5 minute read
Leaving a Legacy
By Monique Doyle (with files from Colleges Ontario)
Linda Franklin has served as President and CEO of Colleges Ontario – the advocacy voice for the province’s 24 colleges – for over 15 years, and is set to retire on March 31, 2023. Franklin holds a B.A. and M.A. in English, History, and Journalism from the University of Western Ontario. She joined Colleges Ontario as President and CEO in January 2007.
During her tenure, she spearheaded advocacy campaigns that gained national attention to raise awareness of the skills shortage affecting Ontario’s economy. She also played a chief role in the creation of the first provincewide marketing campaign to promote the range of rewarding careers available to college graduates and growing public awareness of the value of attending college.
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Recently, Franklin helped to secure Ontario government approval for standalone nursing programs and to allow colleges to develop three-year degree programs to run alongside the three-year diploma programs. Says Franklin, “We have made a real difference for students and the future of Ontario’s economy.”
Before her time at Colleges Ontario, Franklin was the President of the Wine Council of Ontario, a position she held and enjoyed for 13 years. While she admits that at the time she didn’t really know a lot about colleges, she quickly realized her wine branding and marketing experience could be used to help grow awareness of the importance and value of Ontario colleges. She saw what she believed was a branding problem for the college system. Franklin’s passion for that work continued during her many years at Colleges Ontario and motivated her to foster successful changes.
Just two weeks into her new role at Colleges Ontario she found herself travelling to Centennial College for a work conference. “Those first few weeks were a bit of a blur,” she recalls. She was impressed by the welcome she received at the conference, the learning opportunities, and the networking. “What an amazing experience!” Franklin says. She immediately felt she had landed in a great place, one that she could see herself staying at for a long, long while.
Linda’s passion about this role and the work it involves has been of great value to groups like OCASA. “OCASA has been so fortunate to have had strong support and leadership from Linda Franklin. Over the last many years she has provided invaluable guidance to OCASA, she has supported our work on behalf of our members, and her keynotes have consistently been a highlight of our annual conference,” says Erin Roberts, OCASA Executive Director.
“On behalf of the OCASA team and board, I want to thank Linda and recognize her for her outstanding contribution to the college system and Colleges Ontario’s partnership with OCASA. We wish her a long and happy retirement, and we will miss her,” adds Roberts.
What has been the best part of this role for Franklin? She says: “So many things. The opportunity to make a difference is number one.” She also notes the people she has worked with, the sense of collegiality, high-functioning boards on campuses – people working together who are motivated to help students, their communities, and local businesses. “There’s a real sense of the power and value proposition of going to college today; that to me has been really rewarding.”
Franklin feels that 2023 is the right time for her to retire and she knows she is leaving the association in good shape. “In the last few years we’ve gotten some pretty fundamental important government policy requests off our plates. It feels like a good moment to hand it off,” she explains. With a refresh in leadership, she says, Colleges Ontario can tackle questions like: What do the next several years look like now? What are the big issues to focus on now?
“This was just a glorious place to end my career. The system has such a lot to offer and it’s so important.”
When asked about what she wants to leave as her legacy, Franklin replies: “All you can really hope for is that you leave the system strong and better; and I think I have. But it’s not just me – I have a wonderful team at Colleges Ontario and a really amazing board to work with.” She feels that the group is a collaborative, cohesive team that has found a way to a single voice with a good working relationship with government, focusing on a handful of priorities. “I think we’ve had good success with government, maybe more than we might have imagined.”
What Franklin hopes people will take from the history of her career: “Always be brave about new opportunities because sometimes there’s something wonderful around the corner waiting for you.”
We want to hear from you!
College Administrator is seeking articles of interest to administrators in Ontario colleges for our Spring 2023 issue.
College Administrator is the bi-annual digital publication of OCASA (Ontario College Administrators Network). The magazine aims to engage and connect with hundreds of administrators at Ontario’s 24 colleges, along with college presidents and all members of boards of governors.
We’re looking for timely and topical articles and columns to inspire lively and meaningful discussion on topics important to the Ontario college community. Feature stories run about 1,500 to 2,500 words, with columns at approximately 750 words.
Our editorial deadline for the Spring 2023 issue is March 3, 2023
Please reach out any time to College Administrator Managing Editor Monique Doyle at monique@kelman.ca or 204-985-9712 with questions, story ideas, and submissions.
