News

Best of luck to Red River College instructor Luc Jean, who’ll square off against some of the city’s best chefs at an exclusive culinary competition benefiting Canada’s Olympic athletes this week.

Jean, an instructor with RRC’s Culinary Arts program, has been selected as one of the top chefs in Winnipeg, and as such will compete in the 2014 Gold Medal Plates competition, a precursor to the Canadian Culinary Championships.

Jean will represent Jane’s — RRC’s exclusive restaurant and training kitchen — at the event, which takes place Thu., Oct. 2 at the RBC Convention Centre. As it does every year, the event celebrates the best in local cuisine, pitting the city’s premiere chefs against each other in a bid for a spot at the championships, which take place next February in Kelowna.

Jean will face some formidable competition at the event, including a number of RRC grads, among them Adam Donnelly (Segovia), Michael Dacquisto (Food Evolution), and Norm Pastorin (The Grove).

Other competitors include Michael Schafer (Sydney’s at The Forks). Barry Saunders (Inn at The Forks), Edward Lam (Yujio) and Eric Lee (Pizzeria Gusto).

Net proceeds from the Gold Medal Plates go to the Canadian Olympic Foundation, which supports Canada’s Own the Podium program. To date, over $8.2 million has been raised.

A group of Red River College employees are taking back-to-school season quite literally this year — having returned to the classroom to take part in a new degree program for staff.

The College recently entered into a memorandum of understanding with the University of Winnipeg, to offer RRC employees a Bachelor of Arts degree in Indigenous Studies.

The program is being delivered through a part-time cohort model over six years, making it perfect for employees seeking a meaningful degree with a flexible delivery schedule. Content was developed and is currently being delivered by Dr. Julie Pelletier, Chair of Indigenous Studies at UWinnipeg.

“If it weren’t for flexible scheduling during my own studies, I wouldn’t have been able to pursue higher education,” says Pelletier. “UWinnipeg and the Department of Indigenous Studies so value our relationship with RRC, and this approach gives us another opportunity to work together.”

The degree will provide students with a holistic background in the field of Indigenous Studies, with a particular focus on Canadian contexts, as examined through multi-disciplinary coursework.

“We can all benefit from exploring indigenous ways of knowing,” says April Krahn, Director of Aboriginal Student Support & Community Relations at RRC. “As members of the RRC community, our enhanced knowledge and cultural competence informs how we view ourselves and others. In our work, it impacts how we develop and deliver services, programs and educational instruction, and how we form and maintain our working relationships with colleagues and with students.”

The program’s first cohort comprises 25 students — 22 from RRC and three from the community. Of those, 13 are self-declared Aboriginal students.

“This is an important number to celebrate, as we collectively search for new initiatives by which to increase Aboriginal advancement through education and inclusion,” says Krahn.

Mark those calendars! RRC’s Diversity and Intercultural Services department is busy making plans for the College’s annual Welcome Party for Immigrant and International Students, taking place Friday, Oct. 24.

This year’s event runs from 6–9 p.m., in the Voyageur Dining Room at the Notre Dame Campus. Guests can celebrate diversity at RRC while extending a warm College welcome to students from around the globe.

As always, guests are encouraged to share their own traditions by coming dressed in cultural clothing. The party is a College-wide and family-friendly event; as such, everyone’s invited to bring family members, children and friends.

This year’s event features live music and entertainment, including performances by Caribbean band Rockalypso, African drummer Evans Coffie, and Cuban dance group Yoslai de la Rosa.

Guests can also take part in fun activities for children — including arts and crafts, face painting and balloons — or participate in educational games and cultural teachings brought to you by RRC’s Aboriginal Student Support and Community Liaison Department.

As always, expect lots of dancing and sampling of global cuisine! (Don’t forget to bring a donation of non-perishable food items for the RRC Students’ Association Food Bank.)

Please register by Friday, Oct. 17, at http://blogs.rrc.ca/diversity/welcomeparty/

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To what extent are cells affected by outside forces as animals evolve from the embryonic stage to birth? That’s the question Red River College’s Susan Crawford-Young hopes to help answer through research showcased at a noon discussion today.

Shown: a male axolotl salamander.

An instructor at RRC’s Winkler Campus Adult Learning Centre, Crawford-Young explores a range of interest areas encompassing biology, imaging and electronics. Her Master’s thesis involved the development of a robotic microscope to acquire 3D-plus sequenced images of a developing salamander egg.

That research work continues in what has been termed the Google Embryo project — which studies how embryos develop in order to better understand the forces affecting cells as they evolve and acquire nerves, skin and muscle.

The aim of the project is to use the new microscope to take time-lapse images of the entire surface of an amphibian embryo, then map those images on a globe using Google Earth software.

“The theory is that cells respond to forces which cause them to change their cell types and their chemistry — which causes further changes in the cells,” says Crawford-Young. “Development is all about how cells change physically and chemically due to their position in an embryo’s structure. I’m interested in developing tools and taking measurements of embryonic tissue, using model animals such as the axolotl salamander and the Manitoba mudpuppy to further this research.”

Crawford-Young will discuss her research at the Notre Dame Campus’ eTV Studio B, from noon to 1pm on Wednesday, Sept. 24. Hers is the first in a series of such presentations made possible by the College Applied Research Development (CARD) Fund and the Program Innovation Fund (PIF).

The series is co-sponsored by RRC’s Applied Research and Commercialization and the Centre for Teaching Excellence, Innovation and Research.

Watch the live stream at noon, courtesy of eTV.

Would you like to expand your worldview by mentoring a Red River College student who’s new to Canada?

The College’s Intercultural Mentorship Program pairs immigrant and international students with Canadian-raised students or staff for friendship, language practice and intercultural exchanges.

For immigrant and international students, the program provides an opportunity to get to know Canadian culture, while sharing some of their own unique experiences with their Canadian-raised counterparts.

For Canadian participants, the program provides an opportunity for developing leadership and mentorship skills — and building intercultural competencies — while learning more about the world outside their door.

The College is currently recruiting volunteers for this year’s program. The time commitment is a mere 10 hours, spread over the course of an academic term. (The program runs twice a year, during the Fall and Winter terms.)

Participation is voluntary, though some academic programs also partner with RRC’s Diversity and Intercultural Services office to offer the mentorship program as a graded assignment option.

The deadline for volunteers is Wednesday, Jan. 21. Click here to apply; for more information, contact Michelle Johnson, Mentorship Program Coordinator, at mmjohnson@rrc.ca or 204.632.3847.

From left: Nancy Alexander with BRAVO Award winners Rebecca Girard, Alex Hay, Michael Watson and Hal Hokanson.

In the day-to-day work here at Red River College, there is evidence everywhere of dedication to our values of learning, respect, inclusiveness, integrity, healthy environment and community contribution.

Our staff members make these values come alive – through our programs, and their services and actions every day. We have many great leaders in our midst – irrespective of role or position – who are models to those around them, who motivate us all, and who make each day a great day to come to work!

One of the ways we celebrate and acknowledge these individuals is through the College’s annual BRAVO Awards. This summer, we celebrated our BRAVO winners with a three-course meal at Jane’s Restaurant and a short presentation from Nancy Alexander, Vice President Human Resources and Sustainability, after which they were presented with their awards and a $75 RED card each.

When you next see these outstanding RRC staff members, give them a pat on the back! Scroll down for award info including winner photos and full biographies; in the meantime, our sincere congratulations go out to:

• Hal Hokanson, Instructor, Piping Trades (Hidden Hero Award, Faculty)
• Alex Hay, Automotive Store Keeper (Hidden Hero Award, Non-Faculty)
• Michael Watson, Chair, Construction Trades (Leadership at all Levels, Faculty)
• Joanne Gonda, Office Manager, Winkler Campus (Leadership at all Levels, Non-Faculty)
• Rebecca Girard, Night Supervisor, Building Services (Safety Champion Award)

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Preliminary numbers for Red River College’s Fall 2014 full-time attendance show an increase of 4.3% over the previous fall.

“The growth in full-time attendance at the College is a testament to increasing student and employer demand for the programs we offer, and to the solid reputation the College has in delivering those programs to a high level of satisfaction for both,” says David Rew, Interim President and CEO, Red River College. “Credit must be given to RRC’s initiatives and those of the Province in raising awareness of skilled trades training, which is reflected in these preliminary numbers.”

With 96% of graduates finding employment — and a 96% satisfaction rate amongst grads — Red River College has become a compelling first choice for post-secondary education.

Of particular note, this year’s increases include Culinary Arts (up 23%), Hospitality and Tourism Management (up 52%), Automotive Technician (up 78%), Intro to Trades (up 76%), Precision Metal Manufacturing (up 216%), and Cabinetry and Woodworking Technology (up 21%).

RRC’s degree programs in Construction Management and Nursing, and its Access Nursing program, saw a 4.7% increase in overall attendance.

Over the next few weeks, attendance may fluctuate as numbers from RRC regional campuses, and Continuing Education and Apprenticeship programs are tabulated.

A big thank-you to our partners at Sandvik Coromant Canada, who visited RRC’s Notre Dame Campus this week to conduct applied training workshops on lathes and mills.

Sandvik reps — highly visible in their trademark yellow shop coats — conducted two workshops with RRC staff and students: one on Vibration Reduction Metal Cutting Operations (Sept. 9), the other on Drilling Applications for CNC Milling Operations (Sept 10).

The workshops were hosted by RRC’s Technology Access Centre (TAC), and were offered at no charge through a sponsorship agreement with Sandvik.

Under the terms of their partnership with RRC, Sandvik contributes a combined in-kind and cash pledge of $102,500 over five years, $5,000 of which supports students directly (through annual awards for those entering the second year of RRC’s Manufacturing Technician program).

Visit the TAC website for more information.

At the start of the current academic year, David Rew — formerly the Vice-President of Student Services and Planning at Red River College — took over as Interim President and CEO, following the departure of former president Stephanie Forsyth.

Born in Scotland and raised in Malaysia, Rew has been an RRC employee for the last 35 years, and brings a wealth of experience and expertise to his new role, having in the past served as everything from co-op coordinator and instructor to program chair and dean.

We sat down with Rew to discuss his vision for the coming academic year, as well as his hopes and goals for the College going forward.

You’re taking over as president and CEO under somewhat challenging circumstances. What would you like to say to staff, students and supporters of the College about the events of the last few days and months?

The last few months have certainly created a sense of uncertainty and unease. But the reactions to these events have — from what I’ve sensed and picked up — created a sense of relief, primarily because we now know that we have fully staffed and engaged leadership at the College. Part of that sense of feeling good about where we’re heading is that I’m really encouraged by how the Executive group has rallied and is committed to rebuilding a really effective team.

Last week, we had a couple of gaps in the Executive group. We’ve now filled those. Raeann Thibeault is coming in as acting Vice-President of Community Development, and Cindee Laverge is coming in as acting Vice-President of Student Services and Planning. This rounds us out, and we’re going to spend some time together working through the key issues and priorities we know we have to address, and we know we have to address them pretty quickly. We’re not going to be doing that in isolation — we’re going to be engaging people from around the College who we feel can help us work through the problems we’ve identified.

On a broader note, going down to the staff barbecue last Friday — and getting a chance to walk around and talk to people — felt really good and really positive. There were smiling faces, people were glad to be back, and they were wishing me well, which I really appreciated. I felt we got off to a good start to the year, so I’m really encouraged and really hopeful that we will have an excellent year. Read More →

Congratulations to the team behind Red River College’s NAOSH (North American Occupational Safety and Health) Week activities, whose efforts at reminding us to make safety a habit earned them a trophy at this month’s provincial awards ceremony.

The NAOSH team — comprised of members of the College’s Joint Workplace Safety and Health committees and Environmental Health and Safety Services department — received the “Most Innovative” designation at the 2014 NAOSH Awards, handed out last week by the Manitoba chapter of the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering (CSSE).

This marks the fourth year in a row RRC has been recognized for their NAOSH Week activities (an improvement over their previous three-year winning streak, from 2006-2008).

As a means of promoting this year’s “Make Safety a Habit” theme, RRC staff and students were encouraged to submit their own “Safety Selfies” — photographs in which they’re depicted wearing proper safety equipment or following appropriate safety procedures. An online “Find the Closest AED” contest was also held in an effort to increase awareness of the College’s automated external defibrillators.

In addition, the team hosted a pair of safety-themed barbecues for RRC staff and students, and set up safety-themed displays and exhibits in the halls of the College during NAOSH Week.