By Alison Roach
Pierre Lafontainee new leader of university sports

Former CEO and national coach of Swimming Canada Pierre Lafontaine has been named the new leader of Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS), the national governing body. The small 10-person staff at CIS has since been infused with new energy since Lafontaine’s appointment, who personal hopes to focus on keeping Canada’s elite athletes at home, singing TV deals to fund competitive programs, and boosting national pride. “We need to become the destination of choice for high-performance athletes in the country,” said Lafontaine, “We’re losing too many of our best kids to the US.”

With files from The Star

McGill decries budget cuts

McGill University’s Board of Governors stated that there is no way the university can possibly cut $20 million by April, as been requested by the Parti Quebecois government. The cuts would represent nearly five per cent of McGill’s operation budget. McGill’s principal Heather Munroe-Blum called the measures, “draconian, unpredictable [and] ineffective to running a quality-accessibility university system.” The board has asked the PQ to redraw the retroactive cuts, saying their demands are too much for the university to handle.

With files from CBC

New Brunswick tries to hold onto grads

The provincial government is launching a program that will create new jobs and attempt to keep recent university graduates in the province. The One-Job Pledge initiative gives businesses monetary incentives to create new positions for new graduates, or anyone who has graduated within the last four years. Businesses participating in the program will receive government support for a year, and will be expected to continue the job after that period, although this isn’t ensured.

With files from The Brunswickan