Long the goal of marriage, "happily ever after" is being reimagined by books and movies as the chief export of divorce, wrote Postmedia News July 12.
A leading Canadian divorce researcher, however, warns that escapism carries a high price, if not for couples who’ve survived a split than for those teetering on the edge of their vows.
"They may find self-renewal, but it comes at the expense of a lot of suffering," says Anne-Marie Ambert, a retired professor of sociology at York University [Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies]. "There’s definitely a crop of children who are very, very negatively affected by their parents’ divorce."
Ambert’s research finds 221 divorces per 100,000 population in Canada, representing a significant decline from 362 in the late 1980s. Nevertheless, roughly two in five marriages dissolve before the 30th anniversary.
"The truth is that only about a third of all divorces are the result of what we’d call ‘bad marriages’," says Ambert.
RIM’s ‘grumpy’ investors seek new chair for more active board
Research In Motion Ltd., scheduled to hold its annual meeting today, is facing shareholder calls for its board to take on a more active role and appoint a new chairman to lift the BlackBerry smartphone maker’s fortunes, wrote Bloomberg’s BusinessWeek.com July 12.
Shareholders “have a right to be absolutely infuriated,” said James Gillies, a professor emeritus and corporate governance expert at York University’s Schulich School of Business in Toronto. “Their reaction of saying, ‘We’ll try and get this sorted out in six months’ doesn’t give me much confidence that they think there’s an emergency.”
Schulich chooses Hyderabad for business school
The infrastructure in Hyderabad and its emergence as an education hub have made Schulich School of Business choose the city over Bangalore as a base for its first full-fledged campus in India, wrote India’s BusinessStandard.com and other South Asian news sites July 12.
The Canadian B-school, part of Toronto-based York University, has entered into a partnership with GMR group to set up the school, with the latter’s non-profit arm, GMR Varalakshmi Foundation, providing physical infrastructure on a [15-acre] site at the international airport here.
According to Schulich Dean Deszö Horváth, they had been looking for opportunities to set up a campus in India since 2005-2006. “First, we went to Mumbai because all the major corporations are headquartered there. But the land requirement of 100 acres did not materialize. Then GMR initially suggested its own land in Bangalore, which we considered positively. When GMR also offered an opportunity in Hyderabad, we decided to go for it.”
Schulich would offer two-year MBA and other executive MBA programs. Students would be selected from the same pool as for its home campus. It would have international faculty and at least 40 per cent of students from abroad. The campus is expected to be ready by January 2013, with admissions set to begin from September that year.
Cooking leads to chance at online cooking fame
Andrea Grieco [iBBA Spec. Hons. ’10] wasn’t victorious in the Real Women of Philadelphia contest, but she still feels she is a winner, wrote YorkRegion.com July 11 in a story about the Schulich grad’s participation in a cooking contest.
Grieco was one of 16 contestants chosen from more than 1,000 entrants from across Canada, who took part in a cook-off featuring Philadelphia cream cheese as a main ingredient, last Monday at Kraft’s head office in Toronto.
She grew up in a family that is passionate about food, but her love of cooking truly blossomed two years ago when she went to Milan, Italy to study and travel for several months. While there, she decided to take some cooking classes. Now, it is a central part of her life. "I feel like cooking is a way for me to unwind," Grieco said.
Now that the competition is over, Grieco and her sister, who both work for their family’s home decor business, are looking at ways to blend their passions into a new venture.
"This kind of gave me a boost to explore more of what I can do, whether it’s in the culinary area or any of my interests because I feel like this opportunity gave us proof that if you have a passion for something, a hobby that you love to do, it can take you places," said Grieco, who graduated from York University’s Schulich School of Business last year. "My sister, she’s really into the home decor and fashion industry so we’re coming up with ways to meld the culinary and home decor (and) fashion experience."
York professor emerita to speak at community planning meetings
Guest speaker Ann Joyner is passionate about the sustainable small city and town way of life, wrote MyKawartha.com July 11, in a story about her appearance at series of planning meetings in the Kawartha Lakes area. Being a member of the Canada Green Building Council, as well as a former professor at York University [Faculty of Environmental Studies], Joyner is also a resident of a small town. She will inspire citizens about livability, drawn from her many years travelling and working across Canada and internationally.
Presentations are taking place at the Woodville Town Hall on July 19, the Bobcaygeon Service Centre on July 20, the Fenelon Falls Arena on July 21, Coronation Hall in Omemee on July 26 and in the Victoria Room of City Hall in Lindsay on July 28. All events run from 7 to 9pm.
Ruprecht not seeking re-election in Davenport
The longest serving member of the Ontario Legislature in the GTA said he will not seek re-election, wrote InsideToronto.com July 11, in a story about former York instructor and Davenport MPP Tony Ruprecht.
Ruprecht was first elected as Metro Toronto Councillor in 1978 and as Member of Provincial Parliament in 1981. He was appointed Ontario’s first Minister Responsible for Disabled Persons in 1985 and has served as Minister of Citizenship (Multiculturalism) and parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Community and Social Services. In Opposition, he served as critic for Tourism and the Anti-Drug Strategy. He introduced two bills, which aim to lower unfair barriers for internationally trained professionals.
Moscow-born York Lions soccer player to represent Canada
York University Lions soccer player Ilya Orlov has spent so much time travelling and moving he may as well live out of his suitcase, wrote The Canadian Jewish News in its July 14 edition.
Born in Moscow, Orlov moved to Tel Aviv with his family when he was two years old.
In 1995, he came to Canada and lived in Montreal and Toronto. Today he calls Woodbridge home, but next month he’s heading for the southern Chinese coastal community of Shenzhen, a short train ride from Hong Kong, to participate in an international soccer tournament.
The 22-year old, quite agile on his feet with the ability to show bursts of speed, hopes his athletic talent will do the talking at the 26th Summer Universiade, an international multi-sport event organized for university athletes from 20 countries.
Steve Hart, the Canadian team’s head coach, wasted little time adding his name to the 20-man playing roster. Orlov is that good.
He was a midfielder for the York Lions squad that compiled a 17-3-2 record this past season – one that culminated with a 1-0 win over the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds for the Canadian Interuniversity Sport national championship.
Although Orlov is currently focused on winning the tournament, he isn’t ignoring his academic future…. The York student is studying kinesiology in the hope that he will be able to use his expertise to become a professional soccer coach.