Student threatened on campus

The AMS released a statement on Monday condemning an “incident of intimidation” which was said to have taken place Sunday evening, following a heated AMS Special Assembly meeting.

The statement denounced such behaviour and asked students to take advantage of campus safety resources and to report similar incidents.

Campus Security received a call from a person identifying them as a “victim of an act of intimidation,” Director David Patterson told the Journal via email.

The caller was encouraged to report the incident to Kingston Police, he said, adding that any penalty external to the Student Code of Conduct would have to be addressed by the police.

Patterson couldn’t provide any additional details about the case, but noted that students who feel threatened are advised to stay alert while walking home and remain in well-lit areas. Those who believe they are being followed, he added, can go to the nearest emergency phone or call Kingston Police or Campus Security directly.

— Holly Tousignant

Students raise money for homeless shelter

The Queen’s University Liberal Association (QULA) raised over $1,200 this February during their “Last Penny Drive Campaign” in support of the Kingston Youth Shelter.

The month-long campaign encouraged Queen’s students and the Kingston community to sponsor a bed at the shelter by loose change. It costs $200 to provide a bed for homeless youth for one month, including food and counseling.

The initiative was a joint project run by the community-based Kingston and the Islands Federal Liberal Association (KIFLA) and the Queen’s University Liberal Association. It was spearheaded by the KIFLA Outreach Director Raly Chakarova, who said on Wednesday that the project is important for preventing homeless youth from remaining homeless in the long-term.

Gabrielle Schachter, the Outreach Director for QULA, said the youth shelter had lost funding prior to the campaign, which made donations even more essential. Maintaining services at the shelter was the main goal, she said, but they also wanted to make Queen’s students more aware of issues facing Kingston.

“The project showed us that it doesn’t take a lot to raise money,” she said. “We can definitely do more next year.”

The fundraiser will be an annual event in coming years.

— Sebastian Leck

Celebrated actor comes to campus

Screen and stage star Paul Gross graced Queen’s with his presence and his take on fame and the entertainment industry.

Gross could best be described as a multidimensional artist, involving himself in both acting on screen and the stage, producing, writing and directing. His big break was in the 90s television series Due South.

Gross visited the school to talk to students of the Stage and Screen Special Field Concentration on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Drama professor Craig Walker said the departments invite a different artist each year to visit.

“In the past we have had a lot of very interesting people, Daniel MacIvor, Wendy Crewson, Susan Coyne, Tom McCamus, Judith Thompson, (some of which had former ties to the school),” Walker said. “All people who are fairly large names in the Canadian industry.” Walker said Gross is the perfect example of the many Canadian actors who work in both theatre and film.

“[Gross] started out acting in theatre and almost immediately he was writing for theatre,” he said. “Then his acting followed into film.

Walker added that Gross “infected a lot of students” with his passion for the industry, including theatre, film and writing.

[He’s] somebody who is so sophisticated, who works at such a high level in the business, you would think he would be a little bit more guarded about speaking about his experiences. He’s not,” he said.

“He gave them a really bracingly realistic look at what the business is like.”

— Emily Walker