It’s probably in the nature of both humankind and journalism that good news is often ignored, begins Toronto Star columnist Jim Coyle Nov. 19. He is referring to the Randal Dooley Memorial Scholarship Fund established at York University by members of the Jane-Finch community. The fund will provide three awards of $2000 annually to local high school students entering school at York. Adds Coyle. "It is encouraging news on several levels, both for what it aims to do and how it came to be. For starters, education may be the ideal way to remember a vivacious little boy who – before he died at the hands of his father and stepmother – loved school and reading.... But also, this memorial to a Jamaican child, who lived only 10 months in Canada and never saw his eighth birthday, might also be the perfect rallying point for a community."
Prime-time ballad for a blustery poet
I met Irving Layton once. It was years ago at Toronto's York University, before a poetry reading. He was busy going on about Homer, God and whatnot, begins The Globe and Mail television critic John Doyle in his Nov. 19 column. Doyle was leading up to a review of CBC’s biography, "Life & Times: Irving Layton."
Ignoring greatness
"As far as Canadian athletes are concerned, we just don’t pay much attention to them," retired York physical education professor and sports historian Frank Cosentino told the Toronto Star for a Nov. 19 story on great Canadian sports moments. He was referring to how hero Marilyn Bell, who swam across Lake Ontario in 1954, was never officially honoured. "I think it’s part of a general trend; I like to say we’ve got cultural amnesia, not only in sport, but in so many other areas."
Scholarships for Brantford two
The Expositor in Brantford reports Nov. 19 that two students from the local Pauline Johnson Collegiate have won York University entrance scholarships: Ian Proper and Jessica Robertson.
Ex-chief justice reacts to Martin platform
Antonio Lamer, retired chief justice of Canada, says he opposes Paul Martin’s proposal, unveiled Oct. 21 at Osgoode Hall Law School, to let members of Parliament vet candidates for the Supreme Court of Canada, reports The Ottawa Citizen Nov. 19.
Report released
The Canadian Dental Hygienists Association releases "Dental Hygiene Practice in Canada 2001," a report that identifies work patterns, trends and changes in clinical dental hygiene practice based on data collected by York’s Institute for Social Research, reports CCNMatthews news service Nov. 18.
Give GICs a little respect
Even two professors from York’s Schulich School of Business were surprised at what a GIC bought in 1957 would earn compared to what playing the stock market would yield in the same period, reports The Daily News (Halifax) James Daw Nov. 16. The GICs beat a long-surviving mutual fund and nearly matched a model diversified portfolio after deducting management and sales fees. "If equities are going to work for you, you have to be smart, and the high management expenses charged by these funds are driving your return down to less than what you would have gotten with GICs," said Chris Robinson. "There is always a way to structure a comparison so that GICs come out looking better," cautioned Moshe Milevsky. "If the idea is to show…equities aren’t that good in the long run, I think that is pushing the case a little bit."
On air
David Wiesenthal, psychology professor at York, talks about anger with host Shelagh Rogers on CBC’s "Sounds Like Canada" Nov. 15 as part of a series on the seven deadly sins.... Penelope Reed Doob, fine arts professor at York, talks to Steve Paikin, host of TVOntario’s "Studio 2," about The Firebird, which opens the National Ballet of Canada's new season at the Hummingbird Centre.... Desmond Ellis, York University criminologist, discusses what drives young people into gangs, N ov. 18 on CBC’s "Metro Morning" and "Ontario Today."... Michael De Robertis, astronomy professor, talks about the imminent Leonid meteor shower, Nov. 18 on "Windsor Now" on CKLW-AM.... Marshall McCall, astronomy professor, describes the expected meteor storm to hosts Nov. 18 at "Info Radio" on CBW-AM in Winnipeg, "Homestretch" on CBR-AM in Calgary, "All in a Day" on CBO-FM in Ottawa and "Radio Active" on CBX-AM in Edmonton.