UNews - ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Faculty of Management

Leroy Little Bear & Amethyst First Rider to be honoured by U of L

caroline.zentner — Tue, 24 Jan 2017 19:12:49 +0000

Each year, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge’s Faculty of Management and its Advisory Board acknowledge the contributions and citizenry of an outstanding member or members of the community of southern Alberta through the Management Scholarship Fundraising Dinner.

The honourees for the 2017 dinner, to be held on April 13, are Dr. Leroy Little Bear (BASc (BA) '72, DASc '04) and Amethyst First Rider—whose names have become synonymous with passion, dignity, leadership, success, strength and inspiration. Through their mentorship, pedagogy and research, they have enriched the lives of both First Nations and non-First Nations students and communities, and have set an example for all through their enduring desire to understand and be understood.

Little Bear’s notable career includes many important achievements for First Nations people. He was instrumental in the development of Native American Studies programs at the U of L, ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Calgary, Bow Valley College and the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, and was the founding director of the Native American Program at Harvard ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ. Little Bear has co-authored texts and contributed to numerous reports and publications addressing issues related to Aboriginal rights, justice, land claims and constitutional issues. His work has led to a United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and he has received numerous honours, including the key to the City of Lethbridge, an Urban Aboriginal Lifetime Achievement Award and in 2016, Little Bear was inducted into the Alberta Order of Excellence.

First Rider has been a leader in the performing arts community for more than 20 years, producing and directing plays depicting Aboriginal stories and culture. Her experience in the arts has included dance productions, consulting for the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of California, Berkeley’s planetarium, as well as narration and production in the National Film Board’s documentary, Kainayssini Imanistaisiwa, The People Go On.

“Leroy and Amethyst are representative of our core values in the Faculty of Management and role models for our students and community. With this year being the 50th anniversary of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge and the 150th anniversary of Canada, I am proud to be celebrating First Nations leadership,” says Dr. Bob Boudreau, dean of the Faculty of Management.

Proceeds from the dinner will be used to establish a scholarship fund in the names of Leroy Little Bear and Amethyst First Rider, and will provide annual scholarships to First Nations students in the Faculty of Management.

Details regarding the 2017 Management Scholarship Fundraising Dinner can be found at: http://uleth.ca/management/scholarship-dinner-2017

New book featuring local hockey stories to benefit KidSport

caroline.zentner — Mon, 09 Feb 2015 21:57:46 +0000

From the dedicated moms and dads who climb out of their warm beds in the wintry dawn to get their child to the hockey rink, to the players who can remember their first goal like it happened a day ago, Dr. Gordon Hunter, a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Faculty of Management professor, wanted to give a voice to people’s everyday experiences with hockey in his new book.

Dr. Gordon Hunter has collected local hockey stories for his new book.

“There are books about Gordie Howe and Ron MacLean and Ken Dryden and those are good books, but there aren’t any books about normal folks and their experience with hockey when they’re growing up,” says Hunter, who’s already the author of four academic books. “When I told my younger son Robb he said ‘Finally, a book that someone will read.’”

He started collecting stories from people with a southern Alberta connection and compiled them into a book titled after one of his favourite sayings: The Older I Get the Better I Was.

“There are stories about guys who didn’t go very far in hockey, there are stories about some of the guys who played in the NHL or played professional in Europe and they are businessmen, lawyers and doctors here in Lethbridge,” he says.

The 40-chapter book includes contributions from Lethbridge Mayor Chris Spearman, who tells the story of going to the Montreal Forum to watch the Montreal Canadiens play, and Steve Craig, a colleague, who vividly recalls the phone call he got at age 15 inviting him to play on a AA team.

“I was playing on a Midget B team when I got a call from a Double-A team. I remember walking up to the phone, a rotary dial phone in the middle of the hallway at home. I was pretty excited; it’s all relative, but for me, that was just like being called to the pros,” says Craig.

Other contributors include U of L President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Mike Mahon, Brent Brooks, Mark Campbell, Rajko Dodic, Clint Dunford, and Darrin Harrold, a U of L grad and the head coach of the men’s national ice hockey team in Singapore. Several women also contributed chapters, including Cheryl Neufeld, commissioner of Coaldale REC hockey, Brook Paisley, goalie for the Pronghorns women’s hockey team, and the first chapter recounts experiences from local hockey moms.

Hunter’s own experiences with hockey have formed a thread that has run throughout his life. He grew up in Saskatoon and has always played goal. He played hockey throughout the years he was a student and then became a coach when his sons started playing.

“Seven years ago when I turned 60, I played one game and it took me two years to get into shape for that one game,” Hunter says. “I had a ball.”

The game was organized by Jeff, the Hunters’ older son, who had also arranged for the game to be recorded on video. Stories like these are peppered throughout Hunter’s book.

“When I sat down and talked to some of the people who are in the book and they got talking about their stories, I could see their eyes glistening over,” he says.

A book launch is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 10 from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Paradise Canyon Golf Resort. Copies of the book, at a cost of $30, will be available to purchase at the launch and through the U of L Bookstore. Proceeds from the book will go to the Lethbridge branch of KidSport, a national non-profit organization that provides financial assistance to children who want to play sports.

2012 Alumni Honour Society Inductees

trevor.kenney — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 20:05:19 +0000

Introduced in celebration of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's 35th Anniversary in 2002, the Alumni Honour Society recognizes the achievement of successful alumni within the global community. The alumni inducted into this prestigious group have served as role models to our students and the broader ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community through success in their vocation, outstanding community service or superior accomplishment in their avocation.

René Barendregt (BASc '71)

René Barendregt has been a faculty member of the Faculty of Arts & Science at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge since 1982 and took on the role of associate dean in 2001. Dedicated to his profession and respected by his peers, Barendregt's work in the field of physical geography is currently funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada. In addition to his research, Barendregt has served the U of L community as a member of the Board of Governors, the Senate and the General Faculties Council.

Viola Cassis (BA '97)

Viola Cassis started her career in international humanitarian work with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), where she was instrumental in revising the organization's guidelines on the prevention and response to sexual- and gender-based violence, and helped to develop policies to ensure gender-equitable access to UN refugee interventions. Cassis currently works with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and has been involved in various CIDA programs in Afghanistan. She has made field visits to Kabul and Kandahar to liaise with Canadian Forces, the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, and other government agencies.

Marilyn Smith (BFA '96) (Multidisciplinary)

Marilyn Smith has more than 30 years of experience in the arts and culture sector and is currently the executive director of the Southern Alberta Art Gallery (SAAG). Since Smith took on this role in 1999, SAAG has increased revenue over 200 per cent, while membership, programming and sponsorship have also increased. Recently Smith oversaw renovations of SAAG and implemented a three-year strategic plan designed to capitalize on the new facilities. Last fall Smith was honoured with the 2011 Rosza Award for Excellence in Arts Management from the Rosza Foundation.

Gayle Strikes With A Gun (BEd '88)

Raised on the Piikani Nation in southern Alberta, Gayle Strikes With A Gun has been a leader in education for 25 years. After completing her bachelor of education, she worked as the project co-ordinator for the Four Worlds development project, an initiative aimed at helping Blood and Peigan women develop the skills and training necessary to prepare them for post-secondary education at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge. Over the course of her career, she worked as a teacher, principal, assistant superintendent and acting superintendent in schools across Alberta and in the Northwest Territories. In 2011, Strikes With A Gun was elected the first female chief of the Piikani Nation where she remains committed to helping her people's youth.

Bruce Thurston (BASc '78)

With close to 35 years of experience in business, Bruce Thurston brings a wealth of knowledge and skill to his teaching role in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Faculty of Management. He is also currently the CEO and president at Management Resource Services, a company that provides management consulting and training in leadership
development, organizational change, workforce diversity and staff development. In addition to his professional responsibilities, Thurston has generously served the community by volunteering his time with local organizations including the Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce, the Society of Management Accountants of Alberta and the Southern Alberta Art Gallery.

Keith Walker (BASc '79)

As the director of Library Services at Medicine Hat College, Keith Walker is respected for the innovation and passion he brings to his profession. As the first college librarian to serve as president of the Canadian Library Association in the organization's history, Walker successfully led a major review and restructuring that saw the organization's first balanced budget in over a decade and a doubling of memberships. In 2003, Walker received the Community and Technical College Libraries Outstanding Academic Librarian Award and the Industry Canada Award. The following year, he was honoured with the College and Technical Libraries Innovation Achievement Award.

This story first appeared in the June 2012 issue of the Legend. For a look at the entire issue in flipbook format, follow this link.

Business case competition on campus

trevor.kenney — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 21:20:08 +0000

The brightest minds in business will be coming to Lethbridge's two post-secondary institutions this weekend to discuss the future of business education and solve some real world problems.

Lethbridge College is co-hosting the seventh annual Alberta Deans of Business Case Competition with the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Faculty of Management on Friday and Saturday.

This event brings teams of Alberta's best business students and deans of business schools from across the province to the City of Lethbridge, where the deans will hold their annual spring meeting and students will immerse themselves in a case study requiring them to develop solutions for real world business problems.

The event will also showcase business programs and opportunities at the college and university.

"Lethbridge College is thrilled to be hosting this dynamic event with the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge," says Dennis Sheppard, dean of Applied Management at Lethbridge College. "This competition brings together the best business students in the province who will get great hands-on experience solving the kind of problem facing real businesses today.

"Like much of the work we do at the college, the Case Competition is a chance to put theory into practice," adds Sheppard. "We can't wait to watch the students get to work."

"We are very pleased to be involved with this event as a partner with Lethbridge College," says Dr. Bob Ellis, the dean of the U of L Faculty of Management "Sharing our facilities with students from across the province is something we are proud to do, alongside meeting with our colleagues to catch up on the latest trends in our profession."

The competition begins Friday morning when teams will receive the case and will be locked in "war rooms" from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. to analyze and prepare a solution.

On Saturday, students will deliver 12-minute oral presentations before an audience and panel of industry professional judges in pursuit of cash prizes totaling $8,000.

The awards are offered thanks to a generous sponsorship by the Certified General Accountants' Association of Alberta (CGA Alberta).

Small Business Institute set to launch

trevor.kenney — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 20:58:48 +0000

Small businesses can be big business for southern Alberta – that's the message two ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Faculty of Management researchers are sending as they launch a new institute that will focus on the specific needs of small businesses.

On Tuesday, Jan. 17, the U of L and its Faculty of Management will officially launch the Small Business Institute (SBI), the brainchild of Dr. Gordon Hunter and Dan Kazakoff, two management faculty members with several decades of experience in small business consulting, management and education between them.

The focus of the institute's work will be on privately held small businesses, varying from start-up operations to multi-generational ownership. In addition to entrepreneurship and family-owned businesses, other aspects of their research will include franchises, non-participating family members, succession and sustainability. The SBI is unique in that it will focus primarily on Lethbridge and southern Alberta businesses.

Both Hunter and Kazakoff expect a significant student benefit through the exchange of ideas with business people and faculty. In addition, new courses may be developed or existing courses modified to incorporate ideas that come out of the SBI research process.

The launch event and a brief presentation about the SBI takes place on Tuesday, Jan. 17, beginning at 4:30 p.m. in AH100 (Andy's Place). An advisory council is currently being organized that will provide guidance to Kazakoff and Hunter with regard to the Institute's direction. Information about the advisory council will be presented at that time.

For more information, contact Steve Craig (steve.craig@uleth.ca) or call 403-329-5181. To learn more about the institute, visit http://www.uleth.ca/management/SBI

Kazakoff and Hunter also welcome those interested in the SBI to contact them via e-mail: dan.kazakoff@uleth.ca and ghunter@uleth.ca.

Alumni earn top honours

trevor.kenney — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 19:09:31 +0000

Three ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Faculty of Management (accounting) alumni recently earned top honours on the Uniform Evaluation (UFE), the exam written by all Chartered Accountant (CA) hopefuls.

Andrea Harper (Young Parkyn McNab LLP, Lethbridge), Kelsey (Watson) Stimson (Meyers Norris Penny, Lethbridge) and Eric Van Dyk (BDO Canada LLP, Edmonton) claimed three of eight national honour roll positions from a pool of 479 people in Alberta who wrote and passed the exam.

All simultaneously earned a spot on the ICAA's [Institute of Chartered Accountants of Alberta] prestigious Vic Dzurko Honour Roll and will be awarded the Winspear Medal of Excellence and a $1,000 cash prize.

For a look at the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Hunter receives prestigious FCMA designation

trevor.kenney — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 22:13:21 +0000

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Faculty of Management professor Dr. M. Gordon (Gord) Hunter was recently designated a Fellow of the Society of Management Accountants of Canada (FCMA).

The FCMA, presented to Hunter and five other Albertans, is a prestigious national honorary designation that is awarded to CMAs who, through their own outstanding achievements, bring distinction to the management accounting profession and serve as role models for others.

Hunter is the fourth
U of L faculty member to achieve this designation. Past recipients of the FCMA in the Faculty of Management include
Dr. Murray Lindsay, as well as instructors Bruce Thurston (Lethbridge campus) and Tim Spielman (Calgary campus).

Faculty of Management Dean, Dr. Robert Ellis, says that Hunter's dedication to research, teaching, and his association with CMA Alberta, allow him to continue providing relevant and student-centred learning opportunities.

"Gord has made exemplary contributions to scholarship, teaching and to the professional community," says Ellis. "I speak for all our faculty members when I say that we are very proud of Gord for being honoured by his peers in the Society of Management Accountants."

In his current role as a professor of information systems at the U of L, Hunter teaches several courses and, in 2009, developed a new accounting information systems course. He has been an advocate for the CMA designation in several capacities, including acting as a coach in the CMA Alberta Board Governance and JDC West Case competitions. He has also been a CMA
ambassador in the post-secondary community at CMA Alberta events.

Hunter has continually shown a commitment to enhancing the profession and designation through written publications; developing, delivering and overseeing a variety of post-secondary courses; and sitting on international conference committees.

For a look at the full issue of the December Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Indian Visit Opens Future Dialogue

trevor.kenney — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 20:35:18 +0000

For many Canadians, it is hard to imagine living in a country populated as densely as India. Home to 1.19 billion people, India supports over 15 per cent of the world's population, while only occupying 2.4 per cent of the world's land mass. Not only is this a huge population that is increasing daily, but also with an average age of 25 years, it's a population in need of education. That's where the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge just might be able to help.

Although India already has close to 500 universities, it needs to establish another 1000 universities over the next 10 years, and is looking for international assistance to do so.

Members of the visiting Maharashtra delegation get a look at the Clinical Skills Lab in Markin Hall.

In October, a group of 12 government officials representing higher education from the Indian State of Maharashtra visited the U of L as part of an Alberta universities tour arranged by Alberta Advanced Education and Technology. The trip also included stops at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Alberta, ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Calgary, NAIT and SAIT.

"The purpose of the tour was to give the Indian representatives a chance to observe and learn how the Alberta higher education system is organized and delivered," says ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Faculty of Management professor, Dr. Sameer Deshpande.

The visit also began the process of developing working relationships with Canadian universities, with the goal of continuing India's commitment to making education more available to their growing population. One way this could be achieved is through partnerships/exchanges with Canadian universities.

"While no official agreement was signed, there is a high possibility for future relations," says Deshpande.

This is not the first time that the U of L has worked with the Indian institutions. U of L students currently majoring in international management have the opportunity to partake in a work-study program in India. There are also Co-op work opportunities for students who are interested in being placed with contacts in India. By establishing closer relations with India, even more international opportunities may be available to U of L students. It would also take the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ to an emerging and ever-growing market.

Rajesh Tope, the minister of Higher and Technical Education from the Government of Maharashtra, was impressed with the U of L, its facilities and openness to share its expertise.

"Our visit was excellent. We learned a lot from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, and I think a lot can come of this visit," says Tope. "I'd like to see the universities in India take immediate initiative to send letters or whatever formalities need to be done from outside to start these collaborative programs."

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge is working with Alberta Advanced Education and Technology to review potential outcomes from this visit and assess future possibilities.

For a look at the full issue of the November Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Kelley speaks in Scholars Series

trevor.kenney — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 15:56:18 +0000

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Faculty of Management assistant professor, Dr. Helen Kelley, takes the stage Friday as the featured speaker in the latest Women Scholar Speaker Series event.

Kelley will present her lecture, The Clinical Impact of eHealth on the Self-Management of Diabetes, on Friday, Oct. 8 from 3 to 5 p.m. in Andy's Place (AH100).

Kelley is an associate professor in the information systems area of the Faculty of Management and director of the Master of Science in Management Program. She is currently researching under a Lawson Foundation grant.

Refreshments will be available prior to the lecture, with a discussion period to follow.

The event is free and everyone is welcome to attend.

Finding a new reality on Facebook

trevor.kenney — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 18:35:30 +0000

Is your new Facebook 'friend' really a friend or someone using a fake identity to get your personal information? How easy is it to convince someone to accept a completely made–up person as his or her friend?

A group of ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Faculty of Management students – all active users of social media such as Facebook – recently tested those two ideas on a group of their peers and found some surprising answers.

"With more than 300 million users, Facebook and many other social networking sites pose a growing concern for the safety of individuals who use these sites and services," says Sarah Lajeunesse, group spokesperson who worked on the term-long project with team members David Ho, Kirk Patterson, Lauren O'Dwyer and Tony Melicchio. "Our primary concern with the increasing popularity of these sites is the consequences and dangers that we, as users, are potentially facing."

With that idea in mind, their assignment for the Information Systems component of the Integrated Management Experience (IME) program – under the supervision of IME Director Dan Kazakoff and Management Information Systems Professor Gordon Hunter – turned into a research-based episode of the popular MTV program Punk'd, where average people are fooled by sophisticated stunts.

In this case it was frighteningly simple.

"We have all heard about people putting up fake identities for criminal or revenge purposes, but we wanted to actually test how easy it could be to fool Facebook users," says Lajeunesse. "Our group created an imaginary female, who in less than 24 hours managed to entice more than 25 users to become her 'friends' – including complete strangers and many students from our more than 50-person research group. What really surprised us was the speed with which the 'friendship' requests were accepted, and also that one-third of the respondents who accepted this fake person as a friend started up an online conversation. As well, at least two people expected to have dates with our fake person within the week."

Lajeunesse adds the male-to-female ratio of acceptances was 65 to 35 per cent.

Their work raises concerns about the overall validity of online identities, and serves as a warning for people of all ages to be more careful about who they accept as friends or interact with online.

While the idea of people being so easily conned into accepting a completely fake person as a friend seems absurd, Lajeunesse says that as Facebook and other social networking sites are increasing in popularity at an exponential rate, so too are the number of false identities.

"Unfortunately, the social networking sites lack the technology, the legal power, or, in some cases, the will to prevent these abuses," she says. "Learning about this issue was a huge wake-up call for our group and our class. We really want people to know about our results, because this was very easy for us to do. It is not a stretch to assume that it is equally easy for others who might have bad intentions to do as well. We hope that by learning more about this issue – and talking about it – parents can increase their level of supervision to protect the young, our most vulnerable, yet least cautious, users."

The fact that young adults and teenagers are being taken in by fake Facebook pages is not a surprise to Dr. Mary Dyck.

A researcher in the U of L's Kinesiology and Physical Education department who is an expert on cyber bullying and inappropriate use of online communities, Dyck collaborated on Canada's first-ever study on rural teens' online social communication with U of L Faculty of Education researchers Dr. Pamela Adams and Dr. Robin Bright.

"Our research supports that the more information someone puts online, the more vulnerable they become to bullying, targeted marketing, predators, unwanted harassment and intrusions, and feelings of discomfort," says Dyck. "Facebook is an online community. Nothing is safe online. We can only make every attempt to be safer online by restricting our images and information, setting privacy settings for content and applications, and continually being aware of our own behaviour – and the information presented by the IME student group confirms that."

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