An arbitrator's decision finally ended Brock University's contract dispute with its faculty and librarians over salary increases

Violence against women takes many forms, but men can take the first step in acknowledging their part in ending violence against women, by wearing a white ribbon in November

Trustees representing the 31 member associations and 14,000 academics met in October for the annual general meeting of the CAUT Defence Fund

CAUT has joined the North American Alliance for Fair Employment, a network of grassroots organizations, labor unions, advocates, and academics organized to link those demanding fairness for contingent workers

Over the past 24 years there have been dramatic changes in the funding of Canadian universities. In 1978, government funding accounted for 84 per cent of Canadian universities' operating budgets. By 2002, that funding had declined to about 60 per cent.

Talks between Wilfrid Laurier University and its striking support workers resumed Sept. 26 after a provincial mediator suspended negotiations. The 400 striking workers, members of the WLU Staff Association have been on strike since Sept. 16. At issue are provisions covering contracting out, hours of work, job security and benefits.

A pro-Israel think tank started a web site last month to monitor North American faculty members and universities and to allow students to report on their professors. The Philadelphia-based Middle East Forum maintains "surveys of institutions" and plans to make these available to administrators, trustees, alumni, students, parents, and government officials and legislators.

Canadian university research libraries fare badly in the latest report of the Association of Research Libraries on "Holdings of University Research Libraries in U.S. and Canada."

The complex and bitter divide in the Middle East is flaring up on campuses across North America - raising serious questions about academic freedom and freedom of speech.

Jean Chrétien - now that he has announced the date of his retirement - is seeking to establish his legacy as prime minister. Many big-ticket items were floated in the run-up to the Throne Speech. These proposals, if enacted, could lock spending into the budget for the next five years, effectively tying the hands of any successor. Regrettably, restoring funding for post-secondary education is apparently not on the prime minister's spending list. Mr. Chrétien should listen to the concerns of post-secondary students and their parents before drawing up plans for the future.

The Liberal government of Jean Chrétien is promising to increase funding to the federal granting councils to provide greater support for graduate studies and research.

On Sept. 9 Statistics Canada issued revised data for average university tuition fees for the years 2001-2002 and 2002-2003.

Concordia University's board of governors voted to impose a moratorium on the use of university space for events related to the Middle East conflict following a protest that forced the cancellation of a speech by former Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu Sept. 9.

The adequacy of Canada's guidelines for the ethical treatment of research subjects is being reexamined. Health Canada, the National Council on Ethics in Human Research and the newly formed Interagency Advisory Panel on Research Ethics have all taken steps to consider criticisms and concerns.

By almost every measure, post- secondary education is less affordable today than at any time in the last 60 years, according to a report released in September by CAUT.

Concerned about a rash of incidents that might be limiting academic freedom in the United States, the American Association of University Professors is launching a special committee to review and analyze events on campus since the terrorist attacks of Sept.11.

Two federal tax credits designed to increase access to post-secondary education provide little benefit to low-income students, according to a report released by the U.S. General Accounting Office.