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College Math and a high percent of failures
By Benjamin Ricetto


According to a recent study, Students in Ontario high schools are not achieving the levels they should in math when preparing for post-secondary education.

That leaves many college students without basic skills to build on to be successful.
The study, conducted at the community colleges in the Toronto area, shows that 34 per cent of 10,000 students are failing math in their first year.

Loyalist College President Maureen Piercy says, “Ensuring students have the math skills they need for science, technology and communications programs has been a issue over the years. It’s hard to be sure exactly how many students at the college are having difficulties.”

Loyalist offers programs that may help such students with their problems. Peer tutoring helps, as does the college prep program, which offers a high school equivalency and guarantees admission to Loyalist students who successfully complete it. Subjects include mathematics, communications, computers and science, but may also be tailored to a specific student’s needs.

The college prep program offered by the college is available to anyone who needs to pick up a course, credit or get a high school equivalency.

Brian Gibb, of the College Access lab, told The Pioneer anyone can join this program and it’s especially valuable for anyone looking to go back to school after working for awhile. Gibb also said, “ It can be used a refresher, but also for people who need the education from Grades 9 to 12. The best part is the cost is fully funded by the government of Ontario. So this allows many students to come and take part in getting a post-secondary education.”

The peer tutoring program at Loyalist may be an option for some students when they are already in school and struggling with a certain program.

This program is open to everyone, from their drop-in English and math help to peer mentoring, in which the department sets a student up with a upper-year student who has maintained a GPA of at least 70 per cent. The peer tutoring program allows a student 10 hours of free tutoring a month, which works out to two and half hours a week.

Deiana Gonyea, an administrator of the peer tutoring department says coming to this program is a great way to get extra help when needed.
“We have known students who have succeeded in maintaining one grade level higher after this peer tutoring program,” she said.

Gonyea also stressed, however, that this program doesn’t guarantee success and doesn’t cancel out the fact students still need to go to class.

“ Most of my peer tutorees become tutors the next year, so that is a great achievement for these students,” Gonyea says.

The purpose of the program is to supplement education and promote learner independence. Peer tutors are available for all college programs at Loyalist.

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25 years of solar water at Prince William apartments

Don Macpherson, manager of the Prince William Apartments stands with the buildings solar water panels, which heat the buildings water in the summer.

25 years of solar water at Prince William apartments
by Ben Ricetto

Throughout the years people have probably wondered what those strange silver things are that sit on the top of the Prince William apartments.

Though mirror-like, they are actually solar water panels, that pump water through the panels, creating free hot water.

The solar panels work when the sun is shining Water is then pumped upwards and put through a series of pipes in each panel, heating the water it travels through the pipes.

These panels have been on the building for 25 years and provide a percentage of the hot water used in the 136 apartments. During the winter months and at nighttime, furnace-run boilers take over to provide hot water, thus limiting the output of pollutants and creating an environmentally friendly building.

These panels were ahead of their time; the building is an example to other big buildings in Belleville and surrounding metropolises including Toronto and Ottawa. The technology provides approximately 60-80 per cent of the hot water for the building in the summer and between 10-30 per cent of the hot water in the winter.

Even with this old equipment, the statistics still are very impressive. Newer technology can produce far greater results, with solar panels on newer structures producing 90-100 per cent of hot water requirements in the summer months.

Don MacPherson of Prince William Apartments told the Pioneer that within his last eight years of running and managing building he has only had to shut down this system twice, once just to replace a fan.

The idea of making buildings more environmentally friendly is a concept that is starting to become more attractive and more companies are building green buildings.

MacPherson was sure this was the only system of its kind in Belleville, but some in Prince Edward County are classified as "off the grid" meaning they do not use any power generated off-site.

This landmark building will continue to operate with just minor repairs along the way to ensure the production of hot water while reducing its environmental impact.

Potential students roam the halls of Loyalist

Potential students roam the halls of Loyalist
by Ben Ricetto

It is that time of year when colleges and universities are preparing promotion and recruitment campaigns so students can decide which programs are right for them.

Starting this month, acceptances will be sent out and high school students will have to decide which school is for them.

When deciding what school to attend, students tend to use location as one reason and as Gretta Rossi, recruitment officer at Loyalist says, "Loyalist tends to get that population of students that don't want to be in the big city but don't want to be in a rural environment. We are based on a 200-acre parkland, which in turn is a great area for a school."

Schools tend to offer tours and incentives to bring students to their school. Loyalist College offers tours Monday to Friday, 9 a.m to 4 p.m throughout the year.

Rossi suggests students make an appointment for a tour, so Loyalist can tailor that tour to their desired program. The tour gives students a chance to talk to other first-year and second-year students about courses and the facilities offered at Loyalist.

Loyalist College also hosts " Be a student for a day", in which high school students from Grades 10 to 12 can get the lowdown on what it is like to be a college student at Loyalist, and to determine if certain programs are right for them. While the day is geared to Grade 12 students, others high school students are welcome to attend.

Mature students can take advantage of the Return to Learn program in which people who have been out of school for a number of years can get information about the college and find which program will take them where they want to go.

Loyalist has two full-time recruiters and two contract positions; they work from September to December travelling to high schools telling students what Loyalist has to offer.

Loyalist is also part of the College Information Program in which 26-28 college representatives travel to other colleges and provide information about each school in a miniature open house/convention type setting, which occurs in the fall.

This allows students to talk to all representatives and learn everything they need to know about the colleges without having to travel to the campuses. For example, if a student is interested in a certain program, they can talk with all representatives and then when making their five choices on the applications, they can use the information to establish preferences.

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Igloo Building Part 1