Learning in Action

BRINGING BAND IN THE SAND HOME

Student organizers turned Lakeland College’s annual Band in the Sand into a streamed concert series everyone could enjoy throughout the month of March. COVID-19 made the traditional Band in the Sand experience – 2,000 people attending a live concert at Lakeland’s Equine Centre – impossible last fall. The agribusiness students tasked with planning the event as part of a class project decided to get creative and Band in the House was born.

“People were excited to see that we persevered and adapted to the circumstances that we were faced with rather than just treat the event like something that couldn’t happen this school year,” says Jessa Dumkee, project lead for Band in the House. After completing an animal science technology diploma, Dumkee enrolled in the agribusiness program and built her skill set with this immersive student-managed project. “We weren’t trying to compete with what Band in the Sand usually is, instead we created a new opportunity for everyone to connect. Fostering a sense of community is more important than ever this year, and we had very positive responses from the students.” The temporary, pandemic-driven rebranding saw a series of live and pre-recorded performances streamed digitally every Thursday evening in March.

save our social lives! BUILDING CONFIDENCE IN THE FIELD

STUDENTS SHOWCASE SKILLS IN virtual competition

Five Lakeland College business students competed against 50 of the province’s brightest post-secondary business students in the first virtual Alberta Deans of Business Case Competition. While the competition was hosted in a different format, the virtual experience didn’t hinder what Mary Novick describes as a worthwhile opportunity to put their business knowledge to the test. “It definitely brought the best in all of us. I surprised myself that I could sit for eight hours and power through the case. It forced me to think outside the box and be creative,” says the second-year business administration student majoring in accounting. The team of Novick, Jeru Lopez, Fernanda Martinelli, Gabriella Fea and Maxime Lebo, were tasked with developing a case for Servus Credit Union. They had eight hours to apply a diverse blend of business knowledge in marketing, management, finance, accounting, and human resources to research, analyze, and articulate recommendations to a group of judges.

Hands-on learning is a key aspect of Lakeland College’s environmental sciences programs, and not even a global pandemic could keep students from getting their hands dirty during Field Week in the fall. Laura Andrews, a second-year wildlife and fisheries conservation major, was relieved to learn that lab activities could proceed this semester. She chose to come to Lakeland specifically because of the hands-on learning opportunities. “It was so important to me that we’d still get to have the chance to experience hands-on activities this year with the health and safety protocols. I was nervous at the beginning and wondering what it would look like, but Lakeland has done an amazing job organizing it and making sure everyone is safe. In every lab and even during Field Week, health and safety was always put first, and I really appreciated that.” With proper health and safety protocols in place, students went beyond the classroom to refine their skills in a variety of labs that had them trekking through fields, wetlands, lakes and rivers in search of plants, wildlife, soil and water. “Field Week was really good, I did things I never thought I could and it really opened my eyes to new opportunities,” Andrews says.

With support from the team’s sponsors—Metrix Group LLP and Newcart Contracting—and Lakeland business staff and faculty, Lakeland’s business case team put in more than 70 hours of virtual practice by completing case studies and delivering mock presentations. Red Deer College hosted the 2021 competition in March. In the last 16 years, Lakeland has placed in the competition five times.

Taking action and advocating for AGRICULTURE

Lakeland College agribusiness students learned how to be informed, passionate champions of the industry through their Agvocacy project.

Working in groups, students produced advocacy and educational media on key topics to help inform the public about the nuances of it. For students Maddison Penner and Sanne Hansen, it was an excellent opportunity to put their learning into action. “It’s so important to any agricultural program to be able to talk about all topics and that we know how to find the resources to inform ourselves on them,” Penner, second-year agribusiness student from Vanderhoof, B.C., explains. “Now we have experience looking for proper sources to find the facts behind discussing or defending agriculture, compared to just using our own opinions. It’s really valuable.”

Penner’s group was tasked with showcasing animal handling and did so with both a video and an article portraying proper animal handling methods as well as the financial benefits of them. Her group pooled their resources, using video clips they had already taken on their own operations, including some drone shots, and working with the purebred animals at Lakeland’s

Student-Managed

Farm – Powered by New Holland for additional footage. “A lot of people who don’t have the same connection we do to a farm or livestock operation might not see it as passionately as we do,” Penner says.

STUDENT-LED TAX SERVICES OFFER BEYOND THE CLASSROOM EXPERIENCE

In a year that’s been like no other, Lakeland College students continued to adapt and persevere so they could apply their education in real-life work settings.

SMF celebrates dairy cow’s FIFTH PLACE GENETIC POTENTIAL

One of Lakeland College’s dairy cows placed fifth in the 2020 WestGen Pursuit of Excellence Barn Cow competition’s 3+ lactation category.

The win gave the Student-Managed Farm – Powered by New Holland (SMF) dairy unit something to celebrate. “Because of COVID-19, there are not a lot of in-person dairy shows happening, so this was definitely a really good opportunity for us,” says Molly Sayers, public relations coordinator with the SMF dairy unit. The SMF dairy unit oversees much more than the care, feeding and milking of their 290-head dairy herd. They manage the health, production and longevity of the herd through genetic advancements. Placing in the top 5 is verification that their work around genetics and breeding is paying off as the herd develops improved genetic potential. “The competition was based on conformation – the cow’s genetics and how she looks,” Sayers explains. The online competition accepted entries from Western Canada in different categories depending on the maturity of the cow and how many times she had calved. The dairy SMF unit entered two cows in the first lactation category and one in the 3+ lactation category. It was that cow, Vermilion Manifold Darian EX 90, who placed fifth in her category. She is also the newest cow to receive an Excellent classification in the barn this year. “To find good candidates to submit, we studied their

Students in Lakeland’s business administration diploma accounting major once again offered free tax services for seniors, students, low-income families and newcomers to Canada with some new conditions.

“This year was a little different because we collected client tax information at drop-off locations around Lloydminster,” says Julia Cawley, a business administration student who is volunteering at the tax clinics for a second time. “It’s still a fantastic experience to give back to the community while getting hands-on experience for the real world. Being able to take my education and put it to good use by giving back to the community is fulfilling,” In groups of three, students prepared tax returns on Saturdays throughout March and April.

mammary systems and capacity, as well as capacities. We looked at how much rib she has, how wide she is, how deep her body is. It was pretty exciting that one of our cows placed fifth in her category,” says Sayers. “We haven’t done any showing in the new facility yet, so it was nice to be involved in something like this. It was also a really good opportunity to promote Lakeland’s dairy major and SMF program.”

Medicine walks

become valuable wellness resource

With COVID-19 guidelines in place at the college,

Lakeland’s Indigenous Support Services sought alternative activities that supported students’ wellbeing.

Three medicine walks were held in the Vermilion

Provincial Park in September. They were facilitated by Indigenous Support Services and guided by Knowledge Keeper Ivy Houle (Opikinawasin) and Elder Vyna Fluney.

Students learned about traditional, medicinal and cultural practices for wellness and guidance, including introducing the four directions interpretations, followed by a walk to pick healing plants such as buffalo sage. Elizabeth Koehler-Lenko, a second-year child and youth care student, recommends attending a medicine walk when the opportunity arises. “I’m not Indigenous, so it was a wonderful opportunity to get insight into a group that I might work with in my career. It’s one thing to read about it, so it’s great when we can get insight through experience. Since I’m Jewish, it was fascinating to learn about Indigenous beliefs and be able to put it in perspective through my own beliefs,” says Koehler-Lenko. She was one of about 12 students to participate in one of the medicine walks.