Vine is the current president and CEO of North Shore Health Network, a health organization with three hospital sites in rural Ontario communities that provide short and long-term care.

He will assume his role as the 26th president of the university on July 13. Vine is excited to move to Halifax with his family and be part of the “unique” community at King’s.

“I’m over the moon,” Vine says.

In December 2024, the university’s board of governors announced William Lahey’s decision not to extend his presidential term beyond June 2026. Lahey has been the president of King’s since 2016. 

Related: King’s College to announce new president in April

Stephanie McGrath, the chair of King’s board of governors, says that Vine’s love for academia and financial expertise was what the university was looking for in its next president.

“He talked to us a lot about wanting to do something of consequence; he wants to be part of very meaningful work,” says McGrath. “King’s offers him the chance to combine his passion for education, political science, the media and make the world a better place.”

When Vine saw the opportunity to be president of King’s, he believed he could excel in the role because of his experience leading organizations through times of financial strain and pressure. 

New president steps in amidst financial struggles 

An October report from Lahey to the university’s board of governors outlined a $1.8 million operating budget deficit for the 2025-26 fiscal year — an increase of over $1 million from the projected deficit of $750,000 that the board approved in June — due to rising operating costs and a large decrease in international student enrollment. 

Vine has over four years of experience as the chief financial officer for multiple healthcare institutions in Ontario and was the director of finance for the City of Elliot Lake, Ont., for four months in 2018.

McGrath says that his experience in tough financial times and success in fundraising have prepared him to help tackle the university’s fiscal crisis. 

“He’s extremely well-prepared and well-versed for the road ahead,” says McGrath. 

Vine says the Southeast Corner Project, a proposed new building at King’s that is projected to cost over $95 million to construct, is a great opportunity to upgrade the university’s facilities and engage with local Indigenous and African Nova Scotian communities.

King’s unveiled concept designs for the project in November, detailing the building’s planned facilities for the university’s journalism school, a new gymnasium and residence rooms for 100 students.

Related: King’s needs $95 million for a new campus building. No one’s agreed to pay for it

He acknowledges students’ current lack of faith in the project, but hopes to communicate the value he sees in it to them as it progresses.

“[The SEC project] is what King’s will need in the coming decades and in the coming century,” says Vine. “I’m hoping [we] can move forward with it in a way that will set King’s up sustainably for the future.”

Vine aims to embrace King’s tight-knit community 

Iman Mannathukkaren, vice-president external for the King’s Student Union, said the union’s executive team met with Vine when he visited King’s in March.

The incumbent president’s day at King’s consisted of a full day of meetings and interviews with university administration, faculty members and students. 

Mannathukkaren says that the KSU has faith that he will prioritize student concerns and help develop a more inclusive King’s community. 

“He has a genuine interest in improving student life on campus and building the King’s community further,” she says. “I’m excited to see what he has in mind.”

Vine has been a lecturer at Algoma University in Sault St. Marie, Ont., for over two years. The university has over 5,000 students enrolled and an average class size of 40 students.

He says that he has purposefully spent his career in medium-sized institutions because he enjoys getting to know the community around his work.

“I love that it’s a close-knit community where I can get to know people by name,” says Vine. “I look forward to talking with young people who are excited about exploring the world of ideas.”

The post Healthcare CEO, financial expert named 26th president of King’s appeared first on Dalhousie Gazette.

The fourth-year music student detailed her undergraduate journey through music, a time when she learned to sing in different languages, master diverse styles and found herself. 

The first set began with a beautiful rendition of “New York State of Mind” by Billy Joel with piano accompaniment by Tom King. She followed it with “Better Off,” an original country song she wrote during a songwriter retreat in Nashville.

Cribb regaled the audience with tales from her music degree, where she explored new genres like musical theatre. One of her favourite musical theatre songs to perform is “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” from Jesus Christ Superstar (1973). 

She finished the first set with “California,” an original song she wrote at 17. The song is part of her debut EP Unbroken, released in 2022. The idea for “California” came from a dream she had about two characters from a small town in an unrequited love story.

“I just woke up with the idea, grabbed my guitar and wrote it down,” said Cribb. “When I woke up in the morning, I listened back to it, read over the lyrics I’d written, and thought it was something I could turn into a special song.” 

The song won Write Out Loud, an international contest for young songwriters. As a winner, Cribb flew to New York to watch Broadway artist Taylor Louderman record her song. 

“It was the first time I had ever seen my work be recognized in that way,” said Cribb. “It was really cool.”

The second set opened with “Back Home Boys,” a song she wrote during her first year of university while sitting on the floor of her dorm room. The song details her experience moving from her hometown of Toronto to Halifax. 

Her version of “Since U Been Gone” by Kelly Clarkson had the crowd up on their feet. The whole theatre cheered with excitement during the chorus. 

As a tribute to her mom, who passed away before she started her undergrad, Cribb sang “Good Mother” by Jann Arden. The emotional song also featured a beautiful piano solo by King. 

The audience was brought to tears by her rendition of “Slipping Through My Fingers” by ABBA. Cribb named her show after the song because of its message about growing up, mirroring her journey at Dal coming to an end. 

“The meaning [of the songs] when I wrote them … is different compared to now,” said Cribb. “As I’m getting older and experiencing all of these coming-of-age moments, the meaning really changed throughout the years. It’s really fun to be able to look back on old work and bring it into new scenarios.”

The post Slipping Through My Fingers: Ally Cribb through her last four years at Dal appeared first on Dalhousie Gazette.

Halifax’s first eating disorder therapy centre opened on March 23, offering in-person support for people of all ages.

“We can organize and have programs with people here — it’s our own production,” said Shaleen Jones, the executive director of Eating Disorders Nova Scotia. 

EDNS previously offered virtual and community-based programming, but this is the organization’s first permanent, non-clinical space.

The opening of the Agricola Street centre marks a significant step for eating disorder support in Nova Scotia, said Jones. 

By creating a physical hub for peer support, EDNS aims to reduce isolation, make recovery resources more visible and provide an entry point for those not ready to seek formal treatment.

“There’s no pressure to do anything,” said Jones. “You can come in and hang out with the art, play with the puppy, and you never have to come back or do anything after that.” 

She said the organization wants people to feel welcome and comfortable, and its staff and volunteers are there to help with next steps.

Catherine Armour is a program assistant at EDNS and the founder of the Ninety Percent Society at Dalhousie University, a student-led group dedicated to eating disorder awareness and education. 

The society creates a safe space for discussing body image, mental health and eating disorder treatment.

Gaia Hake, the society’s co-president, said that EDNS has been a key community partner, helping the Ninety Percent Society provide crucial peer support. 

“Having a dedicated physical space makes such a big difference for eating disorders and eating disorder awareness,” said Hake. “It makes it feel a lot more real and less intimidating.”

Jones said making connections is a critical part of starting the recovery process.

“Eating disorders thrive in isolation and are driven by shame and stigma,” she said. “Having a space people can come and feel at home and not feel judged … that’s the power of peer support.” 

Hake said the society seeks to combat that feeling of isolation, ensuring people who are struggling don’t have to seek treatment alone. 
“It’s really important to me and to the other people in the society … because it’s a hard conversation to have, we’re not giving up on it,” she said.

The post New Halifax centre offers judgment-free eating disorder support appeared first on Dalhousie Gazette.

Will Jones, DSU vice-president of finance and operations, announced the decision to Abstract Café employees in a March 13 email obtained by the Dalhousie Gazette.

“In conjunction with renewing our Food Services Agreement, the DSU would partner with Chartwells and have them assume management of the Abstract Café,” said Jones in the email.

Chartwells has been the food service provider for the DSU since 2012. It currently manages most dining services in the Student Union Building. 

In an email to the Gazette, Jones says the decision was made to prioritize initiatives that directly benefit students “rather than continue subsidizing a space with limited student engagement.” 

“Ultimately, we determined we could deliver a virtually identical level of service to students and societies without losing $100K annually that could be better directed toward our broader membership,” he said in the email. 

Jones said the management shift will eliminate a nearly $100,000 deficit in the DSU’s 2025-26 operating budget. The savings have already been directed towards student members and society grants, as well as a $0.50 hourly wage increase to part-time DSU staff.

Abstract staff caught off guard by management shift

Liv Brennan, the café’s staff and bookings coordinator and floor supervisor, said the management change came as a shock to Abstract Café employees. 

“We were blindsided,” Brennan said. “We had no idea until it was too late.”

The café will close for the summer on April 11, before reopening under corporate management in the fall. 

The café’s previous manager, Lenka Tomlinson, left her position at the Abstract Café in early February. She spearheaded the space’s transformation from the Grawood last summer, before the Abstract Café’s grand opening in September. 

Related: New campus café blends coffee with community

Since then, the café has been operating without a manager. Brennan has been leading the staff as one of two co-cordinators ever since. 

Chartwells agreed to give current Abstract employees the first right of refusal for fall positions. However, the co-ordinator positions will be eliminated, according to an email from Jones obtained by the Gazette.

The DSU claims the shift in operations will ensure the café’s longevity, but Brennan sees it as a betrayal of students. 

“It’s really concerning that the DSU would be so fast to give up student jobs like that,” she said. “I don’t want to lose my job, but where a lot of my concern lies is with the way that the DSU is handling these things.”

Brennan said the information from Chartwells suggests that student staff may be relocated to other campus franchises, rather than retaining their employment at the Abstract.

“The DSU is supposed to be student-centred and propelling students forward, [they have] forgotten what student-run spaces like the Abstract are all about,” said Brennan. “It’s not about making money, it’s about the opportunities, the connections and the community that is built.”

The post Chartwells taking over Abstract Café this fall, DSU blames $100K deficit appeared first on Dalhousie Gazette.

The Nova Scotia student strike lasted from March 15 to 21. It was the first province-wide student strike in Canada outside of Quebec.

The movement’s goals included affordable tuition — including a 20 per cent tuition cut and the end of differential fees for international students — and divestment from entities invested in weapons manufacturing, fossil fuels production, genocide and the exploitation of sovereign Indigenous land

Despite most Dalhousie University students not participating in the strike, some student organizers say the strike was successful in building capacity and setting an example for future student movements.

Abdullah Al-Jabji, the founder of Ontario Students Against Austerity, a student-led organization advocating against tuition hikes and student funding cuts, visited Nova Scotia to learn from the strike. 

“This strike is essentially the testing ground for future strikes in the rest of the country,” he says.

Related: Nova Scotia students rally at Dalhousie during week-long strike

OSAA has preliminary plans for a limited strike in November 2027. Al-Jabji says that critiques of the movement’s initial attempt should be used as lessons for future student strikes, rather than as failures of organizers.

After a series of high-profile cuts to education spending across multiple provinces this year, interest in student strike actions has grown.

Eddie Zhang is an organizer with Ontario Students Against Austerity who helped organize a strike policy vote at McMaster University. The vote passed a binding motion on March 13 to develop a new student strike policy. 

The motion mandates that McMaster’s student union write a policy outlining the methods and structure of a potential strike. Zhang is helping draft the policy and says he’s discussing tactics with Nova Scotian and Quebec organizers. 

“Hearing that Nova Scotia was striking definitely fueled a lot of movement here,” Zhang says. 

Nova Scotia Student Strike’s joint demands of divestment and tuition cuts are something Ontario organizers like Zhang want to emulate, as recent loan and grant cuts have shifted attention away from divestment.

Zhang says they will continue to organize and communicate with Nova Scotia Student Strike organizers throughout the summer.

The University of Toronto, the Ontario College of Art & Design University and the University of Guelph are also building towards strike policies in the province. 

In Quebec, thousands of students went on strike last week, protesting against provincial government austerity. 

The Coalition de Résistance pour l’Unité Étudiante Syndicale — representing 30,000 students through member student associations at multiple institutions, including Concordia University, Université du Québec à Montréal and the Université de Montréal — organized the strike. 

Quebec has historically seen more student action than other provinces, including multiple successful province-wide strikes. Naïma Le Nédic, a CRUES executive, says she is pleased to see students in other provinces taking action.

“If we can be united against the government for a better life, I think that we can have some of the demands met,” says Le Nédic. “I’m really happy that we are not alone.”

Le Nédic says the union is in communication with student organizers in Nova Scotia and France. She says they’re watching other provincial movements and plan to reach out to other student groups across Canada to share their knowledge and experience.

Nédic says CRUES plans to build Quebec’s recent one-week strike into a two-week strike next fall, and, if demands aren’t met, an indefinite general strike next spring. 

“I [hope] that the other students will keep striking, keep fighting to better their lives because it’s very important not just in Quebec but in Canada in general,” says Nédic.

In New Brunswick, proposed cuts to post-secondary education in February led to student outrage and protests. In March, the cuts were reduced to a funding freeze on university operating grants.

The threats to post-secondary funding catalyzed protests from students across the province, raising the profile of a possible strike.

“[The New Brunswick sentiment] is similar to the one we’re seeing not only in Nova Scotia but also in Ontario and across Canada,” says Ana Lucía Pavón, president of the St. Thomas University Students’ Union.

Pavón has organized protests with multiple other New Brunswick universities and met with N.B. Premier Susan Holt to argue against the cuts. 

Pavón, who’s in contact with Ontario and Nova Scotia organizers, says the possibility of a provincial student strike depends on the government’s response to students’ demands.

Other universities in New Brunswick are also engaging in student activism, including at Mount Allison University, where students occupied an administration building on March 27.

Around 20 students affiliated with Divest MTA staged a sit-in outside administration offices, leading the school’s president and top administrators to meet with them to discuss divestment from weapons manufacturers and fossil fuel companies. 

“With everything that’s been going on in Nova Scotia and these national calls for these student strikes, we are expanding our message,” said Andrew Knickle, an organizer with Divest MTA. 

Members of Divest MTA, who expressed support for the Nova Scotia strike, recently founded New Brunswick Student Strike, a student organization advocating for affordable tuition and divestment.

“A lot of our demands going forward are going to be aimed more at the provincial government and almost directly mimicking [the strike] in Nova Scotia,” he says. “The other provinces have been a huge inspiration and a lot of us have been trying to collaborate and work towards a sustained and potentially national call for a strike.”

Knickle says, depending on capacity, a New Brunswick student strike could happen next year or in 2028.

Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick are all connected to the loose National Student Strike coalition. There are also smaller movements in Saskatchewan and British Columbia.

Al-Jabji says the Nova Scotia strike has shown students around the country that it’s possible to make change through the student strike movement. 

“We’re seeing it happen at a national level,” says Al-Jabji. “[It’s] happening a lot quicker than we initially thought.”

He says a national student strike was originally expected to take a decade to build towards, but after the Nova Scotia strike, it could be possible as soon as next year.

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Nelle Gadsden, a first-year Dalhousie French and social anthropology student, said the strikers crossed a line.

At times, organizers antagonized students who attended class during the strike, calling them “scabs,” a term referring to individuals who cross the picket line. 

“I can understand their feelings, but there are other factors that go into it,” said Gadsden. “They’re angry, I think it’s very fair, but it should be toward the institution.”

The goals of the strike were affordable tuition — including a 20 per cent tuition cut and the end of differential fees for international students — and divestment from entities invested in weapons manufacturing, fossil fuels production, genocide and the exploitation of sovereign Indigenous land.

The Dalhousie Gazette reached out to over a dozen professors at the university for their perspective on the strike, but didn’t receive any responses before publication. 

Ricky McCoshin, a first-year student at the University of King’s College, said that he wasn’t aware of the movement’s goals until the strike was happening. 

“If they can sell more students on what they hope to attain, I think myself and more people will join in,” said McCoshin.

McCoshin said he faced no problems receiving academic pardons in his King’s classes during the strike, which made it easier to participate.

Maggie Rodger, a fourth-year gender and women’s studies and sociology student at Dalhousie, said she also received support from professors, who moved assignment deadlines to after the strike and cancelled most of her classes. 

Rodger believes in the goals set by strike organizers.

“University should be free, and I think [Dalhousie] has no business funding any sort of genocide or weapons manufacturing,” said Rodger.

Payton Smith, a third-year Dalhousie biology and environmental science student, said she couldn’t strike because her professors didn’t grant academic amnesty.

Smith said that for her to strike next year, the strike organizers would have to provide more information about what is happening beforehand, and she would need stronger amnesty guarantees for assignments.

She also said she would be more likely to strike at the start of the semester rather than at the end.

“At the end [of the semester], everything’s coming to a close where everything’s due at once, and there are big projects that are worth a lot,” said Smith.

Some students don’t believe they received enough academic amnesty to strike before exam season.

Leo Mile, a first-year kinesiology student at Dalhousie, said it would be better to strike for longer. 

“None of my classes said they were going to excuse assignments or grades,” said Mile. “I felt kind of powerless.”

On March 20, students participating in the strike interrupted a class in the Marion McCain Building, demanding an early dismissal from class and telling students that their learning is on the backs of Palestinian children dying.

Some said more students may participate in upcoming strikes if organizers change their strategy.

“It kind of depends on how big the movement is and if professors give extensions,” said Mile. “Because if nobody’s going to class, they kind of have to.”

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The library was targeted because of the building’s high energy consumption, as well as outdated equipment and energy systems. The retrofit cost $17.6 million, with approximately $500,000 being funded by the provincial and federal governments.

“The Killam is such a great example of what we were able to achieve doing this steep energy retrofit,” says Stephanie MacPhee, the sustainability office’s executive director. “The results will speak for themselves … it’s just something that we need to replicate.”

Facilities management and sustainability office led the retrofit project. Renovations were completed by the MCW Group of Companies.

Construction on the nine-year project concluded in December. Dalhousie’s sustainability office did not confirm the cost of the deep retrofit to the Dalhousie Gazette before publication. 

The building’s utility costs are also estimated to be reduced by nearly $500,000 per year — a 53 per cent reduction. 

Sau Fan Lee, the sustainability office’s on-site energy manager, says the project has entered a two-year measurement phase to verify the actual savings. She says the library was an easy target for a retrofit.

“Killam was one of the top five energy-consuming buildings; the other four are all about labs,” says Lee. “Labs consume much more energy because of their energy-intensive equipment.”

Changes to the library include updated LED and motion-detection lighting, a hot-water heating system and upgraded ventilation, which is expected to improve the building’s air quality. 

Early results show energy savings are 44 per cent above initial targets. Heating and ventilation data will be analyzed after a full year of use. 

What other buildings at Dal can become more energy efficient?

The sustainability office recently completed an assessment of the Kenneth C. Rowe Management Building and the Student Union Building to determine their suitability for future retrofits.

The SUB consumed the sixth most energy of all of Dalhousie’s campus buildings, based on 2024-25 utility data.

Funding for the assessments was received through the BOMA Enspire deep-retrofit accelerator program, designed to help enhance the energy efficiency of commercial buildings.

Assessment results are currently being analyzed to determine what energy efficiency measures would be cost-effective for these buildings, says MacPhee. Any project would not be as intensive as the Killam retrofit.

“We are not really looking to do that extensive deep-retrofitting of those buildings at this point,” she says.   

The office is currently targeting projects that give Dalhousie the “biggest bang for our buck,” amidst financial constraints.

“If we do this, it’s going to reduce energy consumption, it also reduces some [utility] cost, but maybe it’s going to take 35 years to pay that back,” says MacPhee. “Is it worthwhile for us to do that? These kinds of studies allow us to make those decisions.”

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Dalhousie University’s board of governors chose not to vote on divestment motions presented by Dalhousie Student Union president Maren Mealey at a March 24 board meeting, instead sending them to the university’s financial committee for review. 

Mealey tried to add two motions to the meeting’s agenda, calling for divestment from entities related to fossil fuel production, weapons manufacturing and human rights violations.

The motions’ contents weren’t presented to board members.

Cheryl Fraser, board chair, advised that the motions be passed to the board’s investment committee and before being tabled at a future finance, audit, investment and risk committee meeting. 

Janet Bryson, Dalhousie’s media relations director, confirmed in an email to the Dalhousie Gazette that the motions have been referred to the FAIR committee. The next committee meeting is scheduled for May 7.

The Gazette requested to speak to a member of the FAIR committee; Bryson instead provided a statement confirming that the FAIR committee will decide how to proceed with reviewing the motion.

Jay MacIsaac is a member of Dalhousie’s board of governors and the FAIR committee. During the board meeting, he strongly suggested that board members not mandate specific divestitures of assets from the university’s endowment fund until they’re reviewed by the FAIR and investment committees. 

“Otherwise, it just puts the members of this body at risk,” he said in the board meeting. “We’re not going to get into the business of picking stocks one way or the other.”

Mealey hopes to present the motions at the upcoming committee meeting, but hasn’t received confirmation despite multiple email requests. 

Her term as DSU president ends on May 1, which she said could cause “unfortunate complications” in the motions’ proceedings. 

The proposed motions align with divestment goals from the province-wide student strike — which the DSU supported — that took place in Nova Scotia from March 15 to 21. 

One of the strike’s demands was that the university divest from entities invested in weapons manufacturing, fossil fuels production, genocide and the exploitation of sovereign Indigenous land.

Related: Organizers wrap up Nova Scotia’s first provincial student strike

Members of Dalhousie’s administration met with Mealey and a Dalhousie strike organizer to discuss the movement’s goals towards the end of the strike.

She described the discussion around divestment at this meeting as frustrating.

“It did feel like there was a strong opposition from the institution around [divestment] despite it being a persistent student issue,” said Mealey.

Motions target divestment from 24 entities in Dalhousie’s endowment portfolio

The motions’ chosen entities for divestment are based on Dalhousie’s most recent public list of holdings from March 31, 2025.

The DSU chose 19 entities related to fossil fuel production and five entities for divestment based on weapons manufacturing and human rights violations.

Both motions called for Dalhousie to divest from the listed entities within one year. If passed, the university would be mandated to divest its endowment fund portfolio from related entities by 2030.

Divestment from the listed entities would follow a multi-year schedule starting in 2026, with annual progress reports submitted to the FAIR committee and board of governors.

Along with the motions, Mealey prepared in-depth rationales for including each company in the divestment list.

She said students don’t want funds from the university’s endowment fund supporting industries they don’t believe in.

“If [Dalhousie] commits to divestment, it’s a real opportunity to build trust between the students and the administration that doesn’t exist right now,” said Mealey. 

Dalhousie has pushed back against divestment calls for years

Dalhousie has consistently rejected student calls for divestment from fossil fuels and weapons manufacturing for decades.

In 2013, Divest Dal, a student-run organization, was founded to advocate for Dalhousie to divest from fossil fuels. The year after, the group held protests and submitted a proposal calling for Dalhousie to divest from the 200 companies with the largest holdings of fossil fuel reserves. 

In response, a report from the university’s investment committee said that while they shared Divest Dal’s concerns, they were “of the opinion that fossil fuel divestment will not be an effective method to impact climate change.” The board of governors voted to accept the committee’s recommendation and reject Divest Dal’s calls.

Since then, Divest Dal has expanded their goals to include university divestment from weapons manufacturers and investments which profit from genocide and crimes against humanity. 

They’ve also begun advocating against Dalhousie’s recent agreement with the Nova Scotian government to spearhead the return of fracking to the province.

Related: Dalhousie given $30 million to research onshore natural gas drilling

Dalhousie has consistently rejected or ignored students’ calls for divestment, including an eight-day encampment on the quad in 2017.

Twelve Canadian universities have committed to divestment.

The university’s board of governors voted against a proposal to divest from companies complicit in the genocide in Gaza, proposed by then-DSU president Mariam Knakriah on March 25, 2025. In response, students occupied the Henry Hicks Academic Administration Building in February 2025, forcing a board meeting to end early and keeping the building closed for a week.

Related: Students occupy the Henry Hicks Building after Dalhousie’s board votes against divesting from Israel

The university didn’t meet students’ demands after the summer 2024 pro-Palestine encampments, which lasted 78 days on the quad and called on the university to disclose and divest from all investments linked to Israel, or after last month’s student strike.

Dal Divest said they’re skeptical about the motions’ odds, but will continue fighting

Leah Walter, a Divest Dal organizer, said she thinks the university has refused to divest because “[Dalhousie] is a colonial institution that is really dead set on making money right now.”

Divest Dal helped Mealey with preliminary research and planning for the motions, including using their divestment list as a foundation for developing the investments included in the motion.  

While she said the report is well-researched, Walter feels skeptical about this motion’s chance of success.

“Dal has given me no reason to believe in them, or to believe that they will do the right thing,” she said. “I’ve spent my entire university career fighting for divestment, and they have spent the entire time fighting against people like me.”

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But student activism at Dalhousie University is nothing new. For decades, students have raised their voices for social justice issues.

Digging through the Dalhousie Gazette’s archives, history shows a pattern that Dalhousie students have always worked for a better future and pushed for change. 

1965 – National Student Day

In 1965, approximately 500 Dalhousie students marched to the provincial legislature to mark National Students Day. 

The Gazette’s news editor at the time, Tim Foley, reported on the march, during which students presented a letter calling for increased financial aid, reduced fees and greater student involvement in higher education decision-making. He also reported that it was a cold and wet day in Nova Scotia (some things never change). 

Despite the march, neither the province nor Dal’s student government made immediate commitments to change. obbie Shaw, DSU president at the time, said that unless the government acted on the letter, there would be “a bigger and better march next spring.” 

1977 – Students protest against tuition increases

On March 25, 1977, about 1,600 students, faculty and workers from across Nova Scotia marched from the Dalhousie Student Union building to the provincial legislature to protest cuts to post-secondary education funding and potential tuition increases. 

Premier Gerald Regan decided to raise post-secondary education funding by only about seven per cent, while the Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission recommended 11.5 per cent. 

Protesters argued that a lack of funding would lead to higher tuition, making university less accessible and more elitist. 

In a Gazette article about the cutbacks, Bernie MacDonnel, the DSU’s arts representative, said,  “Universities will soon become the havens of the rich.” 

The government grant for post-secondary education ultimately stayed at 6.8 per cent.

2008 – Take Back the Night

While Dalhousie had been participating in Take Back the Night for years prior, one of the earliest accounts in Gazette archives is from October 2008. 

Take Back the Night is a global effort to combat sexual violence and violence against women through protest and marches. The protests began in 1972 at the University of Southern Florida, before spreading across the United States and later into Canada. 

At the time, the Dalhousie Women’s Centre hosted the event. 

Janet Gillis wrote in the 2008 article that, “The march is meant to support and give courage to survivors of violence, but it is also intended to send a message to the local community.” 

That year, the group rallied at Victoria Park, where professor and activist El Jones spoke about the importance of safe communities for women. 

2011 – Cookout for tuition cuts

On Nov. 9, students protested in then-Cornwallis Park (now renamed Peace and Friendship Park) by serving free Kraft Dinner to highlight student poverty and rising education costs. 

The event, led by students such as Gabe Hoogers, an executive member of the Canadian Federation of Students at the time, worked to raise awareness about student debt and advocate for more affordable post-secondary education. 

Hoogers is quoted as saying, “The rationale is debt reduction. Ultimately, it’s our view that if you want to invest in the future and the economy and have an equitable society, it’s important to ensure that people get to attend post-secondary education.”

The organizers decided to use Kraft Dinner because it represented the reality of what some students could afford to eat. 

There were close to 70 people present at the event, one being Romeo Saganash, a former NDP MP. 

2023 – Law students walk out against racism

In 2023, students at the Schulich School of Law staged a class walkout in protest of ongoing racist comments made by a classmate. The walkout was organized in solidarity with affected students facing microaggressions and a lack of response from the university. 

Students met with faculty for two hours to discuss their frustrations with the response to incidents in first-year law classes. 

Global News reported that no solutions or promises came out of the meeting, but that law students came prepared with a list of ideas to improve response efforts to discrimination, such as adopting professional standards and increased transparency in how complaints are handled. 

2024 – Pro-Palestine encampment

Over summer break, student activists from multiple Halifax universities formed an encampment, dubbed Al Zeitoun University, on Dalhousie’s quad to protest the university’s financial ties to Israel and demand divestment. 

The encampment, organized by Students for the Liberation of Palestine, lasted 78 days.

Yousef AlSayyed Ahmad, president of the Dal Palestinian Society, told the Gazette, “Al Zeitoun University was the most educational experience of my life. I’ve been a student at Dal for five years, and I consumed more knowledge in those 78 days than I did in my five years at Dal.” 

Eventually, the university issued a trespass notice, and security started to dismantle the site. Protesters then moved to the Kenneth C. Rowe Management Building, but police ended the protest. 

Owen Skeen, the then president of the NSCAD student union, described the encampment as “a place for students to gather, talk about Palestine and be a part of a broader community of solidarity and respect and humanity.”

Student activism lives on

While not every event resulted in immediate change, the message is clear that Dalhousie students have challenged authorities, raised awareness and continued to push higher institutions.

Robert Huish, an international development professor at Dalhousie, has spent the last 16 years teaching students skills of activism in his class Development and Activism: Methods of Organization, Manifestation and Dissent.

Huish says that historically, university students have a strong passion for activism

“There is a certain amount of bravery that comes with being young,” says Huish. 

In an ever-changing world with technology and social media, activism is also changing. But Huish says one thing is certain.

“As students, you’ve got a very precious combination of space to have access to so much information through the libraries, through the university system, and you’ve got ideas that generations in front of you didn’t have. You can outmanoeuvre them. That combination of knowledge with an appetite for innovation, that’s the power that no government can suppress.”

The post How Dalhousie students have fought for change appeared first on Dalhousie Gazette.

It makes me question the authenticity of my interactions with those friends — am I forming relationships with people, or the tools they use to speak for them?

I’ll admit it, I’m not against AI. I use ChatGPT for help with notes or simple questions, like how long I should thaw my chicken. 

But there’s a difference between using AI as a tool and allowing it to think and write for us. While we’re at university, we’re supposed to be building skills to carry with us for the rest of our lives. And if writing isn’t important in university, when is it? 

Concerningly, even my own school seems to be hopping on the AI bandwagon. Since 2023, Dalhousie University has replaced roughly three full-time positions with AI-powered bots, according to Dalhousie Gazette reporting. 

With AI reshaping how students think and learn, Dalhousie’s required writing courses don’t go far enough to promote student literacy. 

The current writing requirement for bachelor of arts and bachelor of science students consists of two first-year courses, with no upper-year writing requirements.

I remember one of my professors in first year saying that writing isn’t something you ever master, it’s something you always improve. It’s not a skill that can be learned in two courses. 

Students may leave introductory classes with basic skills but struggle to apply them in later years. 

Two writing requirement courses aren’t meaningful for literacy enrichment, especially when they can be fulfilled by courses like The History of the Future and Conversations with Ocean Scientists. 

There’s nothing wrong with these classes, but when they represent the only writing-based courses some students will ever take, the university’s low expectations become concerning.  

Part of the issue is that universities treat writing as a course requirement to check off rather than a skill to develop, prioritizing convenience over competence.

Reading performance has declined in Canada since 2000, with one in seven students scoring at the lowest reading levels in 2018, as identified by the Program for International Student Assessment. If students are arriving at university with weak reading and writing skills, Dal should aim to compensate for this gap, not accommodate it. 

Without proper writing instruction, it’s no wonder students are turning to AI. How can we expect students to succeed in a system that’s already failing them?

AI is already embedded in student life, and it’s not going anywhere. That makes it even more concerning when post-secondary institutions treat literacy as if it’s optional. This isn’t just about AI; it reflects a concerning shift in how we value literacy. 

As my generation enters the workforce, the consequences of AI dependence and decreased literacy will begin to emerge. As AI continues to reshape jobs, the skills we risk losing may be the ones we’ll need most. 

Writing isn’t just an academic skill; it’s a way of understanding ourselves, and it forces us to think in a way AI cannot do for us. Even when AI can produce something faster, doing the work ourselves is what builds the skill.

What students gain in convenience, they risk losing in independence. Over time, dependence on AI shows up, the inability to form an original opinion, struggling to explain ideas and failing to communicate without outside influence. 

Dal’s minimal writing requirements allow students outside the humanities to overlook the role writing plays in their fields and everyday life. Stronger writing requirements wouldn’t take away from core science or engineering courses; they would broaden students’ skills. Writing should evolve with technology, not be replaced by it.

The post Dal students need to learn how to write — and think appeared first on Dalhousie Gazette.