Durham College (DC) is proud to congratulate Nicole Fleming, Marie Elizabeth, Cali Maldonado and Paul Hutchins, students from DC’s Fine Arts – Advanced program, and professor Dani Crosby, for the Bravo Zulu medals awarded to them by the Royal Canadian Navy for their artwork on the Navy Painting Project. The ceremony was part of the Whitby Station Gallery’s 17th Annual Juried Art Show Reception and Awards Presentation on May 23 that featured artwork from students in the Fine Arts – Advanced and Foundations in Art and Design programs.

Greg Murphy, executive dean, School of Media, Art & Design, presented the awards to the DC students on behalf of the Royal Canadian Navy, in recognition of their outstanding work celebrating the navy’s history and heritage through their artwork. The student-created pieces feature ships, navy heroes in uniform and historic moments like the Battle of Normandy and the Battle of the Atlantic using acrylic and oil paints on canvas.

Students worked closely with DC faculty members and navy authorities, including Vice-Admiral Ron Lloyd and Major Graeme Davidson, for insight and guidance, providing them with a unique experiential learning opportunity on a collaborative project.

The artwork created through the Navy Painting Project will be displayed at the Royal Canadian Navy headquarters in Ottawa.

On May 23, Durham College (DC) welcomed 300 students in grades eight to 11, from across Durham Region, to its Oshawa campus for The Cypher: Black Male Empowerment Conference.

This is the third year DC has sponsored the conference, an initiative of the Durham District School Board that explores the need for more Black role models, emphasizing the goals of promoting positive transitions and various academic pathways, while eliminating barriers to success.

The morning consisted of workshops, networking sessions, guest speakers and a panel discussion for teachers to explore the value of identity. Students also participated in workshops facilitated by community leaders and organizations focused on technology, design and digital literacy.

Capping off the conference was a keynote by Randell Adjei, founder of Reaching Intelligent Souls Everywhere, one of Toronto’s largest youth-led initiatives, and an inspirational speaker who uses the spoken word to empower, create community and transform youth through edutainment.

The Durham College (DC) Enactus team, Enactus DC, achieved another team milestone at the 2019 Enactus National Exposition, held in Vancouver, BC.

Going up against a competitive field of 69 college and university teams from across Canada, the social innovation team advanced through the preliminary round of competition, earning a team-first berth in the semi-final round.

As part of the competition, Enactus DC members presented highlights of their six social innovation projects from 2018 to 2019. These included Girls EnPower, Grassroots, Money Makes Cents, True Grit, Project MO3, and the Side Hustle Summit. Each project has already proven to make positive impacts in greater college community across categories that include youth empowerment, entrepreneurship, environmental, mental wellness and financial education.

Enactus is an international non-profit organization dedicated to creating social change through entrepreneurship. DC’s chapter launched in 2016 through FastStartDC, the college’s entrepreneurship centre, and focuses on making positive economic and social impacts in Durham Region.

For more information on the projects or how to get involved with Enactus DC, visit www.enactusdc.com.

On May 11, Durham College (DC), along with Ontario Tech University, welcomed inquiring minds of all ages to “STEAM Big” and experience science and the science behind art at Science Rendezvous 2019.

The free, fun, family-friendly annual event allowed participants to meet the scientists who turn innovative research ideas into real solutions for society. They also had the opportunity to take part in interactive science activities including mini-workshops, a family escape room, folding a giant origami DNA molecule and much more.

With more than 300 events hosted simultaneously across the country by universities and colleges in 30 cities, Science Rendezvous aims to inspire young people to start thinking about how science, engineering, technology, arts and math can be part of their educational journey.

Whether it’s looking into a microscope, checking out fossils or learning about forensics, the festival offers unique opportunities for kids to visit a post-secondary campus at a young age and get a behind-the-scenes look at the leading edge of science.

Photo credit: Kira Koop

Durham College (DC) is proud to share that Kelly O’Brien, general manager of the W. Galen Weston Centre for Food (CFF), was presented with a Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan) Leadership Excellence Award for Managerial Staff at the association’s annual conference on May 6. Presented in Niagara Falls, this award is in recognition of Kelly’s tremendous leadership and track record of success.

An inspiration to not only her team but also to the students studying in the CFF, Kelly works diligently each day to seamlessly integrate business operations of the CFF into all culinary, hospitality and horticulture curriculum, resulting in a powerful example of serving both students and the community at the highest possible level. Under her leadership, business operations at the CFF have also enjoyed three ‘best-ever’ years in a row, growing significantly in the number of customers and guests to the centre, and also the amount of students who work and volunteer annually.

In addition, Kelly is very active in the community, committing her team and students to improving the lives of others through skills and confidence-building activities, such as cooking sessions with patients at the regional mental health hospital. As well, she continues to establish partnerships with local businesses that benefit not only the college broadly, but the students and the partners. When not overseeing CFF operations, Kelly teaches marketing and leadership to students as a part-time instructor in the CFF, and contributes to the centre’s broader academic planning and operations.

Congratulations Kelly on your well-deserved award. The CICan Awards of Excellence recognize best practices from institutions across the country, as well as individual leadership and achievements, for more information on this year’s awards, please visit the CICan website.

Unique pop-up art installations appearing across Durham College’s (DC) Oshawa campus over the last few months have caught the eye of students, employees and visitors. From underwater scenes and fire-breathing dragons to dresses made of sheet music, these displays were created by students in DC’s Foundations in Art and Design program and interact in different ways with formerly empty wall space.

In the fall, students were tasked with staging a Guerilla Art Installation event, appropriating the campus as their temporary gallery to present impromptu performances and install non-defacing and non-destructive displays of art and sculpture. The spirit of the event was then carried over to project work in their second semester, resulting in the work that has been appearing around campus. These projects have allowed students to explore their art form deeper, preparing them for their Grad Exhibition Thesis Show and the Annual All-Student Juried Art Exhibition in April and May.

You can catch the final art projects at the Robert McLaughlin Gallery until Sunday, May 5 and Station Gallery until Monday, May 27. For more information on current student art across campus or what DC’s artists are up to, visit the Foundations in Art and Design Facebook page.

Representatives from businesses, government institutions and non-profit organizations across Durham Region and the Greater Toronto Area gathered in the Global Classroom at the Centre for Collaborative Education on April 4 for Durham College’s (DC) annual Field Placement Employer Appreciation Reception.

Organized by students in DC’s Special Events Management program, the event was held to recognize the invaluable contribution placement and practicum hosts make to experiential learning when they open their doors to DC students. In fact, more than 1500 organizations served as hosts to more than 4,400 students this past year.

During the event, guests heard from Christina Arcangioli, brokerage team leader for Keller Williams Energy Real Estate Brokerage, about the importance of collaborating with students. Laura May, a second-year student enrolled in the college’s Office Administration – Executive program also spoke about her placement at the Municipality of Clarington, while Patrick Trudell, a second-year Community Integration Through Co-operative Education student, reflected on his three culinary-related field placement opportunities.

Field placement at DC assists students in relating the theory learned in the classroom, to practice in the workplace. It is an opportunity for students to gain vital field experience, develop professional contacts within the industry, and enhance their résumé while studying. For more information, please visit the Field Placement webpage.

Photo supplied by Jessica Evans.

On March 28, Durham College (DC) hosted the Rain It In competition in the Global Classroom, welcoming teams from post-secondary institutions across Ontario as they pitched to a panel of industry experts their innovative solutions for mitigating the impacts of intense rainfall events. The competition is the brainchild of DC’s Water Quality Technician alumni Ellen Stitt, who hopes to empower college and university students to make a difference in their communities and positively impact the environment.

Since graduation in 2013, Ellen has had an incredible career, working as a senior operator and mechanic with the Ontario Clean Water Agency and most recently as the marketing manager for the Ontario Association of Sewage Industry Services. She is also an active volunteer, serving on the Walkerton Clean Water Centre’s Board of Directors and numerous other committees, including the Great Waters Challenge Youth Advisory Board with Waterlution, where she co-authored a children’s book entitled Canada’s Great Water Adventure. Ellen is the recipient of the 2016 OCWAmarine Citizenship Award and was a finalist for the 2018 Water Environment Association of Ontario Outstanding Young Professional Award and the 2018 Water’s Next Young Professional Award.

Rain It In is the direct result of Ellen’s dedication and passion for water. After pitching the competition at a Water Innovation Lab, facilitated by Waterlution, her group was selected to receive the Durham College seed fund to kick-start the competition and influence the next generation of water sector workers. While 10 teams entered proposals, only five finalists were selected and given the opportunity to present their ideas on March 28.

In the end, Waterloo Urban Adapt from the University of Waterloo was selected to receive a small monetary prize to help with the development and implementation of their innovation solution – a campaign that would help homeowners understand the Stormwater Credit Program and educate them on flood prevention for resilient properties.

As a sponsor of Rain It In, DC is proud to support its alumni as they continue to innovate and create change out in the world. The Water Quality Technician program at DC educates students in keeping water safe for consumption and for its return to the environment through proven treatment methods. Interested in launching your career in the water sector? Apply today!