Effective September 1st, students enrolled at Conrad Grebel University College (CGUC) and the University of Waterloo in the Faculty of Arts will have the option of majoring in Peace and Conflict Studies (PACS). Previously only an interdisciplinary program, students could obtain a PACS minor, PACS option, or diploma only. Students are pleased to hear that the BA plans were approved in the beginning of April, some even delaying graduation as a result.
For me, PACS was the most meaningful part of university and I was really excited to be able to major in it,
says Dora Marie Goulet, who actually chose to postpone graduation in order to receive the PACS Major.
In her third year studying PACS, Sarah McGrath’s first reaction to the news was, “Finally!” Like many other students in the PACS program, McGrath is exploring the thought of further education, possibly graduate school or a master’s degree once she graduates. Lowell Ewert, Director of PACS, indicates that students in PACS graduate and go on to,
many fields graduated school, civil service… and apply the values and principles that help to influence all environments. [Unlike other programs,] “we are not training students for a particular career, but rather to apply this into everything they do,”
adds Ewert.
The PACS program covers topics of war, nonviolence, conflict resolution, mediation, human rights, International development, mediation, and other social justice topics.
The program is inspired by the Mennonite heritage of a small liberal arts college but also draws upon the resources of one of Canada’s leading comprehensive universities. Our program effectively combines an affirmation of peace within the faith-based spirit context and a broad and open engagement with a dynamic and pluralistic university community,
states Dr. Nathan Funk, assistant professor of PACS.
The program also facilitates a field study placement that allows students to take charge of their education by gaining hands on experience in the field while attending university.
[This offers the opportunity for,] students to learn experientially. By broadening their base of experience students are able to put what they have learned into practice and develop a new context for evaluating course readings and lectures,
explains Dr. Funk. In this unique opportunity, students have chosen placements ranging from working as a conflict resolution mediator in Kitchener, to doing community development work in the Philippines, assisting human rights lawyers in the Middle East, planning women’s advocacy group events in Washington, and becoming further educated on militarism in southern Africa.
Defining a career path for students is not the main focus for the PACS program. Instead, it seeks to,
empower [students] to become peacemakers in whatever line of work they choose to pursue, whether that is peace advocacy, humanitarian work, or engagement with local efforts to strengthen community,
says Dr. Funk. In McGrath’s case, she hopes the program will lead her to a fulfilling career in mediation, while in Goulet’s case, the possibilities for peace-making are still being unveiled.
Phone: 519-885-0220
Fax: 519-519-0220-0014
The PACS program at Conrad Grebel University College is the first program of its kind in Canada.