LEADING THROUGH CHALLENGE // COVER
LEADING
THROUGH CHALLENGE DR. MISHECK MWABA, PRESIDENT & CEO OF BOW VALLEY COLLEGE, REFLECTS ON THE PAST AND THE FUTURE
BY MELANIE DARBYSHIRE
W
hen Dr. Misheck Mwaba became president and CEO of Bow Valley College (BVC) in November 2020, he knew a challenging road lay ahead. Eight months into a global pandemic, with lockdowns and other health measures in full gear and much uncertainty on the horizon, the job of leading the 56-year-old college would not be easy. However, Mwaba, fortified by a lengthy, varied and international career in both academia (including as vice president Academic at BVC since 2017) and industry, and eager for his next chapter, embraced the role with gusto. He quickly laid out four priorities (reviewing prior accomplishments, refocusing efforts, reaffirming priorities and re-energizing the college) and affirmed the college’s commitment to the Open Doors - Open Minds strategic plan. One year later, he is both satisfied with what he’s accomplished so far and looking ahead with anticipation. “It has been an interesting year as you can imagine,” he begins, “filled with both challenges and opportunities. Challenging for our college community because it has taken away our ability for in-person interactions. This has made it extremely difficult for me to effectively engage with internal and external stakeholders.” Indeed, shortly after assuming his role, Mwaba identified five priorities for the year, the first of which was to engage internal and external stakeholders. Health restrictions notwithstanding, he has made do, forming many solid connections within the BVC community. He is eager to make more.
“As the new president and CEO, it was extremely important for me to build trust with key stakeholders very quickly in my tenure,” he continues. “I wanted to develop strong relationships with the government of Alberta, the business community in Calgary and the surrounding areas.” Today, BVC has five campuses outside Calgary – High River, Okotoks, Airdrie, Cochrane, Banff and Strathmore (planned to be closed). Mwaba has also built relationships with the Advanced Education Minister’s office, and with other ministers (for example, the Ministers of Labour and Jobs, Economy and Innovation) which have an impact on what BVC does. To engage with the approximately 1,000 BVC employees, he held many town halls and listening tours. “My engagement with internal and external stakeholders is not 100 per cent where I would want it to be, but I’ve made progress and I’m really looking forward to the new normal and finding out how we can solidify that,” he reflects. Mwaba’s second priority was to participate in Alberta 2030 – a government of Alberta initiative aimed at transforming the adult learning system to focus on providing the high quality education, skills and training needed for Alberta’s future. “We started talking about work integrated learning in 2018,” he says, “and at that point made a bold decision: every student graduating from BVC in five years is going to have an opportunity to do work-integrated learning. We’re currently developing a roadmap of how to implement the Alberta 2030 recommendations within our current strategic plan of Open Doors - Open Minds.” He notes that the college had lobbied
RIGHT: DR. MISHECK MWABA, PRESIDENT & CEO OF BOW VALLEY COLLEGE. PHOTO SOURCE: BOOKSTRUCKER
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DECEMBER 2021 // BUSINESS IN CALGARY // BUSINESSINCALGARY.COM
