Between the stench of the St. Lawrence River and the never-ending PCB disposal issue, Quebec has a toxic waste problem. This being the case, you might think that Quebec would make sure it had a few people who were sufficiently qualified to go out and manage the clean-up operations. >> You'd be wrong. The ecotoxicology program at Concordia University, one of only a handful of such programs in Canada and the only one of its kind in Quebec, is in danger of being shut down. The program, which offers a graduate diploma on how industrial pollutants affect the environment, is no longer accepting any new admissions--despite the fact that 90 per cent of graduates find work immediately upon graduation. >> The admissions ban has angered a number of students who are hoping to keep the program alive. Concordia must offer the ecotox courses until all current students have graduated, so Ghalib Bardai decided to take advantage of the situation: he is one of nine people who have registered as "independent" students. They intend to take the courses and get the training, even though, as Bardai says, "they have no contractual obligation to give me a diploma for it." >> Bardai and Mike Preus, another Concordia student who wants to do the ecotox program, have been lobbying Concordia's Board of Governors to keep the program alive. Anyone interested in their efforts, or in joining the cavalcade of "independent" grad students descending upon the program, can reach Ghalib Bardai via e-mail at bard@securenet.net. --Philip Preville
Between the stench of the St. Lawrence River and the never-ending PCB disposal issue, Quebec has a toxic waste problem. This being the case, you might think that Quebec would make sure it had a few people who were sufficiently qualified to go out and manage the clean-up operations. >> You'd be wrong. The ecotoxicology program at Concordia University, one of only a handful of such programs in Canada and the only one of its kind in Quebec, is in danger of being shut down. The program, which offers a graduate diploma on how industrial pollutants affect the environment, is no longer accepting any new admissions--despite the fact that 90 per cent of graduates find work immediately upon graduation. >> The admissions ban has angered a number of students who are hoping to keep the program alive. Concordia must offer the ecotox courses until all current students have graduated, so Ghalib Bardai decided to take advantage of the situation: he is one of nine people who have registered as "independent" students. They intend to take the courses and get the training, even though, as Bardai says, "they have no contractual obligation to give me a diploma for it." >> Bardai and Mike Preus, another Concordia student who wants to do the ecotox program, have been lobbying Concordia's Board of Governors to keep the program alive. Anyone interested in their efforts, or in joining the cavalcade of "independent" grad students descending upon the program, can reach Ghalib Bardai via e-mail at bard@securenet.net. --Philip Preville