Tuesday, November 7, 2023 – RRC Polytech – Exchange District Campus

Red River College Polytechnic’s Applied Computer Education and Creative Arts departments will host the Inspire Conference on Tuesday, November 7, 2023, from 8 am to 4 pm at the Exchange District Campus. The Inspire Conference is for over 1000 students in the following programs:

• Business Information Technology
• Business Technology Management
• Data Science and Machine Learning
• Information Security
• IT Operations
• Game Development
• Full Stack Web Development
• Graphic Design and Film
• Pathways to IT (Indigenous)

Our talented students will be the audience during a virtual keynote, breakout sessions, an exhibitor area, and an industry networking lounge available throughout the day.

Agenda for the Day

The Inspire Conference will start with the attendees first session of the day, starting off with a virtual welcome address at 8:30 a.m.

Attendees will have the option of attending various sessions each hour of the day, along with the option to attend our Industry Networking Lounge in the Roblin Centre Cafeteria, or the Exhibitor Lounge in the Agora in Manitou a bi Bii daziigae.

Participants will have the option of picking up a bag lunch at 11:00 am, 12:00 pm, or 1:00 pm in the ACE Project Space.

Our industry guests are welcome in the industry lounge in our Sandbox room located just off the Agora in Manitou a bi Bii daziigae. Lunch for Industry will be offered in the Sandbox.

Refreshments

Morning Coffee and Juice will be available in the Agora in Manitou a bi Bii daziigae.

An afternoon snack of cookies will be available in the Agora at 2:00 pm.

Lunch includes a drink, fruit, and sandwich (meat, vegan, or vegetarian). If you have other dietary restrictions, or allergies, please fill out this survey.

Thank you to our sponsors!

1. August 30 : Winter WIL Postings open for both Co-ops and ACE Project Space

Work Integrated Learning (WIL) is a model and process of curricular experiential education which formally and intentionally integrates a student’s academic studies within a workplace or practice setting. WIL activity is a requirement for students completing our programs in Applied Computer Education. The fieldwork is a practice-based learning experience that can provide an opportunity for students to experience work settings that they may be interested in exploring as a part of their future career development.  Starting August 30th, Career Bridge will be opened to allow for Co-op postings for the Winter term which begins January 2, 2024. We will have over 200 students from 5 different technology programs looking to complete their work term.

The programs include:

IT Operations  – Our students merge customer service skills with technical knowledge and learn to manage and maintain the technological services that keep businesses running.

Business Technology Management  – Our students learn to analyze business requirements for IT projects and assist in the management of these projects. They are also able to design and test business systems as well as analyze and improve business processes.

Information Security: Our students learn how to protect data and respond to IT security issues. Students learn to analyze, evaluate and respond to the information security needs of businesses and organizations.

Business Information Technology (BIT): Our application developers!  Students learn application and web development, database management, and business information systems, in addition to system administration, database administration, and information security.

Data Science and Machine Learning – Our students learn to turn data into decisions using data analytics. They take the data to implement state-of-the-art machine learning algorithms and develop code for real-world applications.

For more information on our programs and WIL opportunities, please email acewil@rrc.ca 

2. September 13 : ACE Employer Information Session: – Become a Mentor: Empower the Future Generation of IT Professionals.

 Are you interested in making a positive and direct impact on the next generation of IT professionals through work-integrated learning but unsure about the best approach to getting involved?

An inspiring mentor can play a critical role in helping a post-secondary student achieve their professional goals. Join us for an information session virtually on:

Date: Wednesday, September 13, 2023
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM

Agenda:

What is mentorship?

A panel discussion from organizations currently mentoring students

Our programs and student availability for Work Integrated Integrated Learning

3.     September 19 : Tech Mash-up “Driving Tech Adoption with Open Innovation”

What if there was a way to significantly reduce the risk of adopting emerging technologies while simultaneously cutting costs and saving time?
Open innovation offers a compelling solution to this challenge, enabling organizations to harness external expertise, foster collaboration, and unlock transformative opportunities in the rapidly evolving digital landscape.

Join Tech Manitoba for this presentation on September 19th @ RRC Polytech as we explore successful case studies, share practical strategies, and provide actionable insights on leveraging open innovation to drive tech adoption, empowering organizations to thrive in an ever-changing world of technology.

For more information or to register:

4.     September 21 : See you at the Amazon DeepRacer Event 2023! Hold the date!

Start Your Engines! Amazon AWS, New Media Manitoba and RRC Polytech are excited to extend an invitation to you to participate in the upcoming Amazon DeepRacer Event 2023 at RRC Polytech. This immersive, action-packed event is an amazing opportunity for students and industry professionals who are interested in artificial intelligence and machine learning.

AWS DeepRacer  is a global racing championship where participants learn in a fun and competitive environment. It is an opportunity for students and industry professionals from diverse backgrounds to not only learn about the fundamentals of machine learning and AI but also demonstrate and apply their skills in this exciting competition. No prior knowledge of machine learning or AI is required to participate. All you need is your passion, creativity, and willingness to learn.

Before and during the event, you will have the chance to:

• Attend workshops from experienced professionals from AWS.
• Understand the basics of machine learning, and AWS (Amazon Web Services).
• Program your autonomous vehicle model and test it on a virtual racetrack.
• Compete with other students and industry professionals at the in-person event on September 21st at RRC Polytech.
• Network with peers, industry professionals, and AWS representatives.

If you are interested in more information please contact aceinfo@rrc.ca

5.     November 7: Inspire Conference

 Connect with the future of Manitoba’s Technology and Creative Media workforce at Inspire 2023.

An estimated 1000 students from technology and creative arts programs and 200 industry and community partners will come together on November 7 at the RRC Polytech’s  Exchange District Campus to provide an excellent opportunity for students to practice networking with their future colleagues and employers.

The day includes over 100 breakout sessions exhibition booths, and a networking lounge with Manitoba’s industry leaders and program grads. For more information on ways to participate including sponsorship or speaking please contact aceinfo@rrc.ca

6.     Sprint to Innovate: The Innovation Challenge, Thursday, February 1 to Sunday, February 4, 2024

Sprint to Innovate brings together post-secondary students from varied disciplines such as technology, business, entrepreneurship, and more. Sprint to Innovate is brought to you by the University of Manitoba – Faculty of Science, Red River College Polytechnic, and Tech Manitoba. All Manitoba Post students are invited to participate. Students will learn about innovation while collaborating in a fun and exciting challenge to build a minimum viable prototype in two days.

How can you participate? We are looking for business challenges for students to work on; mentors to support students throughout the weekend; and sponsors of the event.

 For more information visit rrc.ca/sprint

SRG, Security Resource Group Inc is a Canadian company dedicated to providing world-class Cyber Security services. Our skilled team of cyber security resources provides Enterprise Security Services for many customers across Canada and internationally. Our 24/7 Security Operations Centre provides mission-critical analysis, triaging and investigating alerts and engaging with the customer for remediation, and providing guidance in the best practices of cybersecurity.

Our engagement with RRC Polytechnic offered several students an entry-level position as an opportunity to gain relevant experience and practice their skills in analyzing malware or responding to incidents so that over time they could progress into more complex analytic skills and roles that would include forensic analysis and breach response roles. The students were supported by our experienced cybersecurity professionals that helped them prepare for a role in our Security Operations Centre.

The skill set the students obtained through the program at RRC Polytechnic well prepared them for learning how to protect and defend our customers from cyber security threats. SRG is migrating all customers to our Next Generation security platform which provides value to the customer and shortens the timeframe for the value and relieves pressure on the SOC team so they can provide the value-add security components like threat hunting.

We are pleased to have been able to permanently hire 6 students from this program and look forward to continuing this successful relationship to help grow our team of Cyber Security Experts.

We recently interviewed Poonam Sharma, who graduated from Red River College Polytechnic in the spring of 2023 from the Business Technology Management program. She spoke with us about her experience and helped us to chronicle her journey. Watch our video of the interview on the following Youtube link.

Youtube Link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCn0hiU8mu0&t=7s

Applied Computer Education celebrated all of our 2023 award winners at a luncheon on Thursday, June 16 with keynote speaker Kelly Fournel, CEO, Tech Manitoba.  Representatives from Canada Life, Bell MTS, and Informanix were in attendance to help celebrate the students, along with RRC Polytech staff and guests of the students.  Our student award winners are from our programs Business Information Technology, Business Technology Management, Information Security, Data Science and Machine Learning, IT Operations.

Congratulations to all of our student award winners from our donor companies, as well as Applied Computer Education Award.

The following is a complete list of All awardees:

Dylan Fontaine Work-Integrated Learning Award

Belen Gamez-Delgado

Applied Computer Education Academic Achievement Awards for First-Year Students

Camika Edwards

Applied Computer Education Leadership and Community Award

Cole Cianfloneer

Informanix Future Information Security Architect Award

Emujevoke Oniesi

Bell MTS Academic Excellence Award for Information Technology

Giancarlo Segovia Quispe

Applied Computer Education Outstanding Graduate Award

Justin Martinez

Payworks entrance award & Paterson Global Foods Business Information Technology Award

John Kelvin Acab Valerio

Bell MTS Academic Excellence Award for Information Technology

Lawrence Morenor

Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Award & Paterson Global Foods Business Information Technology Award

Man Wah Li

Applied Computer Education Department Award

Nathan Anderson

Dylan Fontaine Work-Integrated Learning Award

Ritik Pahlua

Thank you for your support! We hope this newsletter was informative and engaging, providing valuable insights into Applied Computer Education. Stay updated with us on social media for more exciting news. Thanks for reading!