2006-2007

News Release

REF NO.: 0

SUBJECT: Grenfell - Grenfell prepares for spring convocation 2007

DATE: May 3, 2007

Sir Wilfred Grenfell College will hold its largest-ever convocation ceremony in the Pepsi Studio on Friday, May 11, at 10 a.m.
Memorial University’s west coast campus will see roughly 180 students accept bachelor’s degrees in arts, business administration, education, fine arts, nursing, science, and master’s degrees in education. Chris Brookes, documentary radio broadcaster, will be awarded an honorary doctor of letters degree.
As usual, there will be a webcast of the ceremony. The webcast will begin at 4 p.m. – visit www.swgc.mun.ca on May 11 and follow the links provided. Western Regional School of Nursing will hold its annual awards ceremony at the Pepsi Centre at 2:30 p.m.
“Moving our convocation activities to the Pepsi Studio was the logical choice, given our increasing size and our new partnership with the Pepsi Centre,” said Dr. John Ashton, principal of Sir Wilfred Grenfell College. “We are developing new programs, our enrollment is growing and our campus size will further increase with the addition of a new academic building and student housing next year.”
In addition to Mr. Brookes, the honorees at spring convocation in St. John’s are Lt.-Gen. Roméo Dallaire, soldier and humanitarian; writer Wayne Johnston; Moyra Buchan, advocate for people with mental illnesses; Dr. Jack Clark, longtime director of C-CORE; Barbara Hopkins, founding president of the Autism Society of Newfoundland and Labrador; Miller Ayre, businessman and publisher of the Telegram; Bruce Cockburn, singer, songwriter and humanitarian; and Hayley Wickenheiser, captain of the Canadian national women’s hockey team.
For more information about convocation at Grenfell College, contact Connie Boland at ext. 6275 or ceboland@swgc.mun.ca.  
 
Biography – Chris Brookes
For his contributions to the development of Newfoundland theatre, and for his internationally-acclaimed documentaries, author, playwright, director and audio producer Chris Brookes will receive an honorary doctor of letters degree during spring convocation ceremonies at Sir Wilfred Grenfell College in Corner Brook on May 11. As one of North America’s most celebrated audio documentary producers, Mr. Brookes has spent his career as a disseminator of Newfoundland culture. A longtime advocate for the arts, he established the Resource Foundation for the Arts, now known as the RCA, and was the first executive director of the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council. A St. John’s native, he has a BA from Yale and a MA from the University of Michigan. He was the founding artistic director of the Mummers Troupe, a Newfoundland theatre collective best known for their performances of the Traditional Newfoundland Christmas Mummers Play every December from 1972 to 1982. Currently he directs the production company Battery Radio in St. John’s where he has helped produce radio features, documentaries and audio art. His work has heard on public radio in the U.S., Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, England, Sweden, Finland and here in Canada. His documentaries have won more than 30 awards, including a 2006 Peabody Award, as well as a Gracie and New York Radio Festival Grand Award. Other honours include a Prix Italia, an Atlantic Journalism Award and an honour from the Canadian Association of Journalists. Mr. Brookes has directed and produced documentaries for Canadian network television and in 1998 was nominated for a Gemini Award for best writing in a documentary program or series. He has taught feature making and storytelling at radio festivals and workshops across North America. A recipient of the Order of Canada, Mr. Brookes was inducted into the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council Hall of Honour in 1997.

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