VIU Media Highlights: February 8 – 28, 2022

A roundup of VIU students and employees in the news.

Top 10 News Stories

1. CTV News (picked up by CFAX-AM): “They were loved”: Women’s Memorial March commemorated on Vancouver Island. Story features an on-campus event organized by VIUFA’s Status of Women Committee. Reach: 35.1 million.
2. CTV News (picked up by CFAX-AM): VIU getting ready to offer first-in-Canada program on psychedelic-assisted therapy. Reach: 35.1 million
3. Vancouver Sun: BC’s Top Employers: 2022 Winners (VIU is one of them). Reach: 3.28 million.
4. Times Colonist: BC government creating 602 new nurse training seats to ease staffing shortage. VIU is getting some of these new seats. Reach: 1.96 million.
5. Times Colonist: Helping to bring Vancouver Island marmots back from edge of extinction. Article features research conducted by a VIU alum while under the supervision of Dr. Jamie Gorrell, VIU Biology Professor. Reach: 1.3 million.
6. Psychedelic News Wire (republished 137 times): VIU set to launch first psychedelics therapy course in Canada. Reach: 760,000.
7. CHEK News: VIU, Saanich Police among local companies named BC’s top employers. Reach: 677,000.
8. Victoria Buzz: Over 600 new nursing seats coming to BC post-secondary institutions. Reach: 214,000.
9. NanaimoNewsNOW: VIU pioneering psychedelic-assisted therapy program. Reach: 196,000.
10. NanaimoNewsNOW: More nurses being trained in Nanaimo to combat ongoing staff shortages. Reach: 196,000.

VIU News

• VIU News: Vancouver Island marmot breeding program is preserving the genetic diversity of the species. Story picked up by Times Colonist and Education News Canada so far.
• VIU News: VIU researcher developing precise chemical tests requiring minutes instead of hours. Story picked up by Education News Canada and Targeted News Service (behind a paywall).
• VIU News: VIU teams up with NIC and BCIT to grow international partnerships in Kenya. Story picked up by Oceanside News, Education News Canada and Targeted News Service (behind a paywall).
• VIU News: VIU’s Theatre Department presents an adaptation of Durrenmatt’s play – The Visitor. Story picked up by Nanaimo Bulletin.
• VIU News: Griffin prize-winning poet A.F. Moritz to give VIU Gustafson lecture and reading. Story picked up by Nanaimo Bulletin.
• VIU News: VIU establishes new psychedelic-assisted therapy program. Story picked up by Academica, Education News Canada, Mugglehead, Investors Hangout, Psychedelic News Wire (republished 127 times) and CTV News.    
• VIU News: VIU’s View Gallery presents Jim Holyoak: Arborescence. Story picked up by Nanaimo Bulletin.
• VIU News: VIU psychology student researching stress, resilience in romantic relationships of firefighters.
• VIU News: 5 Questions with Xueling (Julie) Luo.
• VIU Blog: 5 reasons to take a summer course at university.
• VIU Blog: Investigating a passion for cyber security.
• VIU Community Classroom: Listening to the World and Storying a Place.

Top-performing Broadcast Story

A CTV News story about VIU’s new Psychedelic-assisted Therapy program reached 3 million people.

VIU Digest

• Wednesday, February 16, 2022:
  • Open rate: 41.6%
  • Click rate: 6.1%
  • Most-clicked link: Canada Census
• Wednesday, February 24, 2022:
  • Open rate: 42.2%
  • Click rate: 8.5%
  • Most-clicked link: Employee Engagement Survey results zoom link

Videos

 Campus life at Vancouver Island University was viewed 378 times.

VIU Student Pulse

• Wednesday, February 23 Edition: Open rate: 68.5%
  • Most-clicked link: Naloxone training.

Social Media

• Top Tweet: Our post sharing the news about Dr. Chris Gill’s NSERC research grant earned 1,367 impressions.

• Top Facebook post: The news about the VIU Mariners’ men’s and women’s volleyball and basketball teams on winning streaks was seen by more than 11,607 people.

• Top Instagram post: A blog post detailing different ways to get involved in campus life reached 3,815 people.

• Top Instagram reel/video: Stuey the Sturgeon’s #berriesandcream reel reached 5,803 people.