On June 3, 2022, Durham College (DC) joined the City of Oshawa and fellow educational partners – Ontario Tech University, Trent University Durham GTA and the University of Toronto, Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering – for the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU), officially extending the TeachingCity partnership for another five years.

Just as many medical centres are designated “teaching hospitals,” the partnership began in 2017 with a shared goal of making Oshawa the world’s first “teaching city.” Over the last five years, the TeachingCity initiative has built momentum, establishing Oshawa as a leader in experiential learning, applied research and innovative partnerships. Focusing on specific city-identified challenge statements, students have the opportunity to participate in the courses as part of their program, to identify urban issues and collaborate and co-design possible solutions.

“In the five years since this partnership began, more than 1,000 Durham College students have received one-of-a-kind, hands-on experiences through TeachingCity that are making a difference in our community, allowing them to apply their unique skillset in a supportive, innovative and collaborative work-integrated learning environment,” said Don Lovisa, president, DC. “These opportunities are preparing our students for success now, and in the future, as they develop valuable, in-demand skills to launch meaningful careers.”

Since 2017, DC and the City of Oshawa, along with their other educational partners, have collaborated on 55 applied research projects, creating opportunities for 1,711 students and 135 post-secondary faculty to address a number of topics, including:

• Diversity, equity and inclusion;
• Virtual reality training and advanced navigation technology for firefighters;
• Digital wayfinding;
• Active transportation for an age-friendly community;
• Engaging local youth;
• Supporting local culture and business;
• Storm water management ponds;
• Optimizing City operations routes; and
• Corporate energy management planning.

In May 2018, the partners celebrated the first year of TeachingCity with the opening of the TeachingCity Hub in downtown Oshawa, a dedicated space for students and employees to facilitate projects with education and research partners.

Learn more about the TeachingCity Initiative online.