While Quebec is gearing up for elections, the Students' Society just wrapped theirs up, with a record voter turnout.
First winner is the SSMU itself, which finally passed their accreditation referendum after a failed attempt last year. The arts and science undergraduate societies also succeeded in their bids for accreditation.
The new SSMU president is a familiar face: vice-president of communications and events Naeem Datoo won his promotion handily.
He will be joined on the SSMU executive council by Mia Gewertz, who will become the new VP Clubs and Services, while current science senator Vivian Choy will become VP University Affairs. Datoo's old portfolio will be taken by Kimberly Zell and Rod De Castro becomes VP Operations.
A somewhat controversial referendum to collect a $11.84 annual fee from all undergraduates to renovate the University Centre and bring it up to fire code also passed with 52 percent of the vote.
University Marshal Kate Le Maistre, Education, and Special Events Coordinator Pat Wood, Secretariat, put together a whiz-bang of a celebration for the Installation. Their unflagging efforts and equilibrium in the face of organizing such a huge event are to be heartily lauded.
H. Patrick Glenn, Faculty of Law, has had his Killam Research Fellowship, "On Common Laws," renewed for a second year. The Canada Council for the Arts administers these awards, which enable Canada's best scientists and scholars to devote two years to full-time research and writing.
Philip Barker, coordinator of the Centre for Neuronal Survival at the Montreal Neurological Hospital and associate professor Neurology and Neurosurgery at McGill, received a New Discoveries Grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Barker studies genes that may contribute to autism.
Pharmacology doctoral student and distance runner, Sarah Ali-Khan, won three gold medals and was named co-athlete of the meet at the Canadian Interuniversity Sports track and field championships in Windsor, Ontario. Ali-Khan, who earned All-Canadian honours for the fifth time, broke two McGill records. She is the all-time gold medal winner in McGill history with 50 in 26 career track meets! She will now concentrate on competing for Canada at the world cross-country championships in Lausanne, Switzerland, March 28-29.
Karim Nader of the Department of Psychology was awarded $40,000 over two years from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. The program is one of the oldest fellowship programs in the U.S. Fellows were selected from qualified scientists in the early stages of their careers on the basis of their "exceptional promise to contribute to the advancement of knowledge." Nader is studying the mechanisms involved in memory storage and re-storage.