University hires new deputy provost

The University recently announced the hiring of a new deputy provost who will replace Susan Cole in the new year.

Laeeque Daneshmend will assume his new role on Jan. 1. Currently the department head of mining, Daneshmend has been with the University since 1995 and is cross-appointed to cultural studies.

According to the University, Daneshmend will oversee the implementation of the recommendations from the Principal’s Commission on Mental Health that are the responsibility of the provost’s office.

Current deputy provost Cole began what was intended to be a five-year term in June, 2010.

Cole, who will be returning to her work in the department of pathology and molecular medicine, will remain as a special advisor to the provost.

— Holly Tousignant

Queen’s Debating Union excels

It’s been a good year for the Queen’s Debating Union, according to club president Amelia McLeod.

At the end of December, six competitors will be attending the World Universities Debating Championship in Berlin.

Although they didn’t do as well as they hoped last year, McLeod said this year they expect to do better.

“We’re putting a much greater emphasis on style which we think is going to help us at Worlds.”

The QDU competes in national and international tournaments almost every weekend, travelling to universities including U of T, McGill and Yale.

This year, the club has had a team in the finalsat every Canadian tournament.

McLeod, ArtSci ’13, attributes the club’s recent competitive success to their focus on training and high recruitment rates, with 25 new members out of 70.

She added that one of their speakers at the Chancellor’s Cup, a tournament hosted by Queen’s, placed in the top ten at Worlds in previous years.

“Queen’s is probably the best debating club out there, not because we’re necessarily the most competitively successful, although we are definitely always in the top three,” McLeod said.

“It’s more that we have a certain level of camaraderie and community that a lot of other clubs don’t.”

The QDU, Canada’s oldest debating club and Queen’s oldest club, has been around for 169 years and is currently ranked 16th in the world.

“We’re the oldest club at a university that thrives on tradition, and I think it really helps bring us together.”

— Chloë Grande

Queen’s fares well in Maclean’s ratings

Maclean’s recently issued their 22nd annual rankings of the forty-nine top Universities in Canada.

Maclean’s assesses the schools based on the quality of students, faculty, library and finances and uses fourteen indicators to rank them.

The schools are ranked in one of three categories: Medical Doctoral, Comprehensive or Primarily Undergraduate schools.

Queen’s falls under the Medical Doctoral category as it has a medical school and offers a wide range of PhD programs.

Like last year, Queen’s was ranked fourth out of 15 schools, coming after McGill, UBC and Toronto.

Simon Fraser ranked first in the Comprehensive category and Mount Allison ranked first in the Primarily Undergrad category for the 16th year in a row.

Out of the 49 total schools Queen’s was ranked sixth for highest quality and eighth for national reputation.

Queen’s ranked first when looking at how many faculty members have won awards, holdings per student in the library, percentage of students who graduate (90.8).

They also ranked first in overall operating expenditures dedicated to student services.

In both overall average entry grade and the amount of money allotted for scholarships and bursaries Queen’s placed second.

— Madeleine Dalkie

Students dance to win biology competition

A group of student biologists won big at a recent synthetic biology competition after merging dance and science to present their research.

Queen’s Genetically Engineered Machine Team’s research was illustrated through the movements of experienced dancers, who performed the choreography of Devon Ryan, Sci ’14. The dance was performed at the regional International Genetically Engineered Machine competition, where the team received the best model award.

They were one of 14 teams from the eastern half of the Americas to move on to the World Championship held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which was won by the Natherlands’ University of Groningen.

— Holly Tousignant