News

If ever an award’s name was a match for that of its recipient, it’s the recently announced Indspire Award being presented to Elder Mae Louise Campbell in 2016.

An advocate for traditional teachings (and an Elder in Residence at Red River College for the past 10 years), Campbell is one of 14 outstanding Canadians who’ll be honoured next year by Indspire, the country’s largest non-governmental funder of Indigenous education.

She’s one of two recipients earning awards for Culture, Heritage and Spirituality.

An Ojibway Metis Elder, Campbell has dedicated her life to teaching the values of kindness, humility and love — leading thousands of sharing and healing circles across Canada, and serving as keeper of Winnipeg’s Grandmother Moon Lodge, which provides spiritual healing and growth to women in need.

Earlier this year, she was appointed to the City of Winnipeg’s new Mayor’s Indigenous Advisory Circle, which aims to build bridges between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal communities in Winnipeg.

The highest honour bestowed by (and on) Indigenous people in Canada, the Indspire Awards have for 23 years celebrated the contributions of recipients with the discipline, drive and determination to set high standards and accomplish their goals.

The 2016 awards gala will be held next February in Vancouver.

From “best startup” to “best medium-sized business” in less than a year? Apparently it pays to be bold.

Congratulations go out to Red River College grads (and brothers) Yvan and Eric Boisjoli, two of the founding partners of local software suppliers Bold Innovation Group.

Earlier this year, the company was named Startup of the Year at the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce’s annual Spirit of Winnipeg Awards. This year, they’ve been nominated for a Manitoba Chambers of Commerce MBiz Awards, in the Outstanding Medium Business category.

The Boisjoli brothers, both graduates of RRC’s Computer Analyst/Programmer program (now called Business Information Technology) launched Bold in March 2012, along with co-founders Stefan Maynard and Jason Myers.

They’ve quickly become one of the leading third-party suppliers of apps for e-commerce giant Shopify, with almost 50,000 clients served, including Wikipedia, Subway, Time-Life and Cirque du Solieil. They’ve also branched out with experimental new projects unrelated to e-commerce, including Kickbooster, Fishbowl Prizes and Inviid.

In addition to the above accolades, they also won in the Young Enterprise category of the St. Boniface Chamber of Commerce’s Entrepreneur Prizes, and earned a national award for economic development and employability from Réseau de dévelopment économique et d’émployabilité (RDEE) Canada, the nation’s Francophone economic and employability network.

The MBiz Awards take place Wed., Oct. 28, at the Victoria Inn Hotel and Convention Centre in Winnipeg.

Early enrolment numbers from the first week of classes suggest it’ll be another busy academic year for students and staff at Red River College.

Preliminary figures for this fall are consistent with those from the same time last year, indicating RRC will continue its high-enrolment trend. Over the past 15 years, the College has seen an overall increase of 66 per cent in program enrolments.

“Human capital drives our economy,” says RRC President Paul Vogt. “There is an increasing demand for a workforce with specialized skills, and Red River College delivers education and training that keeps pace with industry trends and needs in our province.”

Of particular note, this year’s enrolments saw increases in Business Information Technology (up 24 per cent), Mechanical Engineering Technology (up 11 per cent), Automotive Technician – Diploma (up 50 per cent), and Manufacturing Technician (up 30 per cent).

In addition to key program areas, RRC is also seeing continued growth in its post-graduate diploma programs (up 48 per cent) and in the recruitment of international students (up 32 per cent).

The steady growth means the College is operating at capacity. This spring, RRC and the province broke ground on a new 100,000 sq.-ft., state-of-the-art Skilled Trades and Technology Centre at the Notre Dame Campus, set to be completed in 2017. Read More →

Manitobans who want to work as engineers will soon have more opportunities to enter the faculty of engineering, thanks to $500,000 in new provincial funding that’ll create 18 new seats and a hybrid pathway between Red River College and the University of Manitoba.

“Civil, electrical, industrial and mechanical engineers are in demand in our province, and increasing the number of engineering graduates is necessary to create more good jobs and keep our economy growing,” Premier Greg Selinger said today.

The U of M is the only institution in the province to offer accredited engineering degrees and the current seat capacity in the program is 336. Undergraduate engineering enrolment has increased by 48 per cent at the U of M since 2008.

The new hybrid engineering pathway will be introduced over several academic years through collaborative efforts between the U of M and Red River College, supporting increased credit transfer and recognition of prior experience for hybrid engineering students.

“Red River College is proud of the quality of its graduates and we welcome opportunities for them to further their education as a result of this pathway program with the University of Manitoba,” said RRC President Paul Vogt (shown above). “When you combine the experience our students receive from both institutions, it’s a recipe for success that will have a considerable benefit to many industries here in Manitoba.”

Once fully established, this new hybrid pathway will transition between 10 and 15 hybrid engineering students annually from RRC and other post-secondary institutions to U of M’s engineering degree programs.

“Engineers provide services that drive our economy,” said John Bockstael, president and CEO of Bockstael Construction, and a graduate of the U of M’s Faculty of Engineering. “It’s important that we provide opportunities for our students to receive a first-rate education in their home province where they can then build careers and contribute to our economy.”

“The Chief” faced off against “The Chef” at Red River College yesterday, as Winnipeg Police Chief Devon Clunis and RRC instructor Tim Appleton put their culinary skills to the test for a worthy cause.

Two worthy causes, actually: the College’s first-ever Jerk Chicken Cook-off — held over the lunch hour at Bijou Park outside the Paterson GlobalFoods Institute — raised nearly $3,600, to be split evenly between the Winnipeg Police Service Endowment Fund and RRC’s Youth in Care Bursary.

The event drew close to 500 people, whose contributions earned them a chance to sample the jerk chicken dishes cooked up by both contestants – then vote on the winning recipe.

“Time to fire up the jerk pit and fan the flames of fundraising in the name of the Winnipeg Police Service Endowment Fund,” Clunis (shown above, at right) said prior to the competition.

“I know Chef Appleton can bring the heat, and I’m ready for the challenge. Between the two of us, we’ll add a little extra spice to September, and our efforts to make life a little brighter for organizations that share our vision for a stronger community.” Read More →

One of Red River College’s newest students received a particularly warm welcome after arriving in Winnipeg for a bit of pre-class orientation last week.

To be fair, Yves Ngendahimana has travelled farther than most. The first student to enroll at RRC as part of the College’s new Student Refugee Program, Ngendahimana comes to us all the way from Malawi, Africa, where for nearly 20 years he’s lived in the Dzaleka Refugee Camp.

After touching down in Toronto last Wednesday, Ngendahimana, 22, became a permanent Canadian resident, one who’s now transitioning to his new life as a Winnipegger with help and support from members of the Student Refugee Program’s local committee.

A joint initiative between RRC Student Services, the RRC Students’ Association, and World University Service of Canada (WUSC), the program provides a 12-month scholarship for one sponsored student at RRC each year.

As part of his sponsorship, Ngendahimana will study Applied Accounting at RRC’s Exchange District Campus, while living in a dorm room at the College’s student residence at the Paterson GlobalFoods Institute.

“[Yves] was an avid volunteer back at the camp, working with other students and tutoring them in various business and financial fields,” says Lauren Konrad, Student Integration Coordinator with RRC’s Diversity and Intercultural Services office. “He has a great academic background, and he’s really excited to be in this program.”

Ngendahimana will no doubt rely heavily on the supports and services provided by the College and committee members over the next few months. To that end, the committee is actively recruiting new members from RRC’s staff and student community, in order to further expand campus involvement and awareness. Read More →

This week, as students at Red River College settled into their first week of classes, staff and faculty gathered to pay tribute to David Rew (shown above, at right), who capped off an already impressive 36-year career by serving as the College’s interim president and CEO for the last 12 months. As Rew prepares for his retirement, we thought it only fitting to sit down for a follow-up Q&A session — much as we did when he took over the role one year ago.

At this time last year, you’d just taken over as Interim President — at what can only be described as a low point in the College’s history. The province had launched an audit of our operations, our former president had departed somewhat suddenly, and employee morale was suffering. What did you consider to be your top priority?

Our Executive had identified about 10 priorities, all of which were really important at the time. One of the top ones was internal communications … how we communicated with staff in a variety of ways. Probably the most important piece in all of that was to make sure that staff were informed of events that had occurred before anyone else, so they weren’t going home and watching the news or reading the newspaper and getting their news there.

And how do you think you did?

We made a lot of progress on that one. I think the most telling example was when the provincial review came out. We had an arrangement with the [Minister of Education’s] office where we could tell our staff about the release of the review first, which the province agreed to. So our staff were made aware of that before anyone else. A lot of people commented on that, as they did the Town Hall sessions — the “On the Road with Rew” tours — those also worked really well.

With respect to the last 12 months, what would you say you’re the most proud of?

I’m very proud of the Executive team and how they came together as a group. They’re an incredibly courageous lot, taking on their roles and really going for it — and working to turn the College around. Read More →

To help meet the growing demand for highly-skilled automotive technicians in Manitoba, Mercedes-Benz Winnipeg has contributed $15,000 to a new student scholarship at Red River College, one valued at a combined $30,000, thanks to a matching grant from the Manitoba Scholarship and Bursary Initiative.

Starting this year, students from RRC’s Automotive Technician diploma program will be eligible for the Mercedes-Benz Winnipeg Technician Excellence Award — worth at least $1,000 each year — based on academic performance, leadership skills, teamwork in the classroom, and work experience at a dealership. Students can use the funds for tuition or to apply to the cost of their tools.

Brian Lowes, President and General Manager of Mercedes-Benz Winnipeg and Motor Dealers Association Vice-President, says the award allows his company to make a lasting contribution to the industry, and to continue to invest in its most valuable resources – people.

“Our team has benefitted greatly from the programs at RRC, specifically in the automotive service technician trade,” says Lowes. “We are happy to have the opportunity to invest in our community. We look forward to being part of the solution to attract, train and employ these bright young individuals and contribute to our combined long-term success”

Currently in Canada, the automotive service sector faces a shortage of almost 5,000 qualified automotive service technicians — a number that climbs to nearly 12,000 once auto body and parts counter technicians are included. Read More →

Red River College is proud to welcome Dr. Mark Aquash, our new Dean of Indigenous Education and Community Relations.

Aquash is a member of the Council of Three Fires, Walpole Island First Nation, Aazhwaakwaa Territory, Ont., Nimkeeg Indodem (Thunder Clan), Potawatomi/Ojibwe Anishinaabe. He has been married to his wife, Verna, for more than 26 years, has five children, many grandchildren, and a large extended family.

He credits his success in education and his career in Indigenous knowledge of Anishinaabe to attending and graduating from the Red School House, a culturally-based American Indian school in St. Paul, Minn., during the 1970s.

Aquash holds an undergraduate and Master of Education degree from the University of Minnesota, and completed his Doctor of Education degree (in Education Administration) at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto.

He began his career as a K-12 teacher, and later moved into curriculum development and administrative positions (coordinator, principal and director). He has been teaching at the post-secondary level for over 15 years; most recently, he’s taught courses in educational administration and leadership for aspiring principals and superintendents, and courses focusing on Indigenous teacher education. Read More →

Canadian grain industry leaders Viterra have announced $750,000 in new scholarship funding for Canadian colleges — $20,000 of which will go to support students in RRC’s Electrical Pre-Employment and Power Engineering Technology programs.

RRC is one of 12 colleges and polytechnics in five provinces that will benefit from the company’s investment in post-secondary education, which allows students to access funds to support their skills training.

“At Viterra, we place a high value on providing ongoing education and learning opportunities for our employees, so they are well equipped with the knowledge they need to serve our new customers,” says Kyle Jewosrki, Viterra’s president and CEO for North America.

“We’re proud to be offering access to similar learning opportunities at the post-secondary level, by supporting students that aspire to work in roles that Viterra employees perform across our industry-leading asset network.”

Viterra will also work with the schools and their respective provincial governments to access any matching funds available through existing programs and initiatives.

Headquartered in Regina, Viterra’s commitment to agriculture dates back more than 100 years. The company partners with farmers to market and move their crops to areas of need around the world, and provides further value through a variety of contracting and risk management tools that help partners realize the full potential of their crops.