While education is at the heart of DC, we are so much more. Always evolving to meet the demands of the communities we serve, and responding to the changing marketplace, DC is committed to excellence in teaching and learning, applied research that solves business challenges and industry collaborations that enhance experiences for our students and partners.
DC is the first college in Canada to provide college courses in prison through the Walls to Bridges (W2B) education program, which facilitates for-credit post-secondary courses taught within correctional settings. Each W2B classroom sees equal numbers of incarcerated and non-incarcerated students learning together as peers.
When the program launched, DC Professor Dale Burt taught Resiliency in Society: The Bridges and Barriers at a federal correctional institution in Ontario. Each week she travelled to the prison with eight DC students who took the class alongside eight currently incarcerated students.
Working towards certification, employees participated in workshops, e-learning classes, training exercises, consulting and much more. Certified employees are now using this newfound knowledge to educate others about positive international and inter-cultural learning, both inside and outside the classroom, ultimately enhancing the student and community experience at DC.
"The Walls to Bridges classroom offers a unique transformational learning experience that encourages diverse learners to build bridges with one another, recognizing that there are many ways of ‘knowing,’ including from each other and our experiences," said Professor Burt. "We are really all students and teachers in the W2B classroom. Together we are able to break down barriers as we examine – and unlearn – assumptions and ‘othering.'"
In October, DC celebrated the completion of its geothermal field and grand opening of its Energy Innovation Centre (EIC), which together leverage clean, sustainable underground thermal energy for the heating and cooling of the college’s Gordon Willey building.
Not only does the EIC work in tandem with DC’s green initiatives to reduce the college’s carbon footprint, it also provides our students with a unique living lab that offers self-guided experiential learning opportunities.
Open to students, employees and the public, the EIC facility provides an exhibit-like atmosphere where visitors can learn more about how the geothermal system works through displays and interactive touch screens that feature system diagrams and performance metrics. Additionally, a real-time energy dashboard provides insight on campus energy savings and the reduction of associated greenhouse gas emissions and is part of the ongoing transformation of DC’s energy infrastructure to support and implement sustainably focused initiatives on campus.
DC received consent from the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities to offer a new Honours Bachelor of Health Care Technology Management (BBS). Based at the college’s Oshawa campus and beginning in September 2020, the Honours BBS will be DC’s second, degree program following the successful launch of the Honours Bachelor of Health Care Technology Management in 2018.
“Ontario is seeing an increasing incidence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in children and youth, dementia in seniors, as well as individuals with addictions and acquired brain injuries,” said Dr. Judeline Innocent, executive dean of DC’s School of Health & Community Services (HCS). “As agencies and long-term care facilities prepare for the increasing numbers in these client populations, the need for more qualified professionals in the areas of health, community and social services will also increase. With the Honours Bachelor of Behavioural Science, our graduates will be ready to not only meet this need but become leaders in these fields as well.”
Under the leadership of the college’s HCS administration and faculty, the Honours BBS program was developed with guidance from psychologists, community and social service agencies, municipal services representatives, mental health workers and psychogeriatric services.
Students will gain vital work experience in a professional setting through a 420-hour supervised field placement. Upon graduation, they will be prepared to work with individuals of all ages within a variety of health and community settings, helping people with addictions and mental health challenges, acquired brain injuries, dementia and pervasive developmental disabilities, including ASD.
The School of Continuing Education at DC is now the Centre for Professional and Part-time Learning (PPL). With extraordinary customer service at its core, PPL delivers quality part-time programs and courses to individuals who are looking for professional development opportunities, as well as to students seeking credit towards a post-secondary credential.
“The world of learning is changing, especially when it comes to continuing education,” said Dr. Elaine Popp, vice president, Academic, at DC. “Today’s professionals understand that staying competitive in their field requires a commitment to continual upskilling and development. Durham College understands that these professionals require flexible learning that meets their needs. This is why we are so excited to introduce the Centre for Professional and Part-time Learning as the next step in the evolution of lifelong learning at DC.”
The market-driven programming focuses primarily on the areas of health, technology, business, education and training, languages, and specialized trades.
Offering more than 1,000 courses and 75 programs across a broad range of disciplines, PPL leverages the wealth of experience provided by DC faculty and provide students with flexible learning opportunities via in-class, online and hybrid delivery.