Campus news briefs

Classes resume; nature unmerciful
The 2014 Winter Term began on Jan. 6 for most U of M faculties, following the second coldest Winnipeg December in 120 years. Unfortunately for those commuting to campus, the extreme temperatures are not set to relent until Friday, when it will feel like -11 C, up from Monday morning’s -43 C (with wind chill).

U of M senate meeting: annual report from ICM
The U of M senate met for the first time in the New Year on Jan. 8. Included in the meeting’s agenda was the “Annual Report on the Operations of the International College of Manitoba [ICM],” covering the period from September 2012 to August 2013.
According to the report, 70 per cent of instructors participated in a satisfaction survey, 90 per cent of whom found they were “very satisfied with their teaching experiences at ICM.” The report indicates that “ICM graduates’ performance is similar to that of international students who enter the university directly even though ICM students do not normally meet the requirements for direct entry to the first year at U of M.”

Recreation services presents free week
The U of M’s recreation services is offering students free use of their facilities from Jan. 6 to 10. In addition to exercise rooms, gyms, and courts, those cashing in on the offer will also be permitted to try some of the instructional classes offered by recreation services. Participants are not required to pre-register and may bring a guest.

Asper business school professor passes away
Just two days before Christmas, U of M business professor Reginald A. Litz died of pancreatic cancer. Litz held the Stu Clark Chair in entrepreneurship at the Asper school of business, and was also a former U of M student. Litz earned both a BComm (Hons) and an MBA at the U of M before going on to complete his PhD at the University of Pittsburgh.
Litz was interested in “new, small, and family businesses,” and was a recipient of the Asper MBA Luminary Teaching Award in the Fall of 2013.

Student Leadership Summit around the corner
On Jan. 18, the university will host the first-ever U of M Student Leadership Summit (UMSLS) – an all-day event featuring “workshops, networking, team building, hands-on learning and a keynote address.”
UMSLS is open to 150 U of M students and tickets can be purchased for $25 at the Answers booth in University Centre. The mission of USMLS is to afford students “an opportunity to develop and harness a variety of leadership skills useable in everyday life.”
The deadline for registration is Jan. 10 at 4:30 p.m.