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Wednesdsay April 26, 2000 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER A5 Ryerson president says Canada needs liberal arts graduates B y D ia n e H a rt SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER Canada needs liberal arts graduates as badly as it needs com puter scientists and engi neers, says the president of Ryerson Polytechnic U niversity, C laude Lajeunesse. Ryerson has been recently cited by M acL ean's m agazine as one o f the m ost dynamic and rapidly grow ing universities in the country. Joining the debate about the need for liberal arts gradu ates in the face o f overw helm ing grow th in inform ation technology, he was blunt: "I don't see those tw o sectors o f the university in com petition; I see them as com plem entary. If we only had liberal arts graduates, it would be hard to build bridges and if we had only engineers and com puter scientists it would be very difficult to have a society that cares about poverty, and ^ Gotf E q u ip m e n t Claude Lajeunesse believes country needs more than engineers and com puter program m ers to prosper hom elessness and the like," said C lau d e L ajeunnesse, sp eak in g to the O akville Canadian Club at the Ramada Inn last week. He spoke o f the "dire need" for liberal arts graduates and quoted a report that said it w asn't only im portant to build a know ledge society; but that it was equally im portant to understand that society. Lajeunesse lends his voice to a debate on the value o f lib eral arts education. His views echo a statem ent issued this m onth by 30 technology lead ers, m any from O ntario, favor- C o u n c illo r h o s ts d is c u s s io n o n a r e a 's t r a f f i c w o e s Oakville residents will have the opportunity to voice their concerns about the growing traf fic problems in town. On Wed. May 10th, Ward 1 Councillor Kevin Flynn will moderate an open discussion on the matter between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. in the council chambers at the Halton Regional C entre, 1151 Bronte Road. Panelists include Tom McCormack, (Econom ist and Demographer - President of the Canadian A ssociation for Business Economics, chair of the Oakville Economic Development Alliance, member of the Premier's Task Force on the Future o f the G reater Toronto Area), Thunder BaySuperior North M PP Michael Gravelle (provincial transporta tion critic), D ave M cCleary (Halton Region Senior Policy Advisor, Project M anager o f Halton Transit O pportunities Study, Trafalgar Road Corridor Study, Regional Roads 5 & 25 C orridor Strategies), Pauline Mitchell (manager of Public and G overnm ent Affairs, CAA South Central Ontario, founding member of Board of Directors o f O ntario M otor Vehicle Industry Council), and Dave Bradley (Ontario Trucking Association.) The discussion will centre around what is being done to help the problem, what is not being done and what more needs to be done. Citizens are encouraged to attend and participate in the dis cussion by providing their ques tions, complaints and solutions. Anyone unable to attend can Email questions and comments to transportationforum @ region.ha lton.on.ca. For more information about the topics for discussion and/or the solutions to be explored, contact Councillor Kevin Flynn at 905-827-9629. ing a balanced approach to education. The technology boom o f the last few years has placed program m ers and engineers in dem and in an increasingly technology-based economy. A lthough the Ryerson pres ident was quick to acknow l edge the gratitude to Ontario prem ier M ike Harris for the announcem ent about a $600 m illion financing package for universities that em phasize practical and technical educa tion, he was adam ant in his view that it not be an either-or position. "W hat we need is a good balance o f the tw o," he added. Throughout his talk about brainpower and how to get it in post-secondary education, Lajeunesse repeatedly referred to the United States and its com m itm ent. For instance,' while governm ent funding in Canada fell by 6% in the past five years, it has risen by 28% in the U.S. And the brain drain the U .S. o f talented Canadian graduates is another problem w hich m ust be overcom e. L ajeunesse m entioned five years ago a group o f prom i nent business people were asked to name the people they deem ed would-be the leaders o f the future. "More than 54% o f the people mentioned as the bright stars here in Canada are now in the U .S .," said Lajeunesse, adding his own personal experience - o f his six children, three are current ly in the United States. He said if we do not start offering a challenging envi ronm ent for these people, we w ill continue to lose them south o f the border. As to the talk about Ryerson purchasing M aple L eaf Gardens, the university president was vague. Smiling, he said there had been initial discussions with the owners about taking the hockey arena over and using it as a high pro file place for the university but added: "If you can find $120 million, that would be som ething." H| 5 Days OnYfJ APril 30/00 H IM vLast Day Sunday, 38l Inventory ^ j| A M u s t Be Sola Everything up to ^ S p o rts E x c e lle n c e Chain Store prices. f i f f Effl'WH service. Hopedale Mall, 1515 Rebecca St. Oakville (905) 469-8910 Lease a 2000 Mercedes-Benz C230 Kompressor Sedan $ ^Q Q fo r o n ly ^ ^ p e r m o n th Who says your significant other has to be a person. '- . ' *v *$5,500 down, 33 month lease, 6.1% interest, plus freight, taxes and license, optional rims shown, O.A.C. Lease based 18,000km/yr. Additional options available. 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