Trent University Launches New Blog

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Interdisciplinary dialogue to reflect graduate student experience

Wednesday, March 23, 2011, Peterborough

DON’T PANIC: a new blog for Trent University graduate students is calling for volunteer columnists and photographers to contribute to the new interdisciplinary blog that will foster a sense of community in Trent’s School of Graduate Studies.

Dr. Zailig Pollock a professor in the Department of English Literature said, “DON'T PANIC is a very exciting initiative which I hope will encourage ongoing discussions among current, past and prospective graduate students at Trent -- and graduate faculty as well. I encourage everyone with an interest in graduate life at Trent in all its aspects to view the blog, to comment on it, and to contribute original postings to it as well. Share and enjoy!”

Proposals may be submitted for regular columns or features and photos and artistic contributions are welcomed. Masters and Ph.D. students at Trent are encouraged to participate along with any students considering graduate studies at Trent or who would like to improve their résumés by contributing to a university publication. For full details on submission deadlines or to view the blog, visit: http://dontpanictrent.wordpress.com.

The new blog is a result of collaboration between the Graduate Studies Program and the Office of Marketing and Communications, with a goal to showcase the student voice. Ms. Amanda Miller, a graduate student in the Public Texts M. A. Program has been coordinating the blog as part of her graduate work, to promote interdisciplinary dialogue amongst the sciences and humanities and to accurately reflect the distinct graduate-student experience at Trent.

“In my fourth year at Trent, when I was working on my applications for graduate school, I remember thinking, ‘where are all the grad students?’” Ms. Miller mused. “Trent’s vibrant student community is one of the things that I love most about this school, so I jumped at the chance to guide others’ creations of public texts that will build and strengthen community ties. Graduate students now have a space to talk about their research or life at Trent and in Peterborough, and community members, undergrads, faculty, prospective students, and anyone else can join in on the conversation.”

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For more information, please contact: Dr. Zailig Pollock, Department of English Literature, 705-745-0201, zpollock@trentu.ca