CMU does things differently. If you’ve worked here, studied here, or even just visited campus, you know this is true. And one of these things we do differently is tuition.
When I first heard about Tuition Freedom Day in my first year of studies, I was confused by the event. Didn’t students here just pay tuition for the year and continue on like every other university? The answer was of course, no, because CMU does things differently.
Tuition Freedom Day marks the end of the fiscal year that is paid for by student’s tuition, and celebrates the beginning of the year that is paid for by grants and donations from the Manitoba government, churches, and individual donors. And so of course, in CMU fashion, we have a party to celebrate and thank the lovely people who make our educations possible through their generosity!
Some highlights of the event include addresses from church representatives, alumni, students, and donors, music from our ever-talented crew of music students, and FREE pizza!
It’s a heartwarming event, and my favourite part has always been watching the donors interact with the students during lunch. They see the learning, discovery, and growth of our student-body, and it’s our chance to thank them for making it a reality.
So come on down to the CMU Chapel on Wednesday, November 20 at 11:30 AM, and let’s all celebrate Tuition Freedom Day together!
– Chloe Friesen, 3rd-year Communications and Media student
“What do we want? Climate action! When do we want it? Now!” This was the chant that tore through the crowd as we marched in the global climate strike on the last Friday of September.
Many of us from CMU had just spent an hour in one of two
churches adjacent to the Manitoba Legislative Building, sitting with people
from many Christian denominations and other religions as we all cried out for
one of the core things we all share— the planet we live on.
The climate strike in Winnipeg was a place that brought over 12,000 people together on the lawn of the Legislature. As such, it was a place where people came for many different reasons. There were youth who fear for their futures and want to show the world that they are willing to say something about it. There were parents who were marching for these youth. There were Indigenous folks who want everyone to remember the harm that has been done to the land and their people and for us all to be better in the future.
There were animal rights activists who preached the
virtues of eating without animal cruelty, and explained the explicit ties
between global warming and our eating habits. There were communists and
anarchists who were clamouring for political reform. There were people of many
different religions who wanted to fulfill their place as stewards of the earth.
There were people who came simply because they wanted to be on the right side
of history and wanted to witness the mass of humanity that accumulated in one
place.
I watched many different groups of people I know move among the crowd, many holding up signs proclaiming the despair and anger they feel—how our apathy is killing us, how we are frightened to think about what the world may be like for our children, and how those who have the most power seem to be doing the very least, while the most vulnerable pay the price. We marched, chanting about climate action, gesturing to people in tall office buildings to come join us, marvelling at the surge of energy around us and the clean air we breathed.
Even though people came for such diverse reasons, what
really mattered was that we were all there. This was not a rally that clearly
pushed for any specific political or personal change to be done. But some
people wore buttons that said, “We are many,” and I think in the hours of the
strike, our numbers were a message themselves.
We were reminding ourselves that we are not alone in our desire for a sustainable earth. We were helping each other be aware of how many ways people can be affected by climate change. We were sending a larger message to a disbelieving world that the effect humans are having on the earth is something we need to take action about, now. And I think that if the number of small kids at the rally means anything, then we will have people continuing our chants about climate action for years to come.
– Words and photos by Mackenzie Nicolle, CMU Social Sciences alumna, Senior Residence Assistant, and current graduate student
I’ve never been all
that great at sports, which is a funny thing to say, seeing as I’m on the CMU
Women’s volleyball team.
Contact-sports
frighten me (no need to push, just ask
for the basketball and I’ll probably give it to you), my lanky limbs
usually don’t work well as a team (if I’m
kicking a ball you’re all in danger), and strapping shoes with blades to my
feet and putting me on ice?! What are you thinking (I still don’t know how to stop on skates, I just turn in circles or
brace for the boards…).
Chloe Friesen (centre) and team celebrate after a point
But something about
volleyball just kind of clicked with me, and I’m so
grateful it did, because I love sports.
And I love them for more than just the game, or the points, or the jersey. I
love them because of what happened yesterday, the day of our volleyball
home-opener. Let me explain…
The day started off
like any other Wednesday: I woke up, ate breakfast, and headed off to my Group
Communications class. Following class was practice time. But, instead of using
our typical afternoon practice slot for, well, you know, practicing, our coach (the
illustrious Jayme Menzies) had arranged a different way for us to spend the
afternoon.
The CMU Blazers women’s volleyball team and girls from Fisher River Cree Nation
Cue our new friends
from Fisher River Cree Nation. Ten wonderful girls who came for a day packed
with their favourite sport. Like with any new situation, the girls were timid
and quiet at the beginning. We were all different ages, all had different
stories that had brought us here, and you could feel a tenseness in the space due
to the newness of the situation. But set up a net and toss in a ball? We had a
noisy gym full of new friends in no time.
This is why I love sports.
We spent the afternoon
practicing our volleyball skills, cheering the girls on, and celebrating every
point like it was the game-winner of the finals. It was by simply standing on
the court that I learned that my new pals loved Instagram too, that some of the
memes I was using were outdated, and that sometimes the smallest girls jump the
highest. Seeing these young girls gaze up at our Blazers with the most
attentive grins, hanging onto every word and piece of advice we gave, was
something I’ll never forget.
This is why I love sports.
CMU Blazer Annika Loeppky practices with a student from Fisher River Cree Nation
With a “THREE, TWO,
TEAM!” we said our “see you laters” (the girls would also be attending our game
that night) and headed out to our respective classes or study sessions. We at
least had to do a little bit of
schoolwork before the big game that evening.
Now, volleyball home
games usually draw in a few fans, but little did we know that Residence
Director and resident Blazers hype-man, Charlie Peronto, had a little something
up his sleeve. What do you get when you put together a DIY poster station, free
Halloween candy, costumes, and hilarious between-set games? Bleachers full of
classmates and friends, hooting and hollering, blowing off some mid-term season
stress and life’s troubles in the very best way. It was a gym full of joy like
I haven’t felt before. That’s the only way I can put it.
This is why I love sports.
Residence Director Charlie Peronto and CMU students cheer on their team
Sure, both the men’s
and women’s teams won their matches in straight sets (#goblazers), but that
wasn’t close to the highlight of the evening for me. It was glancing at the
stands while I was grabbing water from the bench and seeing a sea of people who
I love so dearly, cheering, laughing, and dancing. It was congratulating and
celebrating with my teammates after each point, and feeling so grateful that
they are also my friends. It was waving to the girls from Fisher River Cree
Nation, wearing their new Blazers jerseys with the biggest smiles.
This is why I love sports.
– Chloe Friesen, 3rd-year Communications and Media student
“Oh my GOURD. This pumpkin spice latte from folio café is SQUASH goals.”
Alright, so you may get tired of really bad pumpkin spice puns, but I can guarantee you’ll never get tired of the one, the only, folio café pumpkin spice latte (PSL). This cup full of spicy fall magic is something folio-frequenters wait for all year long. I talked to barista Nicholas Willms about the beverage and learned a LATTE about the famous flavour.
Nicholas Willms, barista extraordinaire
So Nicholas, what makes folio’s PSL so special?
“One thing is that we actually make our own
syrup from pumpkins grown at the farm right here on campus, by the Metanoia
[Farmers Worker Cooperative]. That’s a big thing. We’re also not big fans of
super sweet drinks, so we make our syrup a little less sweet so the focus is
really on the pumpkin and the spices, not on how sugary it is.”
Thank you Metanoia farmers for making our PSL dreams come true! Can you tell me a bit about the process? What happens from the moment I order a PSL to the moment I hold the mug in my hands?
“It’s very easy. We put the cup on the scale
and weigh out one ounce of the pumpkin syrup that we’ve made. Then we pull an
espresso shot, steam some milk, pour it, make a little bit of latte art if
we’re feeling a little artsy, and then we hand it over.”
And then we sip and
smile. So I’m looking at the menu board, and you have another pumpkin spice
drink! Tell me more.
“So we also have the pumpkin chai, which is a chai tea latte but with our homemade pumpkin syrup, which I think is a nice twist. It gives the chai latte a little extra flavour, a little extra spice. It makes for a fun change!”
Mm, that sounds delicious. I’ll be sure to tell all my chai-loving
friends about it! Speaking of my friends, I have plenty of pals who look
forward to the pumpkin spice season all year long. What’s the hype like leading
up to adding the drink to the menu?
“People were asking for it for a couple weeks,
even before it was up on the menu. We had to tell them that we didn’t have any
pumpkins yet, so we couldn’t make it yet. But once it was up there, people got
pretty pumped about it.”
People including me. I think I audibly cheered when I saw that it was back on the menu. What’s your personal favourite part about pumpkin spice season at folio?
“I think it’s really cool to be able to make
things from stuff that’s grown right here. I think it makes it taste better, I
think it makes it more special because you could walk past the farm and see an
actual pumpkin, and then be drinking it in a latte.”
Three cheers for a farm-fresh,
subtly sweet, extra spicy, pumpkin dream of a drink! Thank you so much Nicholas
for indulging me in this interview about one of my passions. Now, I just have
one more question for you…
Could I order one PSL please?
– Chloe Friesen, 3rd-year Communications and Media student
With the Thanksgiving season (and mid-term season) upon us, I decided to
take a stroll through campus and do some impromptu interviews. I wanted to
start some conversations that would stir up some warm and fuzzy feelings to
contrast the stress of studying and blustery weather I saw through my window. And
after chatting with some lovely people and compiling the answers, I’d say it
was a successful mission. The question?
What are
you thankful for, here at CMU?
“I’m thankful for Folio’s coffee” – Sadie McTavish
“I’m thankful that my learning has been lively because it has been
lived” – Marnie Klassen
“I’m thankful for how close the profs are to the students. There’s tons
of space made for profs and students to connect” – Daniel McIntyre-Ridd
“I’m thankful for my apartment and my roommate who loves me” – Kate
Friesen
“I’m thankful for the basketball team and the community and friendships
it provides me with” – Andrew Hutton
“I’m thankful for the free flu-shot clinic! You just walk on in and it
only takes five minutes!” – Claudia Dueck
“I’m thankful that CMU has a volleyball team!” – Matthew Sawatzky
“I’m thankful for the very large windows in Marpeck that I can look
through, and the friends who I see walk down the stairs” – Markus Stahl
“I’m thankful for the sense of belonging, comradery, and fun I get from
being in choir” – Madeleine Friesen
“I’m thankful that I’m part of a small enough class that it’s possible
to designate someone to bring a snack for everyone at every lecture” – Rhett
Neufeld
“I’m thankful for really great interactions with my profs. They know how
to have fun and joke around, while also teaching you a lot of new information”
– Nicholas Harder
“I’m thankful for the bridge between south campus and Marpeck for
keeping me warm and dry during this snowy weather” – Courtney Kuhl
“I’m thankful for all of my friends and my professors, and their genuine
happiness and caring attitudes” – Nicolas Willms
And me? I’m thankful that I’m part of a community where I can take a
short stroll through this beautiful campus, and be greeted by classmates and
friends alike who are willing to answer my whimsical questions. Their smiles
and stories are plentiful, and the inspiration they give me is endless.
CMU, I am thankful for YOU!
– Chloe Friesen, 3rd-year Communications and Media student
