SDG 4 - Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

Find the most recent Gazette stories for this goal here.

Teaching and Learning:

• Memorial engages in international collaborations with other institutions to provide new and unique educational opportunities, including exploration of opportunities with universities in India in 2016, a travel scholarship to Ireland to participate in an immersive Irish Gaelic course in partnership with the Ireland Canada University Foundation, and Grenfell’s Career, Culture and Language Education Experience program developed for international ESL students.
• Some initiatives at Memorial designed to support Indigenous students include the release of the Strategic Framework on Indigenization in 2021, a PhD pathway for Aboriginal students in Graduate programs endorsed in 2016, and the completion of Juniper House as the heart of the Indigenous Student Resource Centre.
• Memorial strives to increase accessibility across the institution through initiatives such as building disability confidence training offered in 2017, the creation of tools such as an accessible pipette station to help students conduct research independently and safely, the adoption of strategies to integrate accessibility within the design of online courses in 2017, and the adoption of instructional strategies in 2018 that foster an inclusive and accessible learning experience for all at Memorial.
• Memorial engages in efforts to increase financial and socio-economic accessibility for students. This includes engagement in Open Education Week 2016, an annual global event to promote the use of free and open educational resources, the Joyce Family Foundation Bursary that aids students experiencing critical financial need, and development of the Memorial University Youth Foster Support Program launched in 2021.
• By launching the renewed Teaching and Learning Framework (TLF) in 2019, Memorial aimed to increase collaborative and interdisciplinary initiatives that enable student accessibility, deepen learners’ engagement and facilitate student success. This has also included a partnership with FUSION (the Future Skills Innovation Network), a collaborative project across several Canadian universities to contribute to the development of students’ transferable skills and competencies.
  

Research: 

• The Memorial University/Hibernia STEM Teacher Inquiry Program offered between 2013-2018 helped between 60 and 80 K-9 teachers build confidence through inquiry-based classroom practices in STEM subjects. It was a research-centred learning experience for both teachers and students and is helping to foster student success.

Public Engagement:

• Memorial University’s Indigenous Student Resource Centre hosts a variety of events and social programs such as an open drumming circle, a purification ceremony, and Mid-Week Munchies, a social event for students. 
• The Memorial Engineering Outreach (MEO) office delivers free, accessible STEM programs to youth who may otherwise not be engaged. The program introduces STEM related in hopes of inspiring create a more innovative and sustainable province.
• Memorial’s Labrador Institute hosts the Labrador Lands and Waters Science Camp in the Happy Valley-Goose Bay and Upper Lake Melville areas for Innu and Inuit students in grades 8-11. Children learn about plant ecology, archaeology, marine ecology, wildlife monitoring and management, mosquito research and traditional ecological knowledge.
• Climate Collective is a project run through Memorial University’s Johnson Geo Centre and Botanical Garden with the goal of connecting youth to opportunities for climate innovation. Through this collective, NL youth can attend the Youth Climate Summit where they can learn about a variety of climate and sustainability topics.

Administration:

• The MUN Safe app is a mobile app that students can download to receive alerts in the event of an emergency and allows them to quickly contact Campus Enforcement and Patrol to report a safety or security issue. The app gives users access to other resources such as on-campus support features and the Friend Walk option to ensure user safety while walking alone.