Durham College (DC) and the University of Ontario Institute of Technology’s (UOIT) Campus Recreation and Wellness Centre was rocking last week as the two institutions played host to the FIRST® Robotics Canada (FRC) Greater Toronto East Regional Competition.  More than 1,000 students from 48 high school teams from across Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, Michigan and New York competed in the event held from March 6 to 8.

Using the Aerial Assist℠ program featuring two alliances of three schools each competing in a timed match to see who can score the most goals, teams did battle in hopes for a coveted spot at the FRC World Championship taking place in St. Louis, Missouri from Wednesday, April 23 to Saturday, April 26.

Once all of the dust had settled, the alliance formed by W.A.F.F.L.E.S., representing a number of high schools from Kingston, Ont., The Big Bang from Rick Hansen Secondary School in Mississauga, Ont. and Paradigm Shift from L’Amoreaux Collegiate Institute in Toronto, Ont. won the final competition and will take part in the world finals.

“The FIRST Robotics competition gives students an opportunity to work with engineers, to build robots and also learn the necessary soft skills to work as a team,” said Rajiv Galva, chair for the GTA East planning committee. “Teachers can interact and connect with students in a way that can’t be done in a normal class room. There is a place for everyone on a FIRST Robotics Team, whether you like building robots, writing proposals or creating websites. Students who graduate through FIRST are most likely to pursue a career in science, technology, engineering and/or mathematics, which is crucial for the development of the nation.”

Also travelling to St. Louis will be the Kinetic Knights (also representing a number of high schools) from Kincardine, Ont. who were the recipients of the Chairman’s Award; Rookie All-Star winners the Robo Blue Devils from Sir Wilfrid Laurier Collegiate Institute in Scarborough, Ont.; and the Engineering Inspiration award winners, the Tronic Titans from Holy Trinity Catholic Secondary School in Oakville, Ont.

Surrounded by his family at Durham College’s (DC) Whitby campus on March 6, second-year Renewable Energy Technician student Kurtis Paddison was awarded a $1,000 Leadership Scholarship by the College Student Alliance (CSA), a member-driven advocacy and student leadership organization that serves Ontario’s college students.

The scholarship, which is awarded to only 15 students throughout the province, is presented to an individual who exhibits academic excellence while demonstrating leadership qualities within their college community through volunteerism and participation in organizations primarily focused on helping others while maintaining a high level of academic success in their chosen program.

Once Paddison learned of the scholarship he immediately pursued the opportunity, demonstrating the qualities required by candidates by volunteering during campus orientation; assisting Habitat for Humanity in the community; and serving as a member of the Campus Emergency Response Team (CERT), a division of St. John’s Ambulance responsible for attending to medical emergencies on the DC campus.

“One of my teachers posted a notification (about the scholarship) on DC Connect and I followed it,” said Paddison. “I went through and thought I would be a perfect candidate for this. I get a lot of support from my whole family so it made it real easy for me.”

President Don Lovisa was joined by Ted Bartlett, general manager and chief operating officer of the CSA, to present Paddison with the scholarship. Both spoke highly of his qualifications for being selected from the pool of 45 annual applicants who applied to receive the award.

“We are always very proud of all of our students especially when one is selected among so many applicants to receive a scholarship like this,” said Lovisa. “It’s a real testament to Kurtis as an individual and to his dedication to his studies. It’s just wonderful to look up and see his family here to support him.”

Paddison plans on using the scholarship to assist with the paying of student loans and after graduation this spring is looking to jump right into his career.

“I hope to move into commercial power generation,” said Paddison. “Working with and monitoring power quality in large solar fields and trying to hook up wind turbines.”

In addition to opportunities available through organizations such as the CSA, Durham College students also have access to several scholarships and bursary opportunities via the college’s Financial Aid and Awards office with the college awarding more than $2 million in bursaries in 2013. For more information please visit www.durhamcollege.ca/financialaid.

Durham College announced today that its new Centre for Food (CFF), including Bistro ’67, the college’s full-service, teaching and learning restaurant, has been certified as a 2 Star Certified Green Restaurant® by the Green Restaurant Association (GRA), a non-profit organization which helps restaurants become more environmentally sustainable.

With the CFF receiving 121.33 GreenPoints™ on the GRA’s rigorous certification scale and having implemented 50 environmental steps, Durham College has gone 21.33 per cent above and beyond the minimum requirements necessary for certification.

“Since Day 1 Durham College has been dedicated to ensuring sustainability guides our decisions and best practices at the CFF,” said Don Lovisa, president, Durham College. “We’re proud to receive this certification from the GRA, which is a reflection of our commitment to build a centre focused on being green and demonstrating sustainable practices, and be recognized for our efforts to be a leader in environmental sustainability for the restaurant industry.”

Some highlights of the CFF’s green accomplishments include its dedication to reducing its environmental footprint by recycling; using a fully automated building controls management system and occupancy sensors in a variety of areas; offering touchless sensor faucets; recycling and composting kitchen waste; and using safer hand soaps among others. In addition careful attention is paid to the inputs and outputs of the facility and the restaurant in an effort to be good stewards of our environment.

Focused on the field-to-fork concept, which is based on the harvesting, storage, processing, packaging, sale and consumption of food – in particular the production of local food for local consumers, the CFF opened to students in September 2013. Accommodating approximately 900 additional students studying in culinary, hospitality, tourism, agricultural and horticultural programs, the CFF also houses state-of-the-art labs including food and beverage pairing labs; a hotel living lab; classrooms and meeting spaces; and a demonstration lecture theatre. The CFF brings these programs and building elements together with the college’s food science programs, completing the field to fork cycle. 

Bistro ’67 offers dishes prepared and served by students in the culinary and hospitality programs, featuring produce and delicious flavours from the region. It offers a unique field-to-fork culinary environment to diners including seating up to 70 guests and the opportunity to choose from a variety of seasonal dishes designed to satisfy any palate such as delicious soups and salads, intriguing sandwiches and entrees and decadent desserts.

In addition to featuring the latest in culinary technology, the restaurant also offers a boardroom (available for public rental) surrounded by glass walls overlooking the kitchen and a living lab with exposure to all restaurant-related jobs.

For more information on the college’s green certification ranking, please visit the GRA’s website.

For more information on the CFF please visit www.durhamcollege.ca/CFF.

Durham College announced today the results of its Program Quality Assurance Process Audit (PQAPA) final audit report, which indicate that the college has successfully met all six quality assurance criteria outlined in the report; demonstrating that Durham College is dedicated to its mission – the student experience comes first – through all its quality assurance efforts.

Overseen by the Ontario College Quality Assurance Service (OCQAS), PQAPA involves the regular and cyclical review of each college’s program quality assurance processes, focusing on college-wide policies and practices and drilling down on selected programs to verify that practices are implemented; recommendations lead to improvement; and that program quality is assured.

“Durham College is dedicated to providing our students with quality programs, expert faculty, a superior learning environment and ensuring our graduates have the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful in their careers and further education,” said Don Lovisa, president, Durham College. “We are proud to receive this high rating, which is a reflection of our collective quality assurance efforts. We look forward to continuing to deliver high-quality teaching and learning in the years to come.”

In addition to the six-star rating the report, which was approved by the OCQAS Management Board on December 17, also saw the college received two formal commendations, the first acknowledging the numerous opportunities for faculty development offered by its Centre for Academic and Faculty Enrichment (CAFE) and the second recognizing the implementation of the integrated student services model and support services offered in the Student Services building. The commendations will be listed as best practices on the OCQAS website and used as a reference for other colleges in the system.

Each external evaluation of a college includes completion of a quality criteria form and self-study report and a two-day site visit. It then ends with  a report from the audit review panel documenting the degree to which each college’s processes conform to the criteria and provides recommendations aimed at improving and enhancing processes and procedures to ensure learning comes first.

Durham College’s PQAPA site visit took place April 2 to 4, 2013 with members of the review panel speaking with students, and program teams. The auditors also toured the college’s facilities and met with various members of the college community including the Durham College Leadership Team, members of the Durham College Board of Governors and Program Advisory Committees and staff and administrators from many student services departments.

The Irish Institutes of Technology visited Durham College (DC) on February 10 to showcase a new pathways agreement with DC which offers students the opportunity to complete an honours degree program in Ireland.

This initiative, led by Enterprise Ireland, aims to increase the number of Canadian students studying in Ireland to assist in the entrepreneurial growth of the island nation. As well, the agreement adds to the more than 450 pathway to degree options already offered to DC students.

Students who missed the first information session will have a second chance to learn about this exciting opportunity on Wednesday, February 26 with a free, online webinar at 4 p.m. Along with learning about the chance to study abroad, students will hear from current and recently returning Canadian students who will highlight the high quality education options and unique culture found there. As well, all students who partake in the webinar will be entered for a chance to win a trip for two to Dublin, Ireland.

Registration for the webinar is available by visiting the Education in Ireland site.

Led by a group of Durham College (DC) student volunteers, the One Match Stem Cell and Marrow Network held their annual “Get Swabbed” event at the Oshawa campus on February 13. The event is held to help recruit healthy, committed donors for patients in need of stem cells.

This year, a specific emphasis has been placed in finding more young male donors between the ages of 17 and 35 from an ethnic background to address the shortage within this category. Approximately 12 per cent of the current stem cell donor base fits into this demographic, forcing a large amount of patients to draw from a small donor base that primarily consists of donors from other countries. In 2006, 77 per cent of stem cells used by Canadian patients were provided by donors from other countries.

“I really believe in this, this saves lives,” said Angela Gillis, a second-year Library and Information Technician student volunteering with the event. “It only takes a few minutes to fill out the form, to do the swab and the college campus is a great environment to be looking for the donors needed by this OneMatch campaign.”

With fewer than 30 per cent of patients requiring stem cell transplants able to find a match within their own family a necessity exists for the generosity of others to help potentially save lives. Currently, more than 237,000 Canadians have volunteered to donate stem cells. For those that missed the on-campus event but are interested in becoming a donor, please visit the OneMatch website or call 1.888.2.DONATE (1.888.236.6283).

Durham College (DC) students are being provided with more opportunities to continue their post-secondary education in an enhanced and simplified way with the recent launch of a new course-to-course transfer guide developed by the Ontario Council on Articulation and Transfer (ONCAT).

With more than 21,500 post-secondary students transferring within Ontario schools each year the course-to-course transfer guide will allow them to determine what credit they can expect to receive from participating institutions prior to applying.

Currently 35 colleges and universities are taking part in the two-phase launch with more planned to join in the future. Development of this initiative began in 2012 after the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities requested a more streamlined credit transfer system across the province. Durham College currently offers more than 450 pathways to degree options

DC president Don Lovisa has made the development of transfers and pathways a priority for the college and has put himself on the forefront by serving as Co-Chair of the ONCAT’s Board.

“As someone who has been involved in the credit transfer discussions for a long period of time, I have seen first-hand how institutional collaboration is transforming the culture of credit transfer in Ontario,” said Don Lovisa. “I am proud to be a part of ONCAT, the only organization in Ontario that brings together all colleges and universities to achieve a common goal to improve student mobility.”

ONCAT was established in 2011 as part of a five-year, $73.7 million commitment from the province to support the development of post-secondary infrastructure required to promote student mobility.

Monday morning came early at the Centre for Food (CFF) on February 3 when the college played host to Breakfast Television’s (BT) Jennifer Valentyne and the Live Eye crew as they filmed five different segments that aired throughout the morning.

Showcasing the college’s culinary, hospitality, events and horticulture students, Live Eye opened with President Don Lovisa and Valentyne surrounded by students in the building’s main atrium in front of the college’s spectacular living wall. After discussing the CFF’s field-to-fork concept Lovisa then presented Valentyne with her own chef’s jacket while setting the stage for the ‘Durham College Winter Warm Up’.

The four remaining segments saw culinary students and profs discussing how to work with local apple cider to create a classic hot and cold winter beverage; horticulture and events students and profs showing viewers how to make seasonal table centerpieces on a shoestring budget; culinary students and profs showing off how to make delicious vegetarian chilli and lamb stew and the best wines to pair them with; and lastly horticulture students showed Valentyne and viewers how to create an indoor garden designed to provide a variety of flavour-enhancing culinary herbs all winter long.

“Everyone at Durham College was thrilled to welcome Jennifer and her crew to the CFF this morning,” said Lovisa. “It was a great opportunity to have some fun with our students, professors and, of course, Jennifer, while sharing everything we love about CFF and its programs and students as well as the college’s commitment to field-to-fork. We would welcome them back anytime!”

Toronto’s number one morning show, BT airs from 5:30 to 9 a.m., Monday to Friday and offers viewers a refreshing look at the day ahead, combining the latest in local news, weather, traffic , celebrity interviews, lifestyle trends, local community events and big ticket giveaways. LiveEye sees Valentyne tour around the Greater Toronto Area and far beyond to businesses, tourist attractions, etc. 

Pictures from the day can be found on Durham College’s Facebook photo gallery and the video segments can be found on BT’s website at the following locations:

• Segment 1
• Segment 2
• Segment 3

Durham College, in partnership with the Association of Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC), is pleased to announce that School of Media, Art & Design (MAD) students Chris Gauvreau and Manjula Selvarajah, along with journalism Professor Danielle Harder, have been selected to travel to Jamaica and Antigua this January with another trip to follow in February to Guyana and Barbados to produce videos documenting the CARICOM Education for Employment (C-EFE) program, part of ACCC’s overall Education for Employment (EFE) initiative. C-EFE is a seven-year initiative funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (DFATD), formerly known as CIDA.

Gauvreau, Selvarajah and Harder will produce the videos as part of the C-EFE’s marketing strategy and materials. The team will be filming and interviewing individuals working on several EFE projects currently underway in the Caribbean with a particular focus on how to engage industry in education/training while showcasing industry involvement in curriculum development. Through these partnerships, Canadian post-secondary schools can share their experience in educational programs tailored to local employers’ needs, while providing Canadian college students with learning opportunities abroad.

Gauvreau, a second-year student in the Digital Video Production program, and Selvarajah, a third-year student in the Journalism – Print and Broadcast program, were chosen to participate by a panel of professors and Greg Murphy, dean of MAD, based on their portfolio presentations and interviews.

“We are incredibly proud of the strong depth of talent at Durham College,” said Fiona Richards, executive director, International Business Development. “Being able to utilize the talents of both our students and faculty in an international setting while providing Chris and Manjula with an opportunity to obtain real-world work experience while gaining exposure to other countries and cultures continues to enhance our reputation for providing experiential learning and bringing our mission ‘the student experience comes first’ to life.”

While in the Caribbean the students will be posting updates to their personal twitter accounts about their adventures using #projectcaribbean.

In addition to what is taking place in the Caribbean, a team of MAD students based at the college will be co-ordinating and leading a one-hour live Riot radio show during each trip (two shows in total). The shows will feature interviews with Selvarajah and ACCC partners in the Caribbean. There will also be daily traveller blogs with short updates on how the team is doing on location.

The students back in Canada will also be creating a website for the project that includes more details about the trip, blogs and samples of footage shot. The site will be updated regularly while the team is away so that people may follow their adventures. Some behind-the-scenes footage may also be posted to showcase the work involved in preparing for the trip.

“This is a phenomenal opportunity for us,” said Selvarajah. “It will give us a chance to take everything we have learned in our classrooms and studios and apply it in a real-life scenario. We plan to make our client happy with the pieces we produce and our college very proud.”

At Durham College the student experience comes first and the First Generation initiative provided by the Student Life office is an excellent example of this mission. First introduced in 2009 as a pilot project, the program is designed to encourage and support incoming students whose parents or guardians did not attend a post-secondary institution by providing assistance in the form of mentoring programs, orientation events, academic workshops, student bursaries and more. On average a third of all Durham College students are considered to be first generation.

Led by Lucy Romao Vandepol, First Generation student co-ordinator, the initiative provides the opportunity for students who enter post-secondary education unfamiliar with the college environment to familiarize themselves with everything on campus at their own pace.

“The key to the First Generation program is being able to build that rapport with students and letting them feel like they have someone on campus to go to,” said Romao Vandepol.

Working directly with first generation students, Romao Vandepol acts as host of Latte’s with Lucy, a frequently occurring workshop that brings together first generation students to answer questions and provide assistance during their time at Durham College.

“I didn’t know my way around or what would be expected of me but Lucy and the first generation group really filled in all those blanks for me,” said Mechanical Engineering Technician – Non-Destructive Evaluation student Clifford Roffey when asked about the program.

First generation students are invited to attend the next Latte’s with Lucy on Thursday, January 30 from 2-3:30 p.m. in the Student Services Building to learn more.