UNews - Economy

McDaniel earns first Tier I CRC for social sciences

trevor.kenney — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 21:35:12 +0000

Dr. Susan McDaniel, a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Sociology Professor and Director of the Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy, has been named a Tier I Canada Research Chair in Global Population and Economy, the first Tier 1 CRC in social sciences at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ.

The seven-year, renewable appointment comes with more than $1.4 million, which will support the Prentice Institute's ever-increasing research capacity.

The funding helps McDaniel and her research colleagues look beyond numbers, and dig deeper into the complex issues that face people over the course of their lives, such as aging, income inequalities, access to health care, how global issues affect people, and policies that take aging and population shifts into consideration.

"This is an outstanding announcement for the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and for Dr. McDaniel and her research teams," says Dr. Dan Weeks, the U of L's vice-president (research). "Susan has done an excellent job of putting the Prentice Institute on a trajectory that will make it a world-recognized centre. She has attracted a significant number of researchers to the Institute as research associates, which in turn has built up our graduate student component. With this new funding, Dr. McDaniel and her colleagues will be able to significantly expand on the Prentice Institute's mandate to look into population issues worldwide."

Dr. Susan McDaniel is the director of the Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy.

There are three areas McDaniel – and her expanding group of researchers – is examining through what she describes as life-course research. These include comparisons between Canadian and other population groups, initially in the United States; the government-supported policy steps countries such as Japan and Korea have taken to manage the challenges of an aging population; and the concept of age itself, and how factors such as economic conditions, lack of healthcare or being a refugee from a war-torn country can have on your life expectancy.

"The life-course research concept has several principles, among them that you need to follow a person through their life to get a solid picture of how they are affected by a variety of influences," says McDaniel. "We are following individuals across time because at each point in your life course, you exist in a context within a society. For example, if a person graduates from high school or university at a time when the economy is not healthy, they might have trouble finding a job. A whole group of people may be disadvantaged over a long period because of that one moment in time."

By comparison, McDaniel says that a person who benefits from a strong economy may land a better job, have better educational opportunities and also have a longer life expectancy.

"We are expanding on research where we looked at Americans aged 45-64 over a 14-year period and a similar group of Canadians over a 16-year period, and found that income inequalities make a huge difference for their prospects in later years, " says McDaniel.

McDaniel is also examining how government policy has changed the way people live in countries where aging and significant population change is normal, such as in Japan and Korea, two countries with very different challenges.

"Japan is the 'oldest' country in the world, while Korea has a relatively young population but it will age very quickly," says McDaniel. "What we are finding is that innovations are unexpected. Both Korea and Japan have instituted publicly funded long-term care insurance. When speaking to the Koreans about why they implemented it at this time, the response was that they could afford it now while the population is young, as opposed to being unable to afford it later."

McDaniel said that what Japan did to respond to its aging population was to encourage more women to enter the workforce, and made it easier by instituting public daycare.

The other issue McDaniel looks to tackle as part of her research, is changing the fundamental notion of age from a number to a concept that takes a whole host of lifestyle experiences into consideration, among them health, education, economic circumstances and other factors.

"You need to look at age differently based on what happens to a person during their life. A person in a risky or blue-collar occupation might age differently than someone in a less dangerous or physically demanding job," she says. "We need to have a flexible definition of what is 'old', because this research, while not yet fully completed, is important in policy development."

Keeping a finger on the pulse of these worldwide indicators is keeping McDaniel and her teams constantly busy. The research projects will ultimately wind up as journal articles or become part of four books currently in process.

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

New Canada Research Chair at Prentice Institute

trevor.kenney — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 15:08:04 +0000

Dr. Susan McDaniel, a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Sociology professor and director of the Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy, has been named a Tier I Canada Research Chair in Global Population and Economy, the first Tier 1 CRC in social sciences at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ.

The seven-year, renewable appointment comes with more than $1.4 million, which will support the Prentice Institute's ever-increasing research capacity.

The funding helps McDaniel and her research colleagues look beyond numbers, and dig deeper into the complex issues that face people over the course of their lives, such as aging, income inequalities, access to health care, how global issues affect people and policies that take aging and population shifts into consideration.

"This is an outstanding announcement for the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and for Dr. McDaniel and her research teams," says Dr. Dan Weeks, the U of L's Vice-President, Research.

In total, 253 newly awarded or renewed Canada Research Chairs at 56 Canadian degree-granting post-secondary institutions are being awarded $203.9 million to undertake new research.

This federal investment allows Canadian institutions to strengthen their position as global leaders in research and development, bringing greater economic opportunities for Canadians.

"Susan has done an excellent job of putting the Prentice Institute on a trajectory that will make it a world-recognized centre. She has attracted a significant number of researchers to the Institute as research associates, which in turn has built up our graduate student component. With this new funding, Dr. McDaniel and her colleagues will be able to significantly expand on the Prentice Institute's mandate to look into population issues world-wide."

There are three areas McDaniel – and her expanding world-wide group of researchers – is examining through what she describes as 'life-course research': comparisons between Canadian and other population groups, initially in the United States; the government-supported policy steps countries such as Japan and Korea have taken to manage the challenges of an aging population; and the concept of age itself, and how factors such as economic conditions, lack of healthcare or being a refugee from a war-torn country can have on your life expectancy.

"The life course research concept has several principles, among them that you need to follow a person through their life to get a solid picture of how they are affected by a variety of influences," says McDaniel.

"We are following individuals across time because at each point in your life course, you are existing in a context in a society. For example, if a person graduates from high school or university at a time when the economy is not healthy, they might have trouble finding a job. A whole group of people may be disadvantaged over a long period because of that one moment in time."

By comparison, McDaniel says that a person who benefits from a strong economy may land a better job, have better educational opportunities and also have a longer life expectancy.

McDaniel adds that some people may be disadvantaged at the beginning of their lives, and may be continually disadvantaged as they age, compounding the disadvantages they face as they grow older.

"We are expanding on research where we looked at Americans aged 45-64 over a 14-year period, and a similar group of Canadians over a 16-year period, and found that income inequalities make a huge difference for their prospects in their later years, " says McDaniel.

The key difference between Canadians and Americans is that Canadians have lesser inequality, primarily because of social policies such as public health insurance, but also better risk insurance such as employment insurance.

As well, McDaniel is examining how government policy has changed the way people live in countries where aging and significant population change is normal, such as in Japan and Korea, two countries with very different challenges.

"Japan is the 'oldest' country in the world, while Korea has a relatively young population now but it will age very quickly," says McDaniel said. "What we are finding is that innovations are unexpected. Both Korea and Japan have instituted publicly-funded long term care insurance. When speaking to the Koreans about why they implemented it at this time, the response was that they could afford it now while the population is young, as opposed to being unable to afford it later."

The other issue McDaniel hopes to tackle as part of her research is to change the fundamental notion of 'age' from a number to a concept that takes a whole host of lifestyle experiences into consideration, among them health, education, economic circumstances, and other factors.

"You need to look at age differently based on what happens to a person during their life. A person in a risky or blue-collar occupation might age differently than someone in a less dangerous or physically demanding job," she says. "We need to have a flexible definition of what is 'old', because this research, while not yet fully completed, is important in policy development."

Keeping a finger on the pulse of these world-wide indicators is keeping McDaniel and her teams constantly busy. The new and ongoing research projects will ultimately wind up as journal articles or become parts of four books currently in process.

To date, the effort involves researchers from Canada, the United States, Japan, Korea, Italy and Africa, in addition to the regular complement of faculty members currently at the U of L or who are being recruited to join the Prentice Institute as research associates, guest lecturers, or visiting professors.

Significant And Mentionable

trevor.kenney — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 22:54:14 +0000

HISTORIANS SCORE 100%

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge History Department celebrated 100 per cent participation in Supporting Our Students for the second year in a row.

"This is an incredible accomplishment," says Debi Sandul, who is co-chairing this year's SOS campaign. "Students have always been at the centre of what we do and this demonstrates the continued commitment of the History Department to enhance the student experience and create opportunities."

Supporting Our Students is an annual internal fundraising campaign to raise money for student awards. Faculty and staff donations are matched by the Government of Alberta's Access to the Future Fund, doubling the impact of all contributions.

The goal for this year's campaign is 300 contributions and thanks to the dedication of faculty and staff like those from the History Department, the campaign already has 255 participants.

"This year's campaign is about participation and this group has come together to demonstrate the strength of the U of L community," explains Dr. Rob Wood, the campaign co-chair.

"We are very proud of what we've been able to do as a group and I hope this is just the beginning," says History Department Chair Dr. Chris Epplett, who went on to issue a friendly challenge to other U of L departments.

GRAD STUDENTS HONOURED

When the School of Graduate Studies and the Office of Research Services handed out their Research Excellence awards recently, there were no trophies, only cold hard cash to the tune of more than $700,000, which was shared by 36 student recipients of graduate, doctoral and post-doctoral studies awards.

The investment in research funding directed toward candidates in master's and doctoral programs is critical to help grow the
U of L's research programs and its place as a comprehensive research university.

The research funding was supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and Alberta-based agencies Alberta Ingenuity Fund, Alberta Innovates Health Solutions, the Alberta Cancer Foundation, and the Alberta government-funded Ralph Steinhauer Awards of Distinction.

NATIONAL RANKING SHOWS DRAMATIC GROWTH FOR U OF L RESEARCH FUNDING

The U of L is ranked second nationally by Re$earch Infosource in terms of research income growth over the decade 1999-2009 for undergraduate universities – with an overall growth rate from $3.295 million to $15.956 million.

"This is the highest gain of any Alberta school and any Western Canadian school – and we are still growing," says U of L Vice-President (Research) Dr. Dan Weeks.

"These figures do not reflect the additional people we have attracted, the income from this past year or the many new programs that we have launched."

As assessed by RE$EARCH Infosource, the list ranks universities by their research income and research intensity (research funding per faculty member).

ACCESSIBILITY AND INNOVATION LEAD TO RECORD ENROLMENT

This September brought with it the largest student enrolment in the U of L's history. The official enrolment number is 8,472, with the growth being credited to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's dedication to being an accessible and innovative institution.

EDUCATION STUDENTS TAKE A STAND AGAINST BULLYING

The third annual ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Anti-bullying and Cyberbullying Awareness Week was held Oct. 4 to 6. Organized by the Education Undergraduate Society, the event is the only student-organized anti-bullying campaign in Alberta and aims to increase the awareness of cyberbullying and bullying in the community.

The ever-increasing use of technology among children is rapidly leading to a transformation in the traditional forms of bullying, with cyberbullying becoming more prevalent.

The anti-bullying campaign highlighted the need for schools to develop policies and procedures related to cyberbullying, while providing teachers with techniques and tools to address the issue.

STUDENTS' UNION HELPING PAINT A BRIGHTER FUTURE

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Students' Union Executive Council worked on their home-improvement skills this past summer by volunteering with Project Paintbrush.

Working with Volunteer Lethbridge and Project Paintbrush, the students laboured to fix up homes for those who are not able. Specifically, the four council members grabbed brushes and aided in painting the exterior of a local home.

Project Paintbrush focuses on assisting seniors and individuals with special needs who are physically and/or financially unable to maintain the exterior of their property. There is no cost to the homeowner and the program operation is based solely on volunteers.

Taz Kassam, SU president, believes that "making positive changes through volunteering in the community provides for greater experiences and opportunities for all. Lethbridge supports its students and it is important for students to support Lethbridge, too."

By taking part in this project, the ULSU hopes to not only spark knowledge of Volunteer Lethbridge and Project Paintbrush, but also showcase the impact volunteering has on individuals and the community.

"At the end of the day, we can look back and realize that we made a difference, and the families are more than grateful for the help," says Kassam.

IGEM TEAM CLEANS UP

A group of ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge undergraduate chemistry, biochemistry and neuroscience students has been awarded a $20,000 international research grant from the Oil Sands Initiative to find a biological solution to improving the environmental sustainability of Alberta's oil sands.

The students are members of the
U of L's multiple-award-winning International Genetically Engineered Machines (iGEM) team, which competes each year at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston, Mass. Regarded as the premier undergraduate synthetic biology competition in the world, the conference attracts competitors from around the world but the U of L group was the only team to receive a $20,000 award.

The money will help support the development of a petrochemical-eating bacteria that the group plans to design. If successful, the bacteria could be used to help clean up water in ponds that have been polluted in the refining process.

CONGRATULATIONS

The U of L extends sincere congratulations to the following members of our community for their awards and recognitions this fall.

U of L Chancellor Richard Davidson was named one of the 50 most influential people in Alberta by Alberta Venture magazine.

Dr. Trevor Harrison, sociology professor, was awarded a Fulbright Visiting Research Chair in Canadian Studies at Kennesaw State ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ.

The Honourable Rick Casson, who is a Member of Parliament for Lethbridge and a former U of L employee, was appointed to the Queen's Privy Council of Canada.

Dr. Susan McDaniel, director of the Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy, was named Vice-Chair of the Council of Canadian Academies' Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC).

Dr. Joseph Rasmussen, biological sciences researcher, was appointed to the National Oil Sands Review Panel.

GLOBE & MAIL REPORT CARD

The Globe and Mail's annual report card on Canadian ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ performance is out and the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge has been given high marks, ranging from B's to A's in more than 80 per cent of 17 categories.

The survey was prepared by higher Education Strategy Associates in partnership with the Globe and Mail, and asked more than 35,000 students 100 questions that were distilled down to the final 17 categories. Individual scores (such as the U of L's) are based on a minimum number of responses from U of L students.

The Faculties of Health Sciences and Management recorded high marks from students for providing a quality education, and "A" level grades were received for the number of small class sizes, the quality of student/professor interaction, and the institution's athletics and recreation services.

"This survey is a solid reinforcement of our strength as an undergraduate university, but we're moving along a new path to become a comprehensive research university – without losing sight of the very important factors that put all of our students first," says U of L President Dr. Mike Mahon.

U OF L'S CANDO PARTNERSHIP NETS STUDENT SCHOLARSHIP

Faculty of Management student Shermayn Menicoche (photo, right) is one of three people to receive a $3,000 National Indigenous Economic Education Foundation (NIEEF) scholarship from the charitable arm of the Council for the Advancement of Native Development Officers (CANDO).

CANDO is an Aboriginal-controlled, community-based group that builds partnerships with educational institutions, Aboriginal leaders and senior corporate and government representatives.

The U of L is now one of nine post-secondary institutions accredited by CANDO to deliver courses that help economic development officers working in First Nations communities obtain an Aboriginal Economic Developer Certificate in addition to their U of L degree.

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

McDaniel speaks at SACPA

trevor.kenney — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 20:01:44 +0000

Prentice Institute director Dr. Susan McDaniel will headline the next edition of the Southern Alberta Council on Public Affairs as she presents, You've Got to Start Young: Aging in Canada and the U.S.

To be held Thursday, Apr. 8 from noon to 1:30 p.m. at Country Kitchen Catering, McDaniel's presentation delves into the topic of population aging and to what extent this challenges health care and pension issues.

McDaniel is the Prentice Research Chair in Global Population and Economy, director of the Prentice Institute and professor of sociology at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge.

She relocated to Lethbridge in the summer of 2009 from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Utah where she was professor and senior investigator in the Institute for Public & International Affairs.

McDaniel is an internationally known sociologist/social demographer, the author of many books and research articles. She is a frequent advisor on social and science policies both in Canada and elsewhere.

McDaniel asks, based on her current research in both Canada and the United States, to what extent is population aging a challenge?

Further, she questions whether population aging is an equal challenge in Canada and the U.S. How does the current economic situation affect the picture? What about diversity, inequalities and changing family/household living arrangements?

The specific focus in this talk is on the circumstances of those aged 45-64 in Canada and the U.S. in the late 1990s and 2000s, how their lives look, as they grow older and what policy challenges are posed.

Admission for this event is priced at $10 and includes a light lunch.

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