#5 April 14, 2010 What's New at BC Colleges

April 14, 2010

Message from Jim Reed - President, BC Colleges

Welcome to this month’s edition of “What’s New at BC Colleges”.

Spring is here! While the weather isn’t downright balmy yet, it is wonderful to see the first blossoms and to enjoy the sense of renewal that this time of year brings. This renewal is definitely afoot at the close to 70 BC college campuses throughout the province. Whether it’s new programs, new partnerships, new successes and in some cases, new buildings, there are a number of items to share this month.

Below are just a few of the many things happening this Spring at BC’s colleges. We welcome your feedback and would be happy to hear from you. Please feel free to e-mail us at whatsnew@bccolleges.ca.

Sincerely,
Jim Reed
President, BC Colleges

Student Internships Gets $150,000 Boost

Langara College Media Release, April 12, 2010

Langara College welcomed $150,000 in new funding for student opportunities from Industry Canada’s Small Business Internship Program (SBIP). The program, administered through the Langara College Co-operative Education Department, encourages small and medium-sized enterprises to increase their adoption of e-commerce projects by providing financial support to hire a post-secondary student interns. “Students are e-business savvy so they’re ideal for these sorts of projects,” said Gayleen Wren, Langara College Co-operative Education Coordinator. “It’s a real win-win. Students get ‘real world’ work experience, while employers get access to a motivated workforce to explore new e-commerce opportunities or expand existing initiatives.” Read more.

Province Funds New CNC Health Professional Program

College of New Caledonia Media Release, April 12, 2010

The provincial government will provide the College of New Caledonia with nearly $2.7 million in one-time funding to establish a Medical Radiography Technology (MRT) program. The Ministry of Advanced Education and Labour Market Development and the Ministry of Health Services have finalized an agreement with CNC for the funding of the two-year program, which will start in September 2011. The agreement will see the province provide ongoing annual operating funding totaling $591,000 when it is fully enrolled with students. “We are very excited to be implementing the MRT program at CNC. It will fulfill a critical need for skilled medical imaging technologists to work in hospitals as well as in support of the Northern Cancer Control Strategy and new cancer clinic in Prince George,” said CNC President John Bowman. “The new MRT program here, would not be possible without the support of our health and education system partners and the tireless effort and vision of CNC’s Vice-President, Community and Student Services Cathe Wishart and our Dean of Health Sciences, Patricia Covington.” Read more.

VCC students sweep regional culinary arts skills competition

Vancouver Community College Media Release, April 9, 2010
Three young students of Vancouver Community College's culinary arts partnership program took gold, silver and bronze medals for secondary school students at the 2010 Lower Mainland Regional Skills Canada Competition.The VCC students, who are also Grade 12 students of Samuel Robertson Technical Secondary School in Maple Ridge, took all the medals awarded in the competition. "I couldn't believe it," said Horst Zimmermann, culinary arts instructor in the VCC partnership program. "You can well imagine how excited they were. This is big stuff for them." Read more.

Major changes coming at College of the Rockies

College of the Rockies Media Release, April 6, 2010

Just when you thought you knew where you were going at the College of the Rockies Cranbrook Main Campus, everything is going to change. As a result of the construction of the new south entrance and the subsequent move of 'front-of-house' personnel into this new space in late August, there will be extensive interior renovations as departments are reconfigured. During the renovations, which are scheduled from May 1 through July 31, several departments will be relocating to temporary quarters in Summit Hall. These include International Education, Student Services, Admissions/Registration, Continuing Education, Financial Aid, Room Bookings and Invigilation, Communications and Marketing, Production Support Centre and Reception. Read more.

Camosun business faculty wrote the book -Camosun College faculty co-authors first Canadian edition of accounting textbook

Camosun Media Release, April 8, 2010

Tana Kristjanson and Dr. Sheila F. Elworthy are both chartered accountants, teachers and now authors. Kristjanson and Elworthy co-authoured the Canadian first edition of Accounting. The textbook was published by Nelson Education Ltd. in February. Tana Kristjanson teaches accounting at Camosun College’s School of Business. Dr.Elworthy taught at Camosun College, and is currently Vice-President, Learning, at the CA School of Business (CASB), the credentialing body for chartered accountants. Accounting(First Canadian Edition )is based on the best-selling US textbook by Carl Warren, James Reeve and Jonathan Duchac. Read more.

Douglas College Wins Wheelchair Basketball Championship

Vancouver Sun, April 4, 2010

Douglas College continues to rule Canada wheelchair basketball. The New Westminster-based community college is the training home of B.C. Wheelchair Basketball, where you don’t necessarily need to be a registered student to compete in their programs. Heading into this past weekend’s Canadian Wheelchair Basketball League Open championships, Douglas College teams had won three of the last four national titles. As of Sunday, you can make that four of the last five Canadian crowns — and three in row — following a 58-52 gold medal victory over the Great Lakes Variety Village Rolling Rebels of Scarborough, Ont. Read more.

Great opportunity for NIC Heavy Duty Mechanic students

Courier-Islander, Friday, April 02, 2010

This January, North Island College Heavy Duty Mechanic students received an exciting gift from a partner institution in Alberta. Grande Prairie Regional College (GPRC) will provide the opportunity to work and learn on three CAT engines. "NIC is fortunate to have such a positive relationship with GPRC," explains Jeff Wharton, Coordinator of NIC's Trades & Technical Programs. "These three engines are the second donation we have received, making a total of five engines over the last two years." Read more.

Donation pushes Centre fundraising campaign over $1.45M

Okanagan College Media Release, March 31, 2010

A $150,000 donation from the BC Wine Information Society has pushed the $5M Centre of Excellence fundraising campaign over the $1.4 million mark. The Society announced its gift at a special celebration today. “This is an extraordinary gift from an extraordinary group of people,” according to Okanagan College president, Jim Hamilton. “The Society has proven once again that they are committed to doing what is best for the community. Their donation will go a long way in supporting our students by creating study spaces, recreational facilities and providing the latest in equipment and technology.” BC Wine Information Society Board President, Keith Bevington, says the Society’s donation reflects the importance it places on the College and in particular, what the Centre of Excellence will bring to the area. “The Centre of Excellence will increase the opportunities for more people to study and stay in the area. The College’s viticulture program has already proven to be an enormous asset and the new programs offered through the Centre will benefit even more businesses.” Read more.

Loren Lidin Named College Athlete of the Year by Sport BC

Langara College Media Release, March 31, 2010

Loren Lidin was presented with the Sport BC College Athlete of the Year award at the 44th Annual Sport BC Athlete of the Year Awards on Wednesday, March 31, at the River Rock Show Theatre in Richmond, BC. This BC-wide honour was proudly accepted by Lidin, the only student athlete selected from all sports played by both genders within the BC College’s Athletic Association. Lidin, a star goal-keeper on Langara College’s Women’s Soccer Team, was astounded by this recognition as it took her by surprise. Read more.

Mining partnership leads to innovative course curriculum and new scholarship

Northwest Community College Media Release, March 30, 2010

Thanks to a recent collaboration with the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC), Northwest Community College School of Exploration & Mining (SEM) is the first mining school in the country licensed to use internationally recognized guidelines and techniques for responsible exploration. PDAC created the e3 Plus Framework for Responsible Exploration – a comprehensive toolkit for responsible and safe social and environmental practices – for the minerals exploration industry in Canada and overseas. Staff from SEM, and its industry partner Smithers Exploration Group, participated in the first e3 Plus training at PDAC's national convention in Toronto in March. “The industry is welcoming these guidelines for responsible practices,” said Margo Van der Touw, NWCC Dean of Trades, Continuing Education & Industry Training. “And through SEM’s partnership with PDAC, our students will be on the frontlines of using this valuable information." “This partnership will give SEM graduates a significant advantage when they are looking for employment,” stated NWCC President Stephanie Forsyth. “The guidelines will help the school teach the very latest in best practices." Read more.

Selkirk College Awards Contract for Residence Renovation

Selkirk College Media Release, March 30, 2010

Selkirk College is pleased to announce that the design–build services contract for the renovation of the Tenth Street student residence in Nelson has been awarded to Wildstone Construction and Engineering. This is the end of a two-phased tendering process which began in January of this year. Phase one involved the selection of three companies deemed to be the most qualified from a very impressive list of fourteen submissions. The successful applicants were then requested to submit full proposals for completion of the project. Because Selkirk chose to go with a design-build approach, it was necessary for all bidders to come forward with a team of firms capable of delivering complete design and construction services within a single contract. The all-BC team pulled together by Wildstone for this project includes electrical contractor, Kootenay Lake Electric of Nelson, and the mechanical engineering firm of Venture Mechanical Services of Castlegar. Other key team members include Bunting Coady Architects and Aerius Engineering, both of Kelowna. Read more.

CNC picks mining program

Prince George Citizen, Sat Mar 27 2010

A program aimed at developing skills for entry-level positions in the mining industry is in the works at College of New Caledonia. Tentatively set to begin in September, the plan is to deliver the mining industry certificate through CNC's Lakes District, Nechako and Mackenzie campuses, "where we will work closely with aboriginal communities to provide access to the mining sector," academic vice president Lynn Jacques said in a report to CNC's board of directors. Between 12 and 16 seats are to be available at each campus. Next steps include presenting the curriculum to CNC's education council in May for approval. Jacque said it's a reworking of a previous resource industry certificate that focused on lumber manufacturing and amounts to the first year of the British Columbia Institute of Technology's mining industry certificate.Those who want to complete the two-year collaborative mining technician diploma program will be encouraged to attend BCIT for their second year. Read more.

Guest speakers confirmed for Challenging the Paradigm 2010

Northwest Community College Media Release, March 19, 2010

Organizers of Northwest Community College’s (NWCC) annual Challenging the Paradigm summer gathering 2010 have confirmed a full slate of keynote speakers, each with a distinguished background in the area of Aboriginal education. One of the four is a returnee, while three others will attend their first Challenging the Paradigm conference. Returning to the Northwest for a second straight year is Dr. Lorna Williams, a Lil’wat from the St’at’yem’c First Nation with a long list of accomplishments. Dr. Williams is an educator with many years of experience in Aboriginal education, Indigenous language revitalization, curriculum and teacher development, mediated learning, cognitive education, effects of colonization on learning, and Indigenous ways of knowing. Over the years, she has co-directed a series of videos called First Nations: The Circle Unbroken, and has written children’s books, teachers’ guides and developed Lil’wat language curriculum to teach people to read and write the Lil’wat language, which was exclusively oral until 1973. She was a CCL Minerva Lecturer in 2007 and was invested into the Order of BC for her work in education in 1992. She currently holds the prestigious Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Knowledge and Learning in the Faculty of Education and Department of Linguistics at the University of Victoria. Prior to that, Dr Williams was the former director of the Aboriginal Enhancements Branch of the Ministry of Education. Read more.

BC Colleges is a consortium representing BC’s 11 public, community colleges serving more than 250,000 students annually with campuses in close to 70 communities throughout British Columbia. BC’s 11 colleges offer a comprehensive range of programs from university studies and baccalaureate degrees to career, technical and trades education. All 11 of BC’s colleges offer programs that are designed to be accessible, affordable and responsive to the evolving needs of BC communities and industry. For more, visit our website.

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