NEWS

The News section provides fair and balanced coverage for undergraduate students at U of T. Scandal, marginalization, and wasteful spending — we keep students in the know. Read our section and you’ll stay on top of the complicated bureaucracy, new policies from university administration, and everything at U of T that’s fit for print. In short, we’ll help you understand how Canada’s largest university works.

This summer we’ve already covered everything from scandal during the G20 to the financial struggles of the Toronto Women’s Bookstore and, with over 75,000 students during the school year, there are plenty of exciting events on campus to cover every week. In the interest of covering these events, we will be regularly breaking news through Twitter and following it up with thorough reporting online and in print. We will also be expanding our investigstive coverage to dive head-first into the compicated issues and debates that swirl around campus.

Since 1880, we have been the living record of U of T’s history. Join in our quest to continue providing a student voice on campus. We are the first source for all U of T news.

Breakingly,

Andrew Rusk

News Editor, 2010-2011

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

In this challenging time of raging war, economic instability, rampant hatred, and print media’s insistence on going down in flames no matter how hard aspiring writers hope it won’t (cough), sometimes the only thing in which we can find solace is art. Well buster, you’re in luck, because this year’s Varsity’s Arts & Entertainment section strives to satisfy your hankering for all things arty. In addition to our usual coverage of the goings-on in this city’s arts community, we are pleased to announce several new initiatives. Arts’ Arts, our biweekly showcase of the most talented creator’s at U of T, will be publishing original art, photography, fiction and poetry the whole year round. Also to come: The Varsity Interview, a meaty, filling Q & A with the most influential folks in the arts scene that we can manage to wrangle a meeting with.

If you prefer your arts reportage in a shiny New Media format, go to TheVarsity.ca for our barrage of new blogs. Singled Out features Sean Mackay and Navi Lamba taking a weekly look at the most interesting new singles, from Pitchfork to MTV. Each month, The Varsity Book Club discusses the most-hyped books of the season, while On Screen provides up-to-date reviews of what’s on the silver screen.

Look to the arts section this year for a guide to the goings-on in the city and on campus, as well as longer feature pieces on everything from interpretive dance to campus stage.

Artistically,

Emily Kellogg and Will Sloan

Arts and Entertainment Editors, 2010-2011

FEATURES

If this is your first time picking up an issue of the Varsity, let me welcome you to the Features section, the newest and most versatile section in the paper. By versatile I mean that, because this section is such a recent addition to the Varsity, the definition of a feature is very broad, and we’re always up for experimenting with different styles, forms, and mediums.

If you’ve been an avid reader in the past, then you know what to expect from the section. Last year we published interviews with authors, musicians, politicians, and scholars. We wrote about the future, the arts and continually pushed the envelope with our layouts and design. A few things will stay the same this year: we’ll be publishing three Varsity magazines, the first of which will hit the stands in November. Magazines are always brimming with engaging writing and fascinating stories so watch out for them! We’ll also keep experimenting with the design of the section, with photos, illustrations, infographs, and more.

This year we’ll be publishing more features, one in each issue, which means we’ll need more content than ever. So if you’re a talented writer don’t hesitate to contact me with your idea for a story. As long as some basic parameters are followed (1500+ words with a narrative structure), the versatility of the section provides a tremendous opportunity to explore diverse subjects and writing styles.

Though I don’t really have an office, if I did, the door would always be open.

Sincerely,

Sean MacKay

Features Editor, 2010-2011

SPORTS

As the University of Toronto’s finest athletes are gearing up for another action-packed year, the sports writers here at The Varsity are doing exactly the same thing. With a roster full of fresh new recruits both on the field and in the newsroom, sports coverage at U of T will be over the fence and out of the park this year.

Working closely with the coaches and management of the university’s athletic programs to provide updated coverage of breaking news and events across campus, U of T’s largest newspaper has the inside track to all things Varsity Blues. This year sports fans can expect to follow their home team through a variety of different mediums as the staff at The Varsity have kicked into overdrive and are at the forefront of multimedia journalism across campus.

While profiles of standout athletes and teams, breaking administrative news and detailed event coverage can still be found in the pages of The Varsity and online, streaming video blogs recapping game highlights will be added to the website’s line-up for the 2010–2011 season.

Now a weekly paper, The Varsity strives to deliver accurate and up-to-date sports news to the community at the University of Toronto in a timely and efficient manner. U of T boasts some of the most talented athletes and coaches in the country. With so much ground to cover, it’s safe to say that The Varsity’s sports staff has already hit the ground running.

See you in the winner’s circle,

Roberta Bell

Sports Editor, 2010-2011

COMMENT

Who doesn’t love to argue? Whether its the latest blunder from Ottawa or a still controversial re-organization of the University of Toronto’s academic structure, everyone has an opinion about something. The Varsity’s comment section is where ideas clash and the voice of U of T’s student body is heard. We have printed student opinion about everything. And I mean everything. From the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine to the appropriate way to give a high five, the comment section is always brimming with contentious conversation.

My name is Alex Ross, and as the section’s editor, I am the facilitator of this mini-marketplace of ideas. I’m constantly on the hunt for enthusiastic young writers eager to make their mark by means of the print medium. If you have an opinion that is begging to spring fully-formed from the inner sanctum of your mind please send me an e-mail and I’ll give you a deadline and a word count. No previous experience required!

Maybe you want to write an Irks and Quirks op-ed, or something for the more serious Political Scene, which covers the latest in all level of politics? However, I don’t expect you to be bound by any particular category or ideology. I just want you to feel free to express yourself. I look forward to working with you all this year. Write for comment!

Opinionatedly,

Alex Ross

Comment Editor, 2010-2011

SCIENCE

The Science section at The Varsity is U of T’s best student outlet for science journalism. Just saying.

We cover everything from recent breakthroughs made by U of T researchers, to scientific explanations of the everyday phenomena you always wanted to be a snob about. Whether it’s particle physics, protenomics, or pituitary glands, you’ll find your fill of science-minded news every week.

Remember to keep an eye out for a new weekly column, “Wonderland in Space,” that looks at a new piece of galactic miscellany every week. We’ll also be featuring a new “Lab Crawl” series that gets up close and personal with the people, rituals, and paraphernalia that make up lab life on campus.

And on the online end, we’re excited to be starting up a number of science blogs this year. Follow one student’s trials and tribulations of getting into med school, along with extra weekly news for those science-minded students who just can’t get enough. Because let’s face it. Who wants internet videos of Lady Gaga when you can hit up Drosophila melanogaster?

Scientifically,

Erene Stergiopoulos

Science Editor, 2010-2011

FROM THE EDITOR

130 years ago this fall, an enterprising band of students at the University of Toronto introduced their new publication The Varsity as both a “register of opinion in and out of the University [and a] strenuous advocate of what constitutes individual wellbeing.” Despite having undergone changes upon changes throughout its history, these two modest goals still remain at the core of The Varsity’s mission. While we aim to publish an open and inclusive newspaper reflecting the pluralism and expansiveness of our campus, we also intend to zealously provide you with everything you need to survive the arduous and exhilarating experience of university. To that end you’ll find our summer Handbook, in which Varsity editors and contributors share their wisdom on surviving and understanding life at the university, enclosed in the following pages.

Throughout the past eight months The Varsity, along with many other newspapers around the world, has undergone substantial changes. Despite receiving generous support from students and benefiting immensely from the hard work so many of them put in, we have had to cope with the effects of an economic recession compounded with the increasing competition newspapers face from other mediums. As part of our efforts to adapt while continuing to fulfill our mandate, we will be publishing larger, weekly issues with more comprehensive coverage of the goings on at our three campuses and around the city. Our website will also be updated constantly with a healthy stream of news-briefs, Podcasts, and blog posts: we’ve found already that there’s no shortage of material.

As we have reported over the summer, sweeping changes to the Faculty of Arts and Science have been proposed and a renewed debate over the imposition of Flat Fees is set to commence in the coming months. This summer, Toronto and its inhabitants experienced the anarchic nightmare of the G20 summit (I do not think this characterization is too severe) and, in Ottawa, the parliamentary game of Jenga keeps Canada teetering on the brink of a general election. Moreover, Toronto will soon be casting ballots in an election of its own in a vote which will have major implications for many students who rely on public transit, bike to school or work, or simply live in the GTA.

Whether you’re a new or a returning student, I invite you to join us this year in an ongoing discussion of university life. This Friday at 2 PM, we will be hosting our annual fall open-house at our offices in 21 Sussex, second-floor. Whether you’re interested in writing, illustrating, taking photos, or just want to meet the staff of your campus paper, our doors are wide open and we look forward to meeting you!

The year ahead promises to be an interesting one for us all.

Yours,

Luke Savage

Editor-in-Chief, 2010-2011