On October 22, under warm, sunny skies, Team Durham College (DC) once again pounded the pavement at the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon, half-marathon and 5K to raise funds for the new Centre for Collaborative Education (CFCE).

More than $17,500 was raised thanks to the fundraising efforts of Team DC, individual participants and the kindness of the family, friends and organizations who sponsored them. Additional matching funds were generously provided by silver sponsor the Durham College Alumni Association and participant sponsor Mason Bennett Johncox. Donations can be made until Tuesday, October 31, for those who still want to support the team.

This is the second year that employees, students and alumni banded together to participate in the Building Something Amazing campaign’s Run for DC in support of the CFCE and the promise of collaboration and innovation that it brings.

Durham College (DC) will host the inaugural Student Job Fair for the Nuclear Industry at the Oshawa campus on Saturday, October 21 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Held in partnership with the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT), the Canadian Nuclear Society and the Organization of Canadian Nuclear Industries, the event will connect students and recent graduates with more than 30 employers and support organizations in the nuclear field.

Students and graduates from a variety of disciplines, including engineering, human resources, business and office administration, computer science, IT and skilled trades, are encouraged to attend.

Admission to the event is free but registration is required. Attendees can register in advance online or onsite at the event. Free parking will also be available in Founders lot 2.

In addition to the job fair, attendees will have the opportunity to learn more about the nuclear science and technology community through a variety of breakout sessions. They will also have access to a Career Coach’s Corner for advice on job search strategies, resumés and interviews.

The job fair and Career Coach’s Corner will be held all day in the Campus Recreation and Wellness Centre, Gyms 3, 4 and 5.

Breakout sessions will be held in the UOIT Science Building as follows:

• Nuclear for Everyone mini course
  Presented by Canadian Nuclear Society
  9:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 2 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.
  Room 2130

• Getting Involved with North American Young Generation in Nuclear
  9:30 a.m. and 11 a.m.
  Room 2120

• Overview of Canadian Nuclear Laboratories and Chalk River Laboratories
  11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
  Room 2240

• Careers in Nuclear
  Presented by Ontario Power Generation
  11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
  Room 2140

• Planning a Career
  Presented by Women in Nuclear
  12:30 p.m., 2 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.
  Room 2120

This fall, Durham College’s (DC) Whitby campus was ready for more than 400 students enrolled in increasingly-popular welding and welding trades programs with a third welding shop. These programs include Trades Fundamentals, Mechanical Technician – Millwright, Mechanical Techniques – Plumbing, and Welding Engineering Technician among others. This additional welding shop has been completed and upgrades made to the other two shops. The expansion and upgrades are part of DC’s commitment to a state-of-the-art learning environment for students.

The new shop has 20 modular work booths to accommodate a standard 20:1 student to professor ratio in each class. This provides every student with their own workspace, fostering a sense of ownership that motivates them to maintain their area as they learn welding skills. In keeping with the welding programs’ approach to teaching, in which students follow along with the professor, the setup of the new shop also includes a centrally-situated demonstration area.

“Our practice of teaching students has always been to work alongside them,” said Gregg Peel, program coordinator and professor with DC’s, School of Skilled Trades, Apprenticeship & Renewable Technology (START). “Hand-on-hand, one-to-one instruction is something we ask all of our professors to do in the welding shops. Students work on their own with the professor visiting them often during the class to offer help, guidance and encouragement as they progress.” 

The shop expansion and upgrades also include the installation of a new state-of-the-art gas alarm system for safety.

DC’s welding and welding trades programs provide students with exceptional welding, fitting and blueprint reading skills sought by employers in the structural, pressure vessel and manufacturing industries. Students learn from professors with vast welding experience and receive expert knowledge and practical skills that foster their trade.

On September 13, second-year students from Durham College’s (DC) Sport Administration (two-year)/Sport Management (three-year) program presented a cheque for $15,000 to Durham Outlook, the organization that operates St. Vincent’s Kitchen in Oshawa. The students raised the money by organizing a Hockey Helps the Homeless (HHTH) hockey tournament which took place on March 24 at the Campus Ice Centre at Simcoe St. and Conlin Rd. The funds will be used to support the construction of a brand-new facility to feed those in need.

Hockey Helps the Homeless is a national charity working toward a future where every Canadian has a place to call home. Although the charity has operated a collegiate division to help colleges and universities run events, the DC event was entirely unique in that it was part of the curriculum embedded in the course, Sport & Event Marketing, taught by Nadine Lamarche, a professor and program co-ordinator with the college’s School of Business, IT & Management.

A group of 15 of Lamarche’s students ran the event and did all the work including managing logistics, securing sponsors, negotiating ice-time rates, obtaining prizes for the silent auction, overseeing the risk-management aspect, and of course, managing the flow of tournament day. As sports and charity work are so closely linked, Lamarche has seen that this kind of marketing experience is very important for the professional development of students and gives them skills and connections that they will use in their future sport management careers.

With the success of DC’s HHTH event, faculty is moving ahead to provide even more opportunities for sport management students to become involved with non-profit organizations and benefit from the experiential learning that is a highlight of the DC student experience. Their next HHTH tournament is already on the calendar for March 23, 2018! More information is available on the Hockey Helps the Homeless website.

Aligning with DC’s internationalization focus, Durham College (DC) International’s three-year Caribbean Education for Employment (C-EFE): Driving World Connections project has officially come to a successful conclusion marked by a closing ceremony, hosted by the Government Technical Institute (GTI), the vocational institute in Georgetown at the centre of the project, and DC, in Georgetown, Guyana on September 15.

A DC contingent, including Katie Boone, manager, International Projects and Partnerships, Doug Hart, manager, Curriculum Design, Corporate Training Services and Phil Raby, professor/program co-ordinator, Broadcasting – Radio and Contemporary Media, travelled to Georgetown to participate in the ceremony. Boone spoke at the event and presented GTI with a plaque to recognize their partnership.

Jan Sheltinga, counsellor, Development Cooperation, High Commission of Canada, also spoke at the ceremony, congratulating the partners on their success while Guyana’s minister of education, Nicolette Henry, emphasized the importance of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) to Guyana. Henry expressed her appreciation to the Canadian partners for their support.

Visitors in attendance were taken on a tour of the institute and its facilities by its principal, Renita Crandon Duncan, faculty members and students.

A special moment of the afternoon was the ribbon-cutting and official launch of GTI’s new Automotive Electrical/Electronics and Repairs Program – a direct outcome of the C-EFE project. Developed by DC and its partners, the College of the North Atlantic and the Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University of Newfoundland, the program was designed in response to the growing needs of Guyana’s auto industry. The first cohort of students started the program this summer and will receive the National Vocational Qualification when they graduate.

Over the lifespan of the partnership, project initiatives have included: structured training for the Guyanese faculty to modernize their automotive curriculum under a competency-based model; technical training on new equipment as well as capacity-building in applied teaching strategies; support for GTI to build sustainable relationships with internal and external stakeholders; and fostering the growth of the leadership and change management skills of GTI’s administrative team. The project initiatives bolstered communication and teamwork between all of the partners resulting in more positive working relationships as reflected in GTI’s emerging institutional five-year strategic plan, developed with DC’s mentorship.

The C-EFE: Driving World Connections project was conducted with support from Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan) and Global Affairs Canada.

Linzie Mark is currently enrolled in her first year of Durham College’s (DC) Practical Nursing program. She is also diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and anxiety.

To help keep her grounded in the midst of a PTSD or anxiety attack, and on the advice of her doctor, Linzie relies on her service dog, a Border Collie named Eloise. While Eloise is still a seven-week new puppy, she is also in training, learning specific sensory techniques to help her partner. The two are inseparable, which means they go everywhere together, including the classes and labs Linzie attends every week.

Linzie and Eloise are just one service animal/partner pair that can be found on the college’s Oshawa and Whitby campuses and learning site in Pickering; the start of the 2017-2018 academic year brings with it the highest number of service animals ever at DC.

While many people are aware of the use of guide dogs to help those who are visually impaired, there is increasing reliance on service animals to assist those with less visible exceptionalities. Now more than ever, students are relying on the support of service animals to help with a growing range of exceptionalities, needs and challenges.

Recognizing this growing trend, and as part of the evolution of accommodation at DC, the college’s Accessibility Committee has drafted its first stand-alone Service Animal Policy and Procedure, to not only ensure compliance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) but to further inclusivity for the college’s students, employees and visitors.

Both documents clearly articulate the definitions and requirements for the use of service animals at the college. They also outline the expectations for those relying on the animals and for the college and its accommodation of those requests.

Drafts of both the policy and procedure are now in review and are expected to be finalized by the end of the 2017-2018 academic year.

In the meantime the college will continue its efforts to increase awareness and understanding, not only of the role of service animals, but also best practices for those who may find themselves in contact with one of the animals in class and on campus.