Red River College will pay tribute to a pair of industry trailblazers this week, awarding honorary diplomas to film/TV producer Lisa Meeches and business owner Larry Vickar as part of its spring convocation ceremonies.

The honorees will pick up their diplomas at convocation ceremonies taking place Wednesday, June 4 at the Centennial Concert Hall. Meeches will receive a diploma in Creative Communications, while Vickar will receive a diploma in Business Administration.

“Both recipients are leaders in their community; their contributions are widely known and well respected,” says Richard Lennon, Chair of RRC’s Board of Governors. “The College is committed to improving the social and economic well-being of Manitobans and we are happy to honour those who share those values with us.” Read More →

The College’s School of Hospitality and Culinary Arts has entered into its second partnership with a training facility in France, signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) this morning with the Lycée d’Hôtellerie et de Tourisme Alexandre Dumas in Illkirch-Graffensatden.

The new agreement aims to benefit students and staff at both institutions, by encouraging and facilitating academic collaboration, educational exchanges and joint research projects for mutual benefit.

This includes the development of mobility programs allowing students from both schools to further their studies abroad, as well as opportunities for staff and student development through cultural exchanges.

“The signing of this MOU further benefits our students, staff and programming at the PatersonGlobal Foods Institute,” says RRC President Stephanie Forsyth. “We look forward to the opportunities this partnership represents, and the economic opportunities we both will realize.”

Last November, the College entered into a similar agreement with the Institut Paul Bocuse Worldwide Alliance in Lyon, France, making RRC the only Canadian partner to be inducted.

Earlier this year, Culinary Arts students Alex Wong and Nicole Boudreau were chosen to be the first Canadians to take part in an intensive four-month training internship over the summer.

Red River College is pleased to announce it will host the Colleges and Institutes Canada 2015 Annual Conference, an event that will afford opportunities to showcase both our institution and our city to executives and academics from across the country.

The College unveiled its plans to serve as co-host, along with Assiniboine Community College and the Manitoba Institute of Trades and Technology, at the organization’s recent 2014 conference in Ottawa (the last to be held under its former name, the Association of Canadian Community Colleges).

The theme of the 2015 conference is “Leading Change” — a particularly appropriate theme for RRC, and one that allows us to shine a spotlight on such innovative initiatives as our new Paterson GlobalFoods Institute, our ever-expanding applied research capabilities, our culturally-enriched approach to aboriginal education, and the transformative community programming we’ve undertaken in partnership with organizations in the North End.

“With all of the positive changes going on in the city, it wasn’t hard to entice [conference organizers] to come to the centre of Canada,” says RRC President Stephanie Forsyth, who teamed with Tourism Winnipeg to secure host city status.

“This will not only enhance Red River College’s reputation as one of Canada’s top institutes of applied learning, it will also help us to share one of the best-kept secrets in Canada — the city of Winnipeg.”

The 2015 conference is scheduled to take place May 24-26 at the RBC Convention Centre. Upwards of 1,000 delegates from colleges and polytechniques across Canada are expected to take part in the event.

Click on the image below to watch the video unveiled at this year’s conference as part of RRC’s announcement.

Congratulations to RRC instructor Scott MacAulay, who was recently named the Prairie region’s Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year by Startup Canada.

He’ll be formally recognized at the Prairie Startup Canada Awards in Calgary on May 15.

MacAulay (shown above) has been an entrepreneurship and finance instructor with RRC’s Applied Commerce and Management Education (ACME) department for the last eight years. Recently, he’s been seconded to research better ways to activate entrepreneurs, and is currently gathering best practices for how to implement an entrepreneurial lifestyle in Manitoba.

MacAulay is also very active in the local startup scene, working alongside such organizations as Ramp Up Manitoba, AssentWorks and Innovation Alley to connect RRC students and instructors with other members of the innovation community.

As well, he’s the co-founder of his own tech startup, PermissionClick, a productivity tool aimed at making it easier for teachers to collect permission slips and payments from students and parents. Read More →

Red River College President Stephanie Forsyth recently addressed the College community with respect to concerns about the projected deficit, staff departures and stories in the media.

Read the memo on her blog →

Hon. Theresa Oswald (left), with students and instructors from RRC’s School of Transportation, Aerospace and Manufacturing.

Federal and provincial employment ministers paid a visit to Red River College yesterday, to sign a trio of agreements aimed at connecting Manitobans with available jobs.

Hon. Jason Kenny, Minister of Employment and Social Development, joined Hon. Theresa Oswald, Manitoba Minister of Jobs and the Economy, at RRC’s Heavy Equipment Transportation Centre (HETC) to finalize three key agreements related to skills training and employment programs.

The Canada Job Grant takes an employer-driven approach to helping Canadians gain the skills and job training required to fill available jobs. Delivered through the Canada-Manitoba Job Fund, the Grant requires increased contributions from employers, which Kenney said will result in training that leads to guaranteed jobs.

“The Canada Job Grant is part of our commitment to address the paradox of too many Canadians without jobs, in an economy of too many jobs without Canadians,” said Kenney. “Helping employers train Canadians for jobs that need to be filled will help their business grow and succeed. And that is good news for the Manitoba economy.”

Under the agreement, the province will receive $18 million a year for a variety of training programs. The funding works out to $15,000 per person for tuition and training; that amount includes up to $10,000 in federal contributions, with employers required to cover one-third of the total costs, on average.

“By working with business to provide skills training opportunities, we are helping young Manitobans find good jobs right here at home,” said Oswald of the new agreements. “Together, the new Canada-Manitoba Job Fund and our five-year, $5.5-billion infrastructure plan will grow our economy, create jobs, and put Manitoba on stronger, more competitive footing for the future.” Read More →

For the fourth year in a row, Red River College has been recognized as one of Canada’s Greenest Employers, an award that acknowledges our environmentally friendly policies and programs that effectively engage staff in sustainability efforts.

“Red River College is leading the way in campus sustainability,” says RRC President Stephanie Forsyth. “This year, RRC is the only post-secondary institution in Manitoba to receive this honour. Sustainability is one of our four strategic priorities; all of our work follows the triple bottom line – people, planet, profits. As a public institution, we believe that we have a responsibility to model and impart sustainability to our students and staff.”

RRC has worked hard to show it’s worthy of such an honour, and the numbers speak for themselves. Last year, the College diverted more than 50% of materials leaving campus from the landfill (35% more than the average Winnipeg household). Thanks to the largest on-site institutional compost program in the city, RRC not only diverts hundreds of pounds of food waste from the campus every day, but also saves more than $1,000 annually in topsoil costs by using the finished compost on campus grounds.

The College is one of only four Winnipeg employers to offer a 60% subsidized EcoPass to its employees. This incentive results in bus ridership rates that exceed 50% for our downtown-based employees – a percentage well beyond the city’s transit ridership rate of 14%.  Read More →

Red River College has renewed its training partnership with Yaskawa Canada Inc., to become the only current provider of Yaskawa Motoman robotics training in Canada.

“Robotics and automation are critical innovations which enable manufacturers to effectively compete in the global marketplace,” says Don MacDonald, Dean of RRC’s School of Transportation, Aviation and Manufacturing. “This partnership establishes RRC as a Yaskawa Canada site for certified Yaskawa Motoman robotics training, and we are thrilled to be working with them.”

Under the terms of the partnership, robotics training is available to industry in a dedicated one-of-a-kind training lab located at RRC’s Notre Dame Campus. The College has been actively involved in supporting innovation and productivity initiatives in aerospace and manufacturing, and this renewed partnership is a further step towards offering solutions to meet the needs of industry.

“This partnership is an excellent opportunity to showcase and highlight the value of the services Yaskawa Motoman and the College provide to industry partners in Western Canada,” says Jason Jenson, General Manager of Yaskawa Canada Inc. “We are pleased to be part of the next evolution in the educational technology being offered at the College. We look forward to our continued growth and success together.”

Scheduled DX100 Basic Programming courses offered at RRC can be booked through the Yaskawa Canada website (location listed as “Red River College, Winnipeg”).

RRC instructor David Blicq (Chemical and Biosciences Technology) talks to students at this year’s Open House event.

Congratulations to the RRC students, staff and instructors recognized by our Open House Secret Shoppers, who went “undercover” at this year’s event in search of examples of exceptional service.

The Secret Shoppers had their eyes peeled for staff and volunteers who went above and beyond in their interactions with Open House visitors, whether by presenting themselves (or their respective programs/departments) in an engaging, approachable manner, or by making efforts to take their tours and conversations to the next level.

Those singled out received complimentary RED Cards; a full list of winners is below. Read More →

From left: AWMAC President Curtis Popel, RRC apprentice Leonard Derksen, and RRC instructor Todd Birtwhistle, at last year’s National Apprenticeship Contest.

Best of luck to the RRC students taking part in this weekend’s Architectural Woodwork Manufacturers Association of Canada (AWMAC) Cabinetmaking Apprenticeship competition.

The nine-hour event will unfold at RRC’s Notre Dame Campus this Saturday, during which time eight apprentices will compete for the top spot, and for prizes supplied by AWMAC and RRC’s Cabinetmaking Apprenticeship Fund.

The winner will advance to the nationals, where his or her project will be judged against winning projects from throughout Canada.

Last year’s provincial winner, Leonard Derksen (shown above), went on to take top honours at the National Apprenticeship Contest. The following RRC apprentices are competing in this year’s provincial round:

• Mike Baker
• Alicia Demare
• Travis Devisser
• Marcus Dyck
• Derek Friesen
• Adam Hajkowski
• Marc Lindenberg
• Julia Smith Read More →