NEWS FROM UVIC

Kid Face Greater Risk Of Addiction

Dr. Stanton Peele is becoming increasingly concerned that drug
addiction is more prevalent among North American children, despite
steps taken to curb drug use. The addiction consultant and
psychologist is an international leader in the field of "harm
reduction" and will speak on the subject July 24, starting at 4:30
p.m., in Room A240 of UVic's Human and Social Development Building.

Public health officials and health-care professionals in Canada and
the United States continue to combat substance abuse in young people
and yet Peele is seeing no corresponding decrease in the level of
addiction. During his lecture, entitled Is Society
Training Children to Be Addicts? Peele will discuss some of
the factors he believes may be at the heart of this ongoing social problem.

The talk is presented in conjunction with UVic's Centre for
Addictions Research of B.C. and the B.C. Mental Health and
Addictions Research Network. For more information, call 472-5445 or
check the website at www.carbc.uvic.ca. Admission to the lecture is free.

First Nations Encouraged To Attend University

UVic hosts its third annual Aboriginal Student Mini-University
Summer Camp this week, inviting 30 students in Grades 8 to 11 to get
a better sense of what university life is about and encourage them
to enroll in post-secondary studies once they graduate from high school.

The week-long program, organized by UVic's office of student
recruitment, involves kids from all over Vancouver Island and the
Lower Mainland.

While at camp, the students live in campus residences and sample a
variety of academic, athletic, creative, cultural and social
activities both at the university and elsewhere in Greater Victoria.

The high school graduation rate for First Nations students is an
ongoing concern for the university, as is their lower-than-average
participation in post-secondary education.