In a previous posting, I asked Anglophone students what they thought about Rock Talk's content and its usefulness as a means of communicating with students. I put the same questions to Francophone students. Listen to what students think about Rock Talk:

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[ Runs 00:06:14 | Download the .mp3 file | only available in French]

Here are a few photos from my trip to Africa. Included are shots taken outside a high school in Kampala, Uganda, where I was asked to speak about the purpose of my visit to Africa, as well as an article from Al Maghribia, which talks about the speech I gave at a pre-conference dinner organized jointly by the University of Ottawa's Faculty of Education and the Moroccan Center for Civic Education.

I returned last Thursday from Tunisia and Morocco, which I visited following my trip to Uganda. I met with government officials, university presidents and deans in Casablanca, Rabat and Tunis in order to discuss possible areas of collaboration with our University. I found a great deal of interest in potential student and professor exchanges, joint courses of study, and partnerships in research. I will now share that information with our own deans and department heads, so that we can follow up these leads.

As members of la francophonie, both Morocco and Tunisia are very interested in providing their students with access to our French language programs, particularly (though not exclusively) at the graduate level. For our part, collaborating with and learning from scholars in those countries will provide opportunities to broaden perspectives and to create chances for our students and faculty to experience education and research within different and very rich cultures.

While I was in Morocco, I participated in a fabulous program that our Faculty of Education organized in partnership with Moroccan organizations, and that focused on graduate studies. Congratulations to Dean Marie Josée Berger and her terrific team for their great success with this important initiative.

On Sunday, I attended the deeply moving memorial service held to commemorate the life and to mourn the death of Professor Keith Fagnou of our Faculty of Science. His sudden death last week shocked and saddened us all. Keith was an absolutely brilliant scientist who inspired his students, delighted his colleagues and brought enormous credit to the University. He was also a wonderful person, whose warmth and kindness touched many lives. Our hearts go out to his grieving family, along with our vow that Keith’s many contributions to this University, its faculty and students, will never be forgotten.

In Keith's memory, a scholarship fund has been created. Donations may be made to the Dr. Keith Fagnou Scholarship in Science Fund by telephone 613-562-5800, ext. 3417 or online.

At Gulu University, located in northern Uganda, solar panels are used to power computer laboratories. Some 50 desktop and 26 laptop computers allow students to access content online.