News

PACS students spend a lot of time learning, growing and getting ready for what comes next. With graduation in our midst, for many it's time to find out what 'next' is. Graduates go on to do exciting and innovative things, finding opportunities to put what they’ve learned in the classroom to use in the real world. Catherine You completed a PACS diploma in 2012 and her studies were the first step in her path to a career in social enterprise and international development. Upon completion of a Bachelors of Math at the University of Waterloo, Catherine started her career as an IT Risk Advisory Services Associate for an IT consultancy firm. However, she soon realized that she was looking for more: something more fulfilling, something more meaningful. Having taken a few courses in the PACS discipline during her undergraduate degree, Catherine was drawn back to the University of Waterloo to pursue a Diploma in PACS.

Growing up on a small farm in Delhi, Ontario, food has always been close to Elle Crevits’ heart. But it wasn’t until her fourth year research seminar class in Peace and Conflict Studies that she really discovered what that meant.

Last fall, Elle devoted her final research paper to the topic of food waste and how we could reduce it.

Chinenye Chukwuma-Nwuba is one of several international students currently enrolled in the MPACS program at Conrad Grebel. Growing up in Nigeria during times of relative peace and then violence, Chinenye brings her own perspective and experience to the program to gain a deeper understanding of what conflict is and how it develops:

Rachel Urban-Shipley is a fourth year PACS student, with minors in Music and Psychology. She originally came to UW to study peace and conflict studies for her interest in mediation, but as she learned more about the field and other issues within PACS, her options and interests have also grown.

Jessica was drawn to the MPACS program because of its interdisciplinary nature and to further explore what she feels “is something of a calling, to look at peaceful solutions to significant problems”.

This is the sixth installment of a monthly feature on the PACS website. This monthly profile of PACS and MPACS students will give a small snapshot into the pursuits and experiences of our students.

Having first attended college to become a paramedic, to then pursuing a certificate in Indigenous learning at Algoma University in Sault St. Marie, to now studying PACS at Conrad Grebel with a political science minor, Hilary Sadowsky has a passion for learning. Although the PACS program wasn’t as clear cut about peace as she thought it would be, the flexibility and interdisciplinary nature of it was the right fit for her. She took advantage of the ability to petition courses from other disciplines to truly mold the program to match her needs and interests. She says,

Petitioning courses or overriding prerequisites has allowed me to do so much with my degree. I have never, not once, taken a course that I did not want to take, in my university career.

University of Waterloo's Faculty of Arts just wrote an interesting article regarding the importance of peace education amidst the current world state.  Highlighting Rotary International's continued support of peace programs in Waterloo.  Read the full article.

This is the fifth installment of a monthly feature on the PACS website. This monthly profile of PACS and MPACS students will give a small snapshot into the pursuits and experiences of our students.

Kaylee Perez, currently an MPACS student at Conrad Grebel, has always been interested in cross-cultural interactions and global issues. Following high school, Kaylee took a year off to attend a Servant Leadership Institute, which led her to major in Global studies at Wilfred Laurier University. During her undergrad, she completed an international and a local field placement, first interning for 3 months at a refugee centre in South Africa and then returning to volunteer with the Mennonite Coalition for Refugee Support, where she now works as a case worker.

April Student Profile: Serving Together with Tim Souza

This is the fourth installment of a monthly feature on the PACS website. This monthly profile of PACS and MPACS students will give a small snapshot into the pursuits and experiences of our students.