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Winnipeg Free Press
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Winnipeg Free Press
New U of W project a crash course in classic and contemporary works
The University of Winnipeg is launching a first-of-its-kind course that will introduce undergraduate students to classics, religion and Indigenous studies all at once. Four academics will co-teach Introduction to the Humanities — an experimental project that's been five years in the making — this fall. 'This is pretty unique and special, and I think it has the potential to grow into quite the feather in U of W's cap,' said Alyson Brickey, an assistant professor in the department of English. The University of Winnipeg (Ruth Bonneville / Free Press files) Brickey, alongside colleagues in the faculty of arts — associate dean Brandon Christopher, associate professor Melissa Funke and professor Carlos Colorado — designed it together. They plan to take turns assigning famous texts in their respective research areas and delivering lectures to an inaugural cohort of 36. A variety of scholars with other areas of expertise are scheduled to make guest appearances to round out the comprehensive intro to the social sciences. The co-creators took inspiration from Halifax-based University of King's College. Students enrolled in its foundation year program on the East Coast spend all of their time reading and analyzing influential historic books, such as the Bible, Frankenstein and The Communist Manifesto. King's teaches this content in chronological order, but U of W will group lesson plans by theme: beginnings; self and community; love and desire; and endings. 'This might look like a 'great books' course — but in so far as it does, the four of us have been actively thinking about how the traditional canon has excluded important voices who have an awful lot to contribute to the study of big ideas,' said Colorado, a scholar of religion, politics and identity. Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare and Frederick Douglass's famous speech, What to the Slave is the Fourth of July? are on the 2025-26 syllabus. It also features contemporary works, such as North End Love Songs, a 2011 collection from Winnipeg poet Katharena Vermette, and Kendrick Lamar's 2015 Pulitzer Prize-winning album, To Pimp a Butterfly. The associate dean of arts said the setup will require students to both think critically about the lasting influence of historical texts and how modern-day interpretation changes their meaning. For Christopher, who researches Renaissance literature, what's most exciting about the new course is the opportunity to learn from his colleagues on a regular basis. It's rare to be able to sit in on a colleague's lecture, let alone teach alongside them, he noted. 'The way we teach things is often siloed, but nothing happens in a vacuum,' he said, adding that the interdisciplinary nature of the course will allow students to make connections between texts and disciplines, from rhetoric to philosophy. Brickey echoed those comments. She said their goal is to encourage more 'cross-pollination' among professors and students as they consider big questions about the history of human thought. Introduction to the Humanities was designed to be a first-year course spanning two semesters (MULT-1301 and MULT-1302) for a total of 12 credits. Registration is underway. As is standard in foundational humanities classes, there will be an emphasis on essay writing 101 and group presentations. Much of the allotted time will be spent in intimate tutorial settings. Tuesdays A weekly look at politics close to home and around the world. Funke called it 'the ultra U of W experience.' Students are going to get to know each other and four professors 'very well,' in addition to becoming anchored in the community on campus, said the researcher who is interested in Greek literature and gender and sexuality. There are 1,422 courses scheduled to run in 2025-26. Last year, four in 10 students at U of W were working towards an arts major of some kind. Roughly half of all pupils were in an arts classroom on the downtown campus at some point. Maggie MacintoshEducation reporter Maggie Macintosh reports on education for the Free Press. Originally from Hamilton, Ont., she first reported for the Free Press in 2017. Read more about Maggie. Funding for the Free Press education reporter comes from the Government of Canada through the Local Journalism Initiative. Every piece of reporting Maggie produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Winnipeg Free Press
14-07-2025
- General
- Winnipeg Free Press
Long waits for bathroom at U of W shelter, evacuee says
A northern Manitoba woman forced from her home due to wildfire says an evacuation centre set up at the University of Winnipeg is not properly equipped to handle evacuees. Sophia Harper waited in line for several hours to use the washroom at the U of W's Axworthy Health & RecPlex, which has been set up as a congregate shelter for wildfire evacuees. 'I started feeling bladder problems because you can't just hold it for that long,' Harper said outside the complex Monday afternoon. SOPHIA HARPER PHOTO Members of Sophia Harper's family, from Garden Hill Anisininew Nation, aboard a Hercules aircraft bound for Winnipeg last week. She is one of more than 450 Manitobans staying at the shelter, and has no other option because she has no friends or family in Winnipeg. Harper, who fled her home in Garden Hill Anisininew Nation on Friday, said the gym has one set of bathrooms for women and one for men. 'I keep sending my kids over to check if the line is long because I can't stand there forever,' she said. Harper left the remote, fly-in community of about 4,000 people Friday morning by airplane and arrived at the U of W shelter by the afternoon. The community is located about 600 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg. Harper is staying at the shelter with her children and grandchildren but says it's been difficult being around hundreds of strangers and sleeping on cots. 'I get cramps all over my body and I can't lay down on that (cot) so I slept on the floor,' she said. The shelter can fit as many as 800 people, the province said. On Monday afternoon, about a dozen evacuees milled around the complex's entrance near the U of W. A pair of evacuees, who declined to provide their name, said they would rather stay anywhere else and might try to move to the shelter on Leila Avenue because it's bigger and reportedly has more amenities. 'I keep sending my kids over to check if the line is long because I can't stand there forever.'–Sophia Harper The Leila site, which is hosting about 650 people, has room for 1,200 evacuees. Rows of green cots, some occupied by people, could be seen from the U of W gym's entrance Monday. Some blankets were tied up to look like tents above the cots. Harper said the shelter is doing its best to feed and clothe people, but said she had to give her socks to a fellow evacuee yesterday. 'He said he hadn't changed his socks in two or three days, I couldn't believe it,' she said. A provincial spokesperson said it had not received any complaints about the lack of bathrooms at the Axworthy complex but a Free Press reporter spotted a truck setting up several portable washrooms outside the gym Monday afternoon. Alex McDougall, interim Grand Chief of Anisininew Okimawin, which represents four Island Lake First Nations including Garden Hill, has spoken to the provincial and federal governments about additional resources at the shelters. 'I think all of the resources that have been provided are stressed to their limits everywhere,' he said. Wednesdays A weekly dispatch from the head of the Free Press newsroom. McDougall also worried about keeping evacuees busy while they're away from home and in an unfamiliar place. 'I think all of the resources that have been provided are stressed to their limits everywhere.'–Alex McDougall 'It's getting a bit overwhelming as far as trying to provide care and other activities to keep these members busy and preoccupied with activities so they're not just sitting in these shelters waiting to hear when they're going to go home,' he said. Children are going stir crazy owing to a lack of activities in the shelters, McDougall said. 'We need to get some more help on the ground here to provide that assistance to those members, maybe planning field trips or going to the zoo, taking them to the movies.' Nicole BuffieMultimedia producer Nicole Buffie is a multimedia producer who reports for the Free Press city desk. Born and bred in Winnipeg, Nicole graduated from Red River College's Creative Communications program in 2020 and worked as a reporter throughout Manitoba before joining the Free Press newsroom in 2023. Read more about Nicole. Every piece of reporting Nicole produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Winnipeg Free Press
03-07-2025
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
U of W governance concerns cited
Twelve days after a University of Winnipeg board member resigned in protest over governance concerns at the cash-strapped campus, his ex-colleagues approved a balanced budget that rests on continued austerity measures. The board of regents — a group of appointees who are alumni, administrators and public representatives, among others, and in charge of policy making at U of W — approved a $175.5-million budget on June 24. Domestic tuition is increasing by 3.5 per cent overall. International student rates are up seven per cent. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES The province has injected another $2.5 million at the University of Winnipeg to help boost the post-secondary institution's finances. The new blueprint starts to phase out 'low rate' tuition labels for some courses that have not traditionally required extensive marking or equipment costs. Former regent Cory Sul stepped down before those decisions were made. Sul submitted his resignation letter on June 13 to board chair Bruce Miller and Advanced Education Minister Renée Cable. 'Manitobans rightfully expect transparency, accountability, and proper governance of their public institutions,' he wrote in a statement to the Free Press on Wednesday. Sul, a practising dentist, was appointed to the volunteer position by the provincial government in 2019. Citing his role as a representative of public interest on the board, he said he took 'the responsible step' of notifying the province about his personal concerns. 'Serious concerns about governance at the University of Winnipeg have been repeatedly raised by multiple individuals and groups over the past couple of years,' he noted. The university's faculty association penned an unusual letter to regents in July 2023 to express concern about an exodus of senior employees in a short timeframe and the subsequent loss of institutional knowledge. Senior administration faced criticism in 2024-25 for failing to consult community members before cutting its women's soccer team, discontinuing its English language program and introducing a new campus access policy. More recently, an employee at the U of W submitted a whistleblower report to the Manitoba ombudsman in April that called for a probe into institutional transparency and leadership decision-making. Sul refused to share his resignation letter, saying it was intended only for Miller and Cable. Miller declined to discuss the matter. He deferred comment to Caleb Zimmerman, executive director of communications at the post-secondary institute. 'Since the board of regents is an independent governing body, any further comment or discussion regarding its membership would rest with the board itself,' Zimmerman said in an email Wednesday. Multiple current regents told the Free Press in separate interviews they've been hearing increasingly from community members who are frustrated by a perceived lack of transparency related to decision-making. Two board members confirmed the group was not informed prior to senior administration announcing in January that it was scrapping soccer and the English language program. President Todd Mondor has defended his leadership style, which he describes as transparent and collaborative, citing numerous town halls organized during his tenure. Mondor hosted his latest such event on June 25 to share details about the 2025-26 budget. He debriefed community members about the persistent financial challenges — which he has repeatedly attributed to a drop in international enrolment and what he maintains is an unfair provincial funding formula — during the event. Attendees also learned about an eleventh-hour injection of $2.5 million in funding from the province. A government spokesperson said the two parties have been working closely 'to understand student needs.' The province has set aside extra funding this year to support them, the spokesperson said. Provincial operating funding is increasing by five per cent in total, the equivalent of about $4 million, as per the U of W's budget news release. Wednesdays Columnist Jen Zoratti looks at what's next in arts, life and pop culture. Faculty association president Peter Miller said his members were initially informed that U of W had to find $13.7 million in cost savings in the 2025-26 budget to get out of the red. His top concerns? The fallout of increased vacancy management and the teaching assistant budget being frozen at last year's levels, despite the fact these employees recently negotiated higher salaries through their union. 'Effectively, we have fewer TA hours, so I'm hopeful that the $2.5 million goes right to the front line, the core mission of the university — i.e., let's support instructors and then let's hire contract staff when we need them,' the professor of classics said. Zimmermand declined to share the U of W budget slide-show presentation Wednesday because the current version has yet to be updated to reflect the last-minute funding announcement from the province. Maggie MacintoshEducation reporter Maggie Macintosh reports on education for the Free Press. Originally from Hamilton, Ont., she first reported for the Free Press in 2017. Read more about Maggie. Funding for the Free Press education reporter comes from the Government of Canada through the Local Journalism Initiative. Every piece of reporting Maggie produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Winnipeg Free Press
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
University of Winnipeg employee calls for investigation into leadership under whistleblower law
A University of Winnipeg employee has filed a whistleblower report that calls for a probe into overall operations at the post-secondary institution amid mounting concerns about its leadership. The Free Press obtained a six-page submission to the Manitoba ombudsman about the publicly funded institution under president Todd Mondor. It echoes concerns on campus about employee turnover, transparency about recent cost-cutting measures and new rules that censor protests and other activities at U of W. The complaint was filed late last month. The ombudsman is assessing whether it requires further investigation. 'It might be unusual to have a whistleblower complaint, but that may be more reflective of the person who filed it rather than the culture at the U of W,' Mondor told the Free Press Monday in a rare interview. SUPPLIED Manitoba's whistleblower protection legislation facilitates the disclosure and investigation of significant and serious wrongdoing within public bodies. It was created to protect employees who have evidence of unethical or illegal activities. U of W's president defended his track record over the last three years — his five-year term began in April 2022 — at the helm of the school, saying he's tried to be as transparent and collaborative as possible. Mondor said that ethos is why he has organized seven town halls during his tenure and made it well known the university is projecting a significant deficit for 2025-2026. Senior administration has primarily attributed the financial crunch to an unfair provincial funding formula and a drop in first-year international student enrolment. Mondor said the number of new international students this year dropped by 10 per cent compared to 2023-2024. Manitoba's Public Interest Disclosure (Whistleblower Protection) Act Provincial legislation was first introduced in 2007 to protect bureaucrats and employees at other public institutions from retaliation if they step forward with information about serious wrongdoing inside the public service. Employees must submit a form that identifies the type of alleged wrongdoing, a description of it and the names of those responsible. Following an initial assessment, the ombudsman can decline or launch an investigation, facilitate a resolution or refer a case to an institution's Public Interest Disclosure Act designated officer or the auditor general. While he said that percentage is expected to triple next year, he did not have a rough estimate of how much U of W expects to be in the red in a year's time. Public meeting minutes show he has told senate the shortfall could be between $4 million and $18 million. The administration has announced numerous reductions to find cost savings. Since the fall, they have included a hiring freeze, reduced discretionary spending and cancelling both an English-language program and the 2025 women's soccer season. The university has not revealed how much each measure has saved, but it did not end the recent fiscal year with a deficit. The whistleblower is calling for an investigation into spending on external consultants and management positions. U of W recently contracted Higher Education Strategy Associates, a Toronto-based consulting firm, to study Manitoba's funding model for post-secondary education, conduct a campus space audit and develop its new strategic plan. Mondor's administration has also hired Show and Tell Agency, a marketing firm headquartered in the Exchange District, to create a brand strategy. 'A university that is financially challenged should be very careful about which consultants it hires for anything — for strategic plans and, certainly, for branding exercises,' said Peter Miller, president of the faculty association, echoing the whistleblower's concerns about frivolous spending. Miller said morale among his members is low and budget pressures are only one contributing factor. There has been a 'fundamental shift' in how his employer of nearly a decade operates, said the associate professor and chair of the classics department. 'Faculty are being consulted less and are playing a less-central role in the governance of the institution,' he said. One example is the administration updating a policy on accessing buildings and posting it online without consulting academics who are contractually entitled to have input on changes to their workplace, Miller noted. The changes require outdoor event organizers to obtain explicit pre-approval from the administration and ban visitors outside regular school hours 'unless authorized by security.' The updated policy explicitly prohibits camping on university grounds. Those updates, as well as the drafting of an entirely new convocation policy that polices attire and activities, appear to respond to a recent wave of pro-Palestinian protests at universities in Winnipeg and across the country. 'I understand it's tough to be an administrator. I wouldn't want to do it, but I think they really need to consider what kind of university culture they want to manifest and to nurture.'–Kelly Gorkoff, associate professor and chair of the UofW criminal justice department Protesters set up encampments both at the U of W and University of Manitoba, Mondor's previous employer, last spring. A medical school valedictorian at the U of M made headlines after he urged fellow graduates to call for a ceasefire in Gaza. Kelly Gorkoff, a researcher who has worked at U of W for 18 years, said a lot of her colleagues are concerned about the state of transparency and 'the direction of the university.' 'I understand it's tough to be an administrator. I wouldn't want to do it, but I think they really need to consider what kind of university culture they want to manifest and to nurture. Universities have always been places of freedom of thinking, freedom of debate,' said the associate professor and chair of the criminal justice department. Gorkoff said there is a disconnect between U of W leadership's concerns about the suppression of academic freedom south of the border and its actions. As far as Miller is concerned, convocation is an extension of what happens in the classroom, so it should be a place for debate, discussion and dissent. He called it striking that U of W administration has written a graduation policy that would bar an attendee from holding up a sign that says 'land back' or wearing a keffiyeh, a black-and-white headdress that is a symbol of the Palestinian liberation movement. Asked about community concerns related to policy-making, Mondor said the university is formalizing existing practices and takes faculty input into consideration. While indicating he is not leading the convocation policy process, the president said, 'We don't want to suppress anyone's individual right to do whatever the heck they want.' 'That's why it's not live,' he said, adding the draft may not be approved and not go into effect, after all. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. Mondor was asked for but did not provide the total cost of recent external contracts. He did, however, defend them as one-off expenses that drew on administrative budgets. U of W originally planned a public budget town hall this month. The university now plans to table its fiscal blueprint in early June. The Manitoba government did not directly respond to a question about whether it was aware of a whistleblower report involving the school. 'The ombudsman is the appropriate channel to deal with and investigate these matters,' a spokesperson for the department of advanced education said in a statement. The ombudsman's office indicated it cannot discuss specific inquiries or disclosures as they are treated confidentially. The time it takes to assess disclosures and conduct investigations varies based on available information and the volume of inquiries, said Amie Lesyk, communications officer for the ombudsman. Jill Perron has been Manitoba's ombudsman since 2019. Lesyk said the ombudsman receives an average of 25 whistleblower disclosures under Manitoba's Public Interest Disclosure (Whistleblower Protection) Act annually. A report on 2023-2024 activity shows 23 disclosures of wrongdoing were submitted; 16 of them, two of which were acted on, were closed. Maggie MacintoshEducation reporter Maggie Macintosh reports on education for the Free Press. Originally from Hamilton, Ont., she first reported for the Free Press in 2017. Read more about Maggie. Funding for the Free Press education reporter comes from the Government of Canada through the Local Journalism Initiative. Every piece of reporting Maggie produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Winnipeg Free Press
14-05-2025
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
U of W employee calls for investigation into university's leadership under whistleblower legislation
A University of Winnipeg employee has filed a whistleblower report that calls for a probe into overall operations at the post-secondary institution amid mounting concerns about its leadership. The Free Press obtained a six-page submission to the Manitoba ombudsman about the publicly funded institution under president Todd Mondor. It echoes concerns on campus about employee turnover, transparency about recent cost-cutting measures and new rules that censor protests and other activities at U of W. The complaint was filed late last month. The ombudsman is assessing whether it requires further investigation. 'It might be unusual to have a whistleblower complaint, but that may be more reflective of the person who filed it rather than the culture at the U of W,' Mondor told the Free Press Monday in a rare interview. Manitoba's whistleblower protection legislation facilitates the disclosure and investigation of significant and serious wrongdoing within public bodies. It was created to protect employees who have evidence of unethical or illegal activities. U of W's president defended his track record over the last three years — his five-year term began in April 2022 — at the helm of the school, saying he's tried to be as transparent and collaborative as possible. Mondor said that ethos is why he has organized seven town halls during his tenure and made it well known the university is projecting a significant deficit for 2025-2026. Senior administration has primarily attributed the financial crunch to an unfair provincial funding formula and a drop in first-year international student enrolment. Mondor said the number of new international students this year dropped by 10 per cent compared to 2023-2024. While he said that percentage is expected to triple next year, he did not have a rough estimate of how much U of W expects to be in the red in a year's time. Public meeting minutes show he has told senate the shortfall could be between $4 million and $18 million. The administration has announced numerous reductions to find cost savings. Since the fall, they have included a hiring freeze, reduced discretionary spending and cancelling both an English-language program and the 2025 women's soccer season. The university has not revealed how much each measure has saved, but it did not end the recent fiscal year with a deficit. The whistleblower is calling for an investigation into spending on external consultants and management positions. U of W recently contracted Higher Education Strategy Associates, a Toronto-based consulting firm, to study Manitoba's funding model for post-secondary education, conduct a campus space audit and develop its new strategic plan. Mondor's administration has also hired Show and Tell Agency, a marketing firm headquartered in the Exchange District, to create a brand strategy. 'A university that is financially challenged should be very careful about which consultants it hires for anything — for strategic plans and, certainly, for branding exercises,' said Peter Miller, president of the faculty association, echoing the whistleblower's concerns about frivolous spending. Miller said morale among his members is low and budget pressures are only one contributing factor. There has been a 'fundamental shift' in how his employer of nearly a decade operates, said the associate professor and chair of the classics department. 'Faculty are being consulted less and are playing a less-central role in the governance of the institution,' he said. One example is the administration updating a policy on accessing buildings and posting it online without consulting academics who are contractually entitled to have input on changes to their workplace, Miller noted. The changes require outdoor event organizers to obtain explicit pre-approval from the administration and ban visitors outside regular school hours 'unless authorized by security.' The updated policy explicitly prohibits camping on university grounds. Those updates, as well as the drafting of an entirely new convocation policy that polices attire and activities, appear to respond to a recent wave of pro-Palestinian protests at universities in Winnipeg and across the country. Protesters set up encampments both at the U of W and University of Manitoba, Mondor's previous employer, last spring. A medical school valedictorian at the U of M made headlines after he urged fellow graduates to call for a ceasefire in Gaza. Kelly Gorkoff, a researcher who has worked at U of W for 18 years, said a lot of her colleagues are concerned about the state of transparency and 'the direction of the university.' 'I understand it's tough to be an administrator. I wouldn't want to do it, but I think they really need to consider what kind of university culture they want to manifest and to nurture. Universities have always been places of freedom of thinking, freedom of debate,' said the associate professor and chair of the criminal justice department. Gorkoff said there is a disconnect between U of W leadership's concerns about the suppression of academic freedom south of the border and its actions. As far as Miller is concerned, convocation is an extension of what happens in the classroom, so it should be a place for debate, discussion and dissent. He called it striking that U of W administration has written a graduation policy that would bar an attendee from holding up a sign that says 'land back' or wearing a keffiyeh, a black-and-white headdress that is a symbol of the Palestinian liberation movement. Asked about community concerns related to policy-making, Mondor said the university is formalizing existing practices and takes faculty input into consideration. While indicating he is not leading the convocation policy process, the president said, 'We don't want to suppress anyone's individual right to do whatever the heck they want.' 'That's why it's not live,' he said, adding the draft may not be approved and not go into effect, after all. Mondor was asked for but did not provide the total cost of recent external contracts. He did, however, defend them as one-off expenses that drew on administrative budgets. U of W originally planned a public budget town hall this month. The university now plans to table its fiscal blueprint in early June. The Manitoba government did not directly respond to a question about whether it was aware of a whistleblower report involving the school. 'The ombudsman is the appropriate channel to deal with and investigate these matters,' a spokesperson for the department of advanced education said in a statement. The ombudsman's office indicated it cannot discuss specific inquiries or disclosures as they are treated confidentially. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. The time it takes to assess disclosures and conduct investigations varies based on available information and the volume of inquiries, said Amie Lesyk, communications officer for the ombudsman. Jill Perron has been Manitoba's ombudsman since 2019. Lesyk said the ombudsman receives an average of 25 whistleblower disclosures under Manitoba's Public Interest Disclosure (Whistleblower Protection) Act annually. A report on 2023-2024 activity shows 23 disclosures of wrongdoing were submitted; 16 of them, two of which were acted on, were closed. Maggie MacintoshEducation reporter Maggie Macintosh reports on education for the Free Press. Originally from Hamilton, Ont., she first reported for the Free Press in 2017. Read more about Maggie. Funding for the Free Press education reporter comes from the Government of Canada through the Local Journalism Initiative. Every piece of reporting Maggie produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
