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DC and ADZU bring biomedical engineering to life in the Philippines

Durham College (DC) recently welcomed another opportunity to internationalize its campus when it hosted three delegates working on the Ateneo de Zamboanga University (ADZU) School of Medicine (SOM) project in the Philippines. The delegates were visiting as part of an endeavour that will see the college share its knowledge of and expertise in the Biomedical Engineering Technology program to help the university create its own.

Estimated to last 20 years, the project will see the partnership between the two schools grow and evolve, with the potential for future mentoring exchange programs with students and faculty, incorporating continued support in both teaching protocols and technological advancements.

“The Canadian Association of Rural Physicians approached us to work on this partnership project,” said Susan Todd, dean of the School of Science & Engineering Technology (SET), DC. “We were flattered and excited but when I met the team from the Philippines I knew instantly it was a good fit. Their staff are committed to health care and developing sustainable solutions. They are innovative, passionate and their teaching philosophy is similar to ours. I am looking forward to a long relationship with the ADZU.”

As the first-ever Biomedical Engineering Technology program in the province, designed 10 years ago, DC’s program remains one of only three in the Ontario system today. As a well-recognized program serving hospitals and device manufacturers across Ontario, DC graduates are well-versed in the electronics and safety aspects of medical equipment, and understand their role as health care professionals.

“We hope to build a relationship with Durham College,” said Dr. Fortunato Cristobal, one of the visiting delegates. “We want to work together to help ADZU SOM achieve its own biomedical engineering degree program and put into place all of the best practices currently being used at the college. If we can help them build on their training and experience with the technology, it will help the school build a reputation and those students will stay in the impoverished community and provide assistance.”

Fall open house welcomes future students to DC

Durham College (DC) welcomed over 3,500 potential students, their friends and families, at the Oshawa and Whitby campuses and Pickering Learning Site on November 15 during DC’s annual fall open house.

Highlighting the college’s innovative programs, high-tech classrooms, labs and state-of-the-art facilities, visitors were treated to information sessions and tours, with staff and students on hand at all three locations to answer any questions and provide important information about DC’s programs and departments, including Financial Aid and Awards and Admissions and Recruitment, as well as the application process.

Potential students also had the opportunity to meet and chat with DC’s Team Experience, which is bringing the college experience to prospective and current students, parents, teachers and the community via an amazing group of 14 students who offer a unique perspective of what a year in the life of a DC college student is really like, through a specially designed website, and social media platforms including blogs, videos, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

For information on the more than 140 full-time programs offered at the college, please visit www.durhamcollege.ca.

Durham College receives additional funding to support work with IFTech

The Durham College (DC) Office of Research Services and Innovation (ORSI) has received $20,000 in additional funding from Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) to support its ongoing applied research work with IFTech Inventing Future Technology Inc. (IFTech), an Oshawa-based start-up company that specializes in wearable technology related to immersive gaming and virtual world simulation.

Received via OCE’s Voucher for Innovation and Productivity (VIP), which allows eligible companies to gain access to expertise and resources from colleges, universities and research hospitals to support commercialization, innovation, productivity, e-business and research and development, the funding will see DC faculty and student researchers continue their work on IFTech’s multi-sensory stimulation device – As Real As It Gets (ARAIG).

“ORSI, along with the college’s talented faculty and students, is pleased to be able to continue our exciting work with IFTech as we support the ongoing research and development of ARAIG,” said Debbie McKee Demczyk, director, ORSI. “We have made great applied research progress since June – including offering students from our School of Science & Engineering Technology the opportunity to gain hands-on research and work experience – and we look forward to working together to bring ARAIG to market in the coming months.”

The college has been working with IFTech since June when it received an initial $20,000 in funding via an OCE VIP toward the introduction of an applied research project designed to support IFTech’s growth and expansion into the wearable technology marketplace with a focus on bringing ARAIG to a manufacture-ready, commercial product.

“OCE is proud to support IFTech and the incredible work they are doing with Durham College,” said Dr. Tom Corr, president and chief executive officer, OCE. “I had a chance to see their impressive technology up close and personal at our Discovery conference this year and I think it has terrific potential in a variety of applications.”

A wireless gaming suit, ARAIG immerses individuals into the reality of a gaming world by interacting with users to increase their immersion based on situations and/or interactions occurring within a range of media environments. The media environment, activities and interaction taking place in a virtual world translate into tangible sensory stimulations that affect the user’s interaction with the environment, resulting in the user being more aware of the virtual world through his or her heightened sensitivity.

The new funding will allow the college to conduct applied research specific to the creation of the wireless communications protocol of ARAIG – a component critical to the commercialization of the device. Under the project, the college will develop a wireless communication system between ARAIG’s sensors. Once completed, IFTech will own a universal wireless communication protocol that will allow it to use ARAIG for any application in any market appropriate to its sensory technology.

It will also allow IFTech to benefit from skills and expertise provided by the college’s faculty and student researchers including access to technical input, know-how and applied scientific research and development knowledge.

“Innovation is not just about an idea as there are thousands of innovative ideas that do not make it to market,” said Michael Stanfield, founder and co-chief executive offer, IFTech. “Theory, research, applied science, finance, market and business are required pillars to support the success of new innovations and we are very excited to be working with Durham College on this project. The college has proven to be a great fit with IFTech with its high-tech facilities, knowledgeable and experienced project leads and students that are adept at handling our applied research needs. We look forward to a continued working relationship with Durham College as our company grows.”

DC student wins Culinary Competition

Durham College (DC) Culinary Management student, Glenda Neatt, recently won the Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers (OGVG) Culinary Competition  for her Gazpacho Martini Sorbet recipe, which consists of gazpacho with a splash of vodka churned into sorbet and garnished with roasted red pepper tuile (a thin, crisp wafer), sweet tomato chip and a greenhouse ‘olive’ cut from a cucumber and stuffed with red pepper.

The event, which took place at Cirillo’s Culinary Academy in Toronto on November 5, featured Neatt’s entry which impressed the judges as it uses all varieties of Ontario greenhouse vegetables, showcasing their diversity in a dish that could be served as an appetizer or dessert.

“It is clear that Glenda is a dedicated student with a natural talent for culinary creations who refined her recipe until she got it just right,” said Don Lovisa, president, DC. “Her wonderful achievement is a testament to the quality of teaching provided by the faculty at our Centre for Food (CFF) and we are very proud of her accomplishment.”

The first stage of the competition saw entries from culinary students across the province narrowed down to four finalists. After competing against students from Centennial and Humber colleges, Neatt won a KitchenAid food processor and hand mixer as well as a $500-cash prize. In addition, she showcased her winning entry on CHCH TV’s Morning Live show on November 7.

“It was great to be able to take part in the OGVG culinary competition,” said Neatt. “I am thrilled to have been able to work with wonderful Ontario greenhouse vegetables and explore creative ways to use them in culinary arts. The competition was a lot of fun and I am grateful for the help and support that I received from Chef David Hawey, professor and co-ordinator of the college’s culinary programs.”

In addition to Neatt’s recipe taking centre stage at the OGVG competition, it will be featured as a special menu item for a limited time at DC’s Bistro ’67, a 70-seat, full-service, green-certified, teaching-inspired restaurant housed at the CFF.

“Glenda is the third medal winner from the CFF in our first year of operation and we are thrilled with her success,” said Hawey. “Our students are some of the best and brightest in our community and we are confident the CFF will continue to produce award-winning culinary talent. Congratulations to Glenda on this wonderful achievement.”

With this win, Neatt joins the likes of DC graduate Sarah Lavergne, who won gold in both the culinary arts and cooking categories at the Ontario Technological Skills Competition and Skills Canada National Competition, respectively, last spring while she was a student of the college’s Culinary Skills program. In addition, Culinary Management students Marisa Latin and Michael Stowell-Smith also took home gold at the Winterloo Student Ice Carving Competition in Waterloo last winter.

Supported by celebrity chef Jamie Kennedy, the CFF accommodates approximately 900 students studying in the college’s culinary, hospitality, event management, tourism, food science, agricultural and horticultural programs. In addition to being home to Bistro’67 it houses Pantry, a unique retail store that sells student-created fresh-baked items, meals-to-go, preserved foods and ready-to-cook meals prepared in house.

David Milgaard, advocate for the wrongly convicted, shared his story at Durham College

Durham College’s (DC) School of Interdisciplinary Studies & Employment Services welcomed more than 500 students, faculty and staff to a presentation by David Milgaard, advocate for the wrongly convicted, at the college’s Oshawa campus on November 5. His visit is an example of the college’s ongoing efforts to bring speakers to campus related directly to program curriculum.

Milgaard, who was arrested at age 16 and sentenced to life in prison for murder at age 17, discussed his experience with the Canadian justice system, touching on wrongful conviction processes; compensation for the wrongly convicted; the release of the wrongly convicted from prison, and more. He also answered questions from audience members, about his healing process following his release; his dreams for the future at age 16; and what he most looked forward to upon his release from prison, among many others.

For those who were unable to attend in person, a recording of Milgaard’s presentation is available to members of the DC community at www.theglobalclass.org and will be online for two weeks. A username and password are required to view the video and can be accessed by contacting lon.appleby@durhamcollege.ca.

Crowdfunding campaign achieves total funding for culinary herb garden project

Durham College’s (DC) first-ever crowdfunding initiative, Field to Fork: Sowing the Seeds of our Community, is beginning to see financial support for the Centre for Food’s (CFF) landscaping needs come to fruition via funding from generous donors within the community.

Most notably, to date, 100 per cent of the funding required for the culinary herb garden has been achieved, thanks to generous donor Tina Bax, founder and president of CultureWorks, a private English-as-a-second-language (ESL) school located at post-secondary institutions such as Durham College, who pledged the full amount needed.

“Canadian colleges have the ability to be nimble. You see so many different programs cropping up, which is encouraging when you think about what it means for today’s young people,” said Bax. “All of these experiences help open their minds – at school! It’s great to have a chance to fund a creative, fresh facility like the CFF that combines both of my passions:  education and food. I hope to have a chance to participate in more of the CFF’s projects, and perhaps involve some of our international students or partners.”

In addition to the culinary herb garden reaching its fundraising goal, the fruit-bearing shrubs category is quickly gaining momentum, reaching 38 per cent of its goal, and the kitchen garden is up to 28 per cent.

Inspired by the college’s commitment to bring field to fork, the vision of bringing locally sourced, quality produce from field to table to Durham Region, Field to Fork: Sowing the Seeds of our Community aims to garner support from the community for the completion of the landscaping and planting needed at the CFF. With 14 remaining projects to choose from, the campaign rolled out to alumni, donors, faculty, staff, students, community members and the general public in August.

The CFF was created in direct response to the demand of the local culinary, hospitality, tourism, agriculture and horticulture sectors. Supported by ambassador and celebrity chef Jamie Kennedy it opened to students in September 2013. Accommodating approximately 900 students studying in the college’s culinary, hospitality, event management, tourism, food science, agricultural and horticultural programs, it houses Bistro ’67, a teaching-inspired restaurant, and Pantry, a unique retail store that sells student-created fresh-baked items, meals-to-go, preserved foods and ready-to-cook meals prepared in house.

To make a donation or for more information on how the college is changing the way our local communities eat and grow food, please visit the Field to Fork: Sowing the Seeds of our Community website.

DC celebrates graduates at fall convocation

Following its fall convocation ceremony on October 30 at the General Motors Centre in Oshawa, Durham College (DC) is proud to announce that more than 950 students from more than 110 programs graduated this fall. In addition, the college recognized the success of 420 students who earned a place on the highly regarded President’s Honour Roll as a result of their hard work and dedication.

“Whether you came to Durham College straight from high school; following the completion of a post-secondary credential in another field; or because you decided to make a career change – either by choice or by circumstance; tonight you are graduating from one of Canada’s top colleges,” said Don Lovisa, president, DC, as he addressed graduates during the ceremony. “That means that you have proven yourself in the classroom and workplace and have the tools to be successful in the workforce or in further post-secondary studies.”

The annual event honoured students from the schools of Business, IT & Management; Centre for Food; Continuing Education; Health & Community Services; Interdisciplinary Studies & Employment Services; Justice & Emergency Services; Media, Art & Design; Science & Engineering Technology; and Skilled Trades, Apprenticeship & Renewable Technology.

“Whatever your journey has been, each of you chose Durham College to further your education and for that we couldn’t be more proud,” said Lovisa.

DC’s Student Leadership Award winners include graduates Michelle Brand, Mikki Decker and Amy Galloway O’Neil , who were recognized for their outstanding contributions to campus life, and the commitment and exemplary leadership they demonstrated during their time at the college. In order to receive this award, students must accumulate a pre-determined amount of leadership points through the college’s Co-Curricular Recognition program by participating in activities that enhance student life; engage students; and encourage involvement.

The college’s fall convocation ceremony brings the total number of alumni to more than 67,000 strong. Video from the ceremony will be available in approximately two weeks at www.durhamcollege.ca/convocation.

Music and art collide in the Pit

Many of Durham College’s (DC) students, faculty and staff have heard its beautiful music and seen its incredible artwork, but who knows where the piano in the Pit came from and who had the fun task of making it so unique?

DC’s own Debbie White from the Human Resources department, and her family, graciously donated the new musical gem while Kevin Cormier, a third-year Fine Arts – Advanced student, was selected to create the design that now appears.

“I thought it would be an interesting task to take on knowing how important the piano is to Durham College students,” said Cormier. “I wanted it to be fun and flowing in its design, as to physically represent what the space where the piano is means to me. The abstract design was also meant to complement the original piano, which has been transformed into a gaming station. It allows for everyone to interpret it in different ways whenever they pass by it.”

This great portfolio piece wouldn’t have come his way had it not been Sean McQuay, program co-ordinator for the Fine Arts – Advanced program, asking him to help with the school’s plans for the piano donation.

So what’s next for DC’s budding artist?

“My plan is to graduate from Durham and continue my studies in fine arts at a university level. Hopefully I’ll be able to pursue a job in a creative field and continue working on my personal art.”

This piano will remain in the Pit, while the original piano will be moved into its new home in the Marketplace cafeteria once completed.

DC and UOIT create more opportunities for international students

A new pathways program agreement between Durham College (DC) and the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) will provide international students with greater access to opportunities to obtain their diploma and an undergraduate degree in less than the traditional amount of time.

The Pathways Program Agreement on International Student Recruitment, signed by both institutions on September 25, will see eligible international students who apply to DC receive a Letter of Admission (LOA) indicating that when they complete their college studies, they will be eligible to directly enrol into a relevant UOIT undergraduate program with advanced standing.

“This new agreement reflects the shared commitment of DC and UOIT to provide all students with access to the most comprehensive post-secondary education possible”, said Nevzat Gurmen, vice-president, Corporate Services and chief financial officer, DC. “DC’s international student population, more than 450 students strong as of fall 2014, continues to grow and we look forward to working with UOIT to provide new international applicants with access to academic pathways that will enable them to earn both a diploma and a degree in several different areas right here in Durham Region.”

The new agreement will take effect as of the 2014-2015 undergraduate recruitment cycle with the university and college working closely to facilitate international student recruitment across both institutions. Applicants must successfully complete an applicable program at Durham College and meet all academic requirements during the applicable admissions cycle with specific enrolment restrictions and program capacities discussed between the university and the college on an annual basis.

“This Pathways agreement further strengthens our partnership with Durham College and our collective commitment to providing seamless access to high-quality, industry-driven and career-oriented programs,” said Dr. Michael Owen, vice-president, Research, Innovation and International, UOIT. “The University of Ontario Institute of Technology is proud to partner with Durham College to offer this unique post-secondary education opportunity to students from around the world.”

There are currently more than 60 academic pathway opportunities in place between DC and UOIT including credit transfer, bridging, direct-entry and post-graduate programs in areas including arts, business, health, justice and more.

DC named one of Canada’s Top Research Colleges

For the second consecutive year Durham College (DC) has been rated as one of the top 25 colleges in Canada for research income according to Research Infosource Inc.’s, ranking of Canada’s Top 50 Research Colleges, which was released today.

The ranking is a significant achievement for DC’s Office of Research Services and Innovation (ORSI), which supports local businesses and industry by helping them solve their technical problems and become more competitive.

“We are very pleased and honoured to see Durham College’s achievements continue to be recognized on the list of Canada’s Top 50 Research Colleges,” said Debbie McKee Demczyk, director of ORSI. “We continue to look for opportunities to support small- and medium-sized companies with their research and innovation needs and to provide excellent opportunities for our students to experience real-world challenges.”

“Colleges and CEGEPs have a unique place in the country’s national system of innovation,” said Ron Freedman, chief executive officer of Research Infosource. “They differentiate themselves by concentrating on practical, applied research that is focused on the needs of local firms and organizations.”

For more information and a complete list of Canada’s Top 50 Research Colleges please visit www.researchinfosource.com/top50_col.php