As we headed into 2020, we not only welcomed the new year, we also celebrated the start of a new decade. The passing of time, whether one year or ten, often leads to reflection and in Durham College’s (DC) case, we have certainly come a long way.
When I think back to our humble beginnings as an institution – one temporary building, a small group of students and only a handful of programs – we may have been small but we had a strong sense of where we wanted to go. Anchored in a desire to lead, innovate and educate at the highest level, this commitment has remained unwavering as the decades passed and the college grew.
Throughout our history, we’ve remained nimble, adapting as times changed, evolving to meet the needs of our students, employees and community, and delivering market-driven programs that get grads jobs.
For the last ten years we have lived our mission – the student experience comes first. However, as we consulted with college and community stakeholders while developing our new 2020-2023 Strategic Plan, it became very clear that we have reached a tipping point. In looking at all that we have accomplished we are not only putting the student experience first; we are reinventing it.
As we find our way through the unprecedented times caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, DC continues to evolve. What is happening on our campuses, across our communities and around the globe is a transformation of the way we learn, teach, work, live and lead. What used to be a clear-cut path to post-secondary education is now varied and diverse, but no matter the format of delivery, we are not losing focus on advanced learning at home and abroad.
It truly is a team effort, both before and now, as we navigate this new reality, drawing on the strengths of our four pillars – our students, our people, our work and our community – to shape this transformation.
Together, we are leading the way.
As you read through this year’s annual report, you will see examples of this leadership. From investing in capital projects including the Phase IV Whitby Campus Expansion, to driving innovation with the launch of two new applied research centres, we are incredibly DC proud of all we have achieved.
We are also eagerly anticipating our future and all that is to come. Guided by our new mission, which truly represents who we are as a college and what we stand for, I know our record of growth, development and student success will continue.
Sincerely,
Don Lovisa
President, Durham College
In recognition of the start of a new decade at DC, we not only want to look at the past year, but also at the nine preceding it. Each achievement and milestone have helped lay the foundation for leading the way today and in the future.
As you will see, a lot can happen in 10 years. Here are some highlights.
DC's Office of Research Services, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (ORSIE) plays an integral role in helping the college drive its leadership stake into the ground. Growing at a rapid pace, ORSIE is now home to four applied research centres, which means students and faculty can participate in diverse learning opportunities, while creating real, viable solutions to help small and medium-sized businesses solve their operational challenges.
This year ORSIE pushed the envelope even further, deepening their expertise in the innovative fields of artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and mixed reality capture.
The following are examples of just some of the projects ORSIE has engaged in over the past year.
DC’s Hub for Applied Research in Artificial Intelligence for Business Solutions (the AI Hub) held the Enable AI Summit, the first conference of its kind within the Durham Region.
Showcasing the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) both locally and across the Greater Toronto Area, more than 120 industry professionals, students and faculty members converged around core AI applications, with a focus on solving complex business operational problems.
Hands-on workshops that focused on block chain, compliance, machine learning in cybersecurity and solutions development were the core of the day’s programming. Participants developed the cutting-edge skills required to adopt and apply AI into business strategies to improve efficiencies.
Housed within the ORSIE, the AI Hub offers industry partners access to technical expertise, state-of-the-art facilities and platforms, and student talent to uncover business insights while providing intelligent and autonomous solutions that increase companies’ productivity and growth.
DC’s FastStartDC program has launched SHIFT, a new business start-up accelerator service designed to support social enterprises and entrepreneurs, as they work towards making a positive social, environmental or economic impact on the world.
SHIFT is the first FastStartDC service to support both students and social entrepreneurs from across Durham Region. FastStartDC is an extra-curricular entrepreneurship program housed within DC’s 360insights Entrepreneurship Centre in the Centre for Collaborative Education that offers DC students access to entrepreneurial services and training programs.
“Great things happen when entrepreneurship and social thinking go hand-in-hand. We have seen so many incredible student entrepreneurs working with the FastStartDC team to develop products, brands and businesses. Now the next generation of students will be able to take advantage of all that FastStartDC has to offer but can do so while building a culture of social change through entrepreneurial thinking and action all thanks to SHIFT.”
ORSIE once again found itself on the leading edge of technology with the opening of the Mixed Reality Capture Studio (the MRC Studio).
What is mixed reality? It’s the result of blending the physical and digital worlds and refers to the merging or combination of virtual and real environments where both worlds can exist together.
Featuring one of only three Captury Live systems in Canada, the MRC Studio allows businesses to develop experiential applications that integrate motion capture, virtual reality, augmented reality and virtual production. Organizations benefit from access to technical expertise, student talent and a state-of-the-art motion capture technology.
The third applied research centre at DC, the MRC Studio has been established in collaboration with the School of Media, Art & Design. It joins the AI Hub and Centre for Craft Brewing Innovation in offering organizations opportunities to increase productivity, growth and market potential while also supporting student experiential learning.
DC is responding to the ever-changing and complex threat landscape of cyberattacks, including data breaches and service disruptions and misdirection, with the launch of the Centre for Cybersecurity Innovation, the fourth applied research centre at DC.
The centre is designed to be a collaborative enterprise between ORSIE and the Centre for Professional and Part-time Learning and School of Business, IT & Management. Services include:
International education was alive and well at DC in 2019-2020, with students coming from 65 countries around the world to study on campus and others travelling abroad alongside faculty to participate in unique, experiential learning opportunities.
The following are some of the highlights as the college leads the way in bridging borders, supporting international development and winning awards on the global academic stage.
DC took home a Real Life Learning Award at the PIEoneer Awards 2019 in London, England in September.
The award, which recognizes organizations offering real-life learning programs overseas, was presented to DC for its Kenyan Education for Employment Program (KEFEP) documentary which premiered in 2018.
Captured, scripted, edited and produced by four DC students and two faculty from the School of Media, Art & Design, the crew spent three weeks in Kenya documenting KEFEP, a five-year initiative focused on strengthening and supporting technical and vocational education and training in Kenya, funded by the Government of Canada through Global Affairs Canada.
The PIEoneer Awards are the only global awards that celebrate innovation and achievement across the whole of the international education industry. With a distinguished judging panel representing geographical and professional diversity, the PIEoneer Awards recognize both individuals and organizations who are pushing professional standards, evolving their engagement or redefining the international student experience.
Students and faculty from DC’s School of Media, Art & Design traveled for 10 days to rural regions of Guatemala as part of a new digital storytelling program, called Youth United 2030, contributing to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The program was delivered in partnership with the Canadian charity, Students Offering Support (SOS), which has facilitated youth service-learning programs throughout Latin America since 2008.
With the support of faculty member, and former CBC journalist Danielle Harder, students from DC’s Video Production and Journalism – Mass Media/Journalism programs used the skills they developed in class to deliver interactive training workshops for 35 low-income Guatemalan youth to learn about using digital storytelling techniques as a tool for change.
In addition to delivering workshops, participants fundraised, purchased and donated iPads so youth from host communities have access to technology to put the training into action.
In February 2020, a second cohort of DC students travelled to Guatemala alongside Harder, to deliver follow-up training opportunities, and continue producing new media content, as part of the ongoing program.
Upon their return from Guatemala, the students produced short documentaries offering cross-cultural perspectives on the SDGs.
In total, more than 35 students and faculty had the opportunity to study abroad last year – in countries including Guatemala, Peru, and Barbados.
DC launched Working Across Borders (WAB), a new course focused on international collaboration and sustainability through student-run consultancy projects.
Approximately 550 people from around the world joined DC students and faculty members for the launch, using the global classroom, DC’s internationally live-streamed approach to global learning.
The WAB program teaches students how to achieve success in a global marketplace, while meeting the environmental needs of today’s world. Students work in multi-national teams to develop and pitch sustainable solutions to combat issues that impact the world socially and environmentally.
These solutions, based on three of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals outlined by the United Nations, include: gender equality, clean water and sanitation, climate action and responsible consumption and production.
More than 128 students across the International Business Management and Project Management post-grad programs, alongside a group of students in the Finance program, enrolled in WAB this fall.
