the late October symposium to allow University senators, faculty, staff and other interested parties an opportunity to hear scholarly perspectives on the academic merits of a chiropractic degree program at the University, and ask questions of expert presenters and panelists to gain a further understanding of the issue.

The thread running through the day's events were two questions which presenters and panelists debated and discussed:

1. Is it consistent with the mission of a university to offer a chiropractic degree program?

2. Is there credible evidence for the efficacy (the capacity or power to produce a desired effect) of chiropractic in the treatment of recognized health problems?

Events were divided into a morning session featuring two presentations and the afternoon session that featured a panel which directly addressed the two questions. Opinions expressed throughout the day generally fell into one of two categories: those who believe York has an opportunity to live its mission, Tentanda Via (the way must be tried) and enhance academic research into chiropractic by forging an alliance with the CMCC, and those who fear such an alliance with what they believe is an unscientific, unproven and unsafe practice would sully York's reputation.

Ian Coulter, who, among other accomplishments, is a health consultant with the Rand Corporation, an American public policy research organization, presented the results of Rand and other studies conducted primarily in the United States since the mid-1970s on the efficacy of chiropractic, the content of chiropractic education versus medical school education and specific studies such as the appropriateness of spinal manipulation for low back pain.

He reported that a study on the impact of health insurance on the outcomes on health, done from 1974-1982, indicated 75 per cent of people responding to surveys had used chiropractic services for low back pain and 82 per cent had repeat visits. After this study was released, Coulter said Rand realized that chiropractic was emerging as a public policy issue, and warranted further investigation.

A 1991 Rand study on the appropriateness of spinal manipulation for low back pain showed chiropractic was effective. At the same time, the study questioned the efficacy for chronic low back pain. Coulter defined efficacy as a research study conducted under "ideal" laboratory conditions. Effective results are those obtained by "going into the real world" to conduct a research study.

When it studied chiropractic education and medical training, Rand discovered both disciplines are similar in their curriculum. Perhaps surprisingly, the study also found that chiropractic teaches more basic science than traditional medical programs.

Coulter explained studies to date merely "fills in the pieces of the jigsaw" and are not the final word on chiropractic. In fact, he says more research needs to be done. Rand has secured $1.5-billion to conduct more comprehensive research.

Coulter is also a professor of research at the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic and was, during the 1980s, president of the CMCC. He said given the evidence that the general public is increasingly using chiropractic services and that "credible" evidence of efficacy exists to support successful treatment for health problems, chiropractic "has the right to be in a university setting." He downplayed the notion that a chiropractic degree program would be better suited for a university with a medical school.

He also scoffed at those at the symposium who recited "off the wall" practices done by chiropractors, such as ear-candling (using hot candles to remove ear wax) and claims of curing asthma or impotence.

"Yes, stuff is going on, is it off the wall? I don't know any profession not doing off the wall things. But, you need to look at the data and put this in context. You're trying to hang a whole profession. Chiropractors have a professional college and mechanisms are in place to weed out problems just like in law, engineering and medicine," he said. "For every horror story in chiropractic, I can cite 10 in medicine. You're using a double standard, why? I don't want to defend all claims. The way to answer the concerns is through evidence-based research."

Another speaker, Terry Sullivan from the Institute for Work and Health, who is also an adjunct professor in York's Faculty of Graduate Studies, pointed to York's mission statement to answer the question about whether establishing a chiropractic degree program at York is consistent with a university's mission.

"How have the health professions entered universities in the past? There was resistance to medicine," he suggested. He said York's mission includes reference to innovation, the "marrying" of excellence in teaching and its motto tentanda via, the way must be tried.

"The question is, is York willing to be a part of the future of innovation? I do not believe that having a chiropractic program will do anything to impune York's reputation. Tentanda Via fits with the notion of innovation," said Sullivan. Besides, York is trying to build on its health studies program and the discussion around admitting chiropractic is "timely." In addition, the public interest in chiropractic will "strengthen evidence-based research" in a university setting which he admitted was lacking.

His organization studied success rates of both general practitioners (physicians) and chiropractors when treating low back pain. More physicians in the study tended to overmedicate while chiropractors tended to use excessive x-raying.

"In each case there were variations against professional practice," said Sullivan. He agreed with Coulter that there are "crackpots" in every profession but Sullivan suggested people check the public record at the College of Physicians and Surgeons regarding practices by physicians.

He challenged those not satisfied with the regulations governing chiropractors to "make their views known to legislators at Queen's Park. This is not the forum to do that." But, he pointed to authorized provincial acts governing chiropractic practices as standards agreed to by the public, "this is the law."

Stephen Barrett, a retired pychiatrist and now an author, lecturer and consumer advocate on the subject of fads, fallacies and quackery in various areas including nutrition, said he agrees that "in theory" spinal manipulation is effective in treating low back pain but asserted that "manipulation is not chiropractic. It has no relevance to the question of whether York should affiliate with a chiropractic college."

He said there's nothing wrong with chiropractic colleges affiliating with universities, but emphasized that, again, this has no "relevance" to the case at York.

Barrett questioned University senators about their knowledge of the program offered by the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College, and suggested they "spend time there looking at the program and their courses."

"The key question for deciding whether York should permit the CMCC to affiliate should be whether the teachings at CMCC reflect high academic standards that are solidly based on science."

He said some practices performed by some chiropractors are not based on science including a controversial theory called "subluxation." Subluxations are problem areas of the spine that affect the nervous system. In these problem areas, the spinal bones are misaligned or have lost normal range of movement. This irritates or puts pressure on local nerves which causes loss of health. Barrett said this explanation is based on a definition by the founder of modern chiropractic, Dr. Daniel David Palmer. Barrett said CMCC's own program includes a 50-hour course on subluxation.

But Barrett said subluxation-based chiropractors stretch the definition of subluxation to suggest that manipulation, and not specifically spinal, can improve general health. Some advocate periodic spinal checkups and adjustments from birth onward. However, he said subluxation is based on a "metaphysical belief not a scientific theory."

He cited a 1992 survey of Canadian chiropractors in which half of the respondents from Ontario practiced "activator methods" which compare the lengths of a patient's legs to enable the chiropractor to determine the position of spinal subluxations. Another 44 per cent said they used the "meric system" which holds that specific spinal joints are associated with specific organs, requiring adjustment of certain vertebrae for diseases of those organs. In addition, Barrett said just over 75 per cent of the respondents to the survey were CMCC graduates.

Barrett said while the long-term goal of a York-CMCC affiliation would be to improve the CMCC program and the general chiropractic practice throughout Canada, York should not proceed with such an affiliation without "appropriate safeguards" including a written guarantee CMCC will abandon subluxation theory. He also suggested a committee consisting of members of York's Faculty of Pure and Applied Science and outside medical consultants to further study the affiliation issue.

Scott Handelman, a clinical professor in the Department of Neurology at the University of California Irvine and an adjunct professor (research) with the Los Angeles Chiropractic College pointed to historical discussions by Hippocrates about spinal manipulation. He said chiropractic has become an accepted practice by the public and not just in North America but around the world. He said it is also increasingly "peer reviewed" and studies are more sophisticated. He rejected there is a single theory of chiropractic and said when trying to figure out what causes back pain there is "no definitive answer."

"Why should you reject something that people say works. The answer is there needs to be more research with chiropractors and medical doctors working closer together," he said. He pointed to the increasing numbers of agencies funding research into chiropractic.

Charles Goldsmith, a professor in the Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics at McMaster University, answered 'yes' to both of the questions posed by symposium organizers. He said the public expects a university to "harness the knowledge of the past and generate new knowledge. That's the difference between a college and a university. Society expects us to interpret knowledge. A university is a place for critical appraisal and at a university, you need tenure to be a critical thinker."

When it comes to health care, the public deserves the best possible, said Goldsmith. All health disciplines must work together to achieve this. So far, evidence-based health care has been the standard method and Goldsmith said chiropractic should be no different. He advocated that health disciplines and universities should collaborate to produce more research. Goldsmith has, since 1990, received funding to evaluate chiropractic in the treatment of childhood asthma and patients with chronic neck pain.

In December 1999, Canoe, an Internet-based news and information network, published an investigation into chiropractic which also discusses the York-CMCC proposal. The Canoe article includes Internet links to other sites on chiropractic history and theory and comments from speakers at the York symposium. (The main link for the Canoe site is http://www.canoe.com/. Look for the article entitled "Spin Doctors".)

What is chiropractic?

The Ontario Chiropractic Association (OCA) defines chiropractic as "a branch of the health sciences which focuses on the body's neuromusculoskeletal system. A chiropractor is concerned with how the body's skeletal and nervous system is functioning...a chiropractor is trained to use a variety of diagnostic methods to examine and treat the spine and bone structure."

The OCA is a voluntary professional association, governed by a board of directors, that was established in 1929. The organization represents approximately 1,800 (82 per cent) of Ontario's 2,200 chiropractors.

Chiropractic has been regulated in Ontario since 1927. Before individuals can practice chiropractic in the province, they must pass both provincial and national board examinations. The provincial body is the College of Chiropractors in Ontario. The national body is the Canadian Chiropractic Association.

Both the Regulated Health Professions Act 1991 and the Chiropractic Act 1991, stipulate the scope of practice for chiropractic in Ontario as "the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disorders arising from the spine, other joints and related tissues." Chiropractic is one of the five professions authorized to perform and communicate a diagnosis and use the title 'doctor.' Other professions using the title of 'doctor' are dentistry, medicine, optometry and psychology.

Through the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) and the Health Insurance Act (HIA) there is partial coverage of the cost of chiropractic diagnosis. Fees for chiropractic services are covered by OHIP to an annual maximum. By law in Ontario, a chiropractor is a primary health care provider and anyone can seek treatment without requiring a referral from a family physician.

Source: The Ontario Chiropractic Association

A committee has been struck to help me search for two new vice-presidents. As you are all aware, a new vice-presidency (research & innovation), has been created and with the resignation of Vice-President Stevenson, a new vice-president will be sought in a slightly redefined portfolio, vice-president (academic).

A full description of these two positions is to be found at the Office of the President Web site and members of the community are urged to refer to this information.

The committee is consulting with all Faculty councils and with other groups between now and the end of January with a view to receiving suggestions of those who might be appropriate to fill these very senior and important executive positions. The committee welcomes comments from members of the York community (see contact information below).

I expect to recommend the new vice-presidents to the Board of Governors at the April meeting. Their duties will commence on 1st July, 2000.

Those interested in student affairs will note that the Division of Student Affairs will be moving to the office of Deborah Hobson, vice-president (enrolment & student services) who will also be responsible for athletics & recreation. Academic Staff Relations will be moving to a new unit reporting to Vice-President Phyllis Clark. Vice-President Smith's portfolios remain unchanged.

The committee seeking the two new vice-presidents will be conscious of the need to build a team of individuals who can work well together in coordination with all the deans, the principal and the University librarian as well as the established executive group. Together this executive team is expected to take the University to new heights in establishing our reputation in all aspects of academic life. With the current expansion of opportunities in the universities of Ontario, York University will find the expert knowledge and leadership in these portfolios to fulfill our long-range goals in the run-up to our 50th year.

Nominations and comments should be sent to any member of the committee or to me directly at Presidnt@yorku.ca Members of the committee are Professors Saber Saleuddin, Christine Oliver, Suzanne MacDonald, Adrian Shubert, Ross Rudolph, Ross Stuart and Sandra Pyke, and Mr. Ross Irwin and Mr. Ross McMillan.

Let me also note that we are currently searching for the dean of Atkinson College and the dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies who will take up their duties at the same time. In addition, in the Winter term we will be striking the search committees for the next deans of Arts, Pure and Applied Science and Environmental Studies, all of whose terms will expire in 2001.

Lorna R. Marsden, President & Vice-Chancellor

By Kyle Byron

York Yeoman in action at the 1999 homecoming game

The season is over and the votes are in. The Ontario University Athletics association (OUA) has named six Yeomen to the 1999 OUA All-Star Football Team. Tailback Jeff Johnson, offensive tackle Eric Sanderson, and inside receivers Chris Huismans and Brian Nugent made the offensive squad while defensive end Jeet Rana was voted to the defensive corps and Rob Garland was named an all-star for special- teams coverage.

York's six selections ties the University of Western Ontario for the most all-stars on a team in the OUA.

Out of the six Yeomen, Nugent, Sanderson and Johnson were selected to a higher honour, the Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union (CIAU) All-Canadian Second Team.

Fourth-year tailback Jeff Johnson is perhaps the most potent Yeomen. He was second in the OUA and fifth in the CIAU in rushing, with 997 yards on 173 carries. Johnson was also 16th in the OUA for receiving and eighth in kick returns. When totaling his rushing, receiving and special teams yardage, Johnson galloped for 1,470 all-purpose yards in 1999.

Among Johnson's records at York is his rushing title of 3,358 yards on 553 carries. This yardage also makes him the second highest rusher in OUA history. Johnson is third on the all-time Yeomen scoring list with 132 points, only 28 points behind the record held by the legendary André Batson.

Johnson's teammates contest that his success comes only from a total team effort, and they are correct. Offensive tackle Eric Sanderson excels at making Johnson's life easy. Along with Johnson's yardage, Sanderson's best credentials are his opponents' frustration and his future with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

Inside receiver Chris Huismans, affectionately known as "House", has a reputation of all-around ability. House sits eighth on the all-time receiving yardage list at York. His receiving skills, punishing blocking and special teams play have made him a four-time OUA all-star and an all-Canadian in 1998.

Inside receiver Brian Nugent has settled in nicely after only two years. The flashy sophomore felt moderate criticism for a mediocre rookie campaign, but has since silenced his critics. Along with some respectable return yardage in 1999, Nugent hauled in 35 passes for 694 yards and nine touchdowns. He placed second in the OUA and sixth in the CIAU in receiving yardage.

On the other side of the ball is second year defensive end Jeet Rana. He has the talent to lead the future of the defense. Rana was the Yeomen's rookie of the year in 1998 and his intensity has not faded, just ask the two opponents sent to block him on every down.

It takes a certain constitution in a person to play special teams and Rob Garland has it. His job of breaking down walls of blockers and catching shifty returners does not go to the meek. Named the best special teams player at York in 1996, Garland has now been recognized by the OUA as an all-star.

Congratulations to the all-stars, the entire football team and their staff.

The following is a synopsis of the Senate of York University meeting of Sept. 23, 1999, at which senate:

heard remarks from President Marsden on the recipients for honorary degrees at Fall convocation, the new Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities and its anticipated focus for universities, and the decision to establish the Office of a Vice-President (Research) at York;

received a preliminary report on the 1999-2000 enrolments from the vice-president (enrolment & student services);

received reports for information from the following senate committees:

* Senate Executive Committee

* Academic Policy and Planning Committee (APPC)

* Library Committee

* Senate Committee on Admissions, Recruitment and Student Assistance (SCARSA)

* Senate Committee on Academic Computing (SCAC)

* Senate Committee on Teaching and Learning (SCOTL)

* Senate Appeals Committee (SAC)

*Senate Committee on Tenure and Promotions