Lakeland Link: February 7, 2011

February 7, 2011

The

www.lakelandcollege.ca

A publication of Lakeland College

Vermilion • Lloydminster

Our MISSION To inspire our learners to realize their individual potential. Our VISION To achieve educational excellence in a people-centred environment. Our VALUES are Respect, Safety, Trust, Pride, Ethics, Quality and Accountability.

Upcoming Events Lloydminster campus Friday, February 12 • Hearts Unite Rotaract fundraiser. Tickets available at Student Services. $50/person, $80 couple. Call ext. 5772 for more details or fan it on Facebook

Wednesday, February 16 • Soup Cook off & fundraiser. Cafeteria.

11:30 am to 1 pm. Hosted by the Hopelessly Optimistic Staff Enthusiasts

Thursday, February 17 • Health Fair. Hosted by the Health Services department. Gymnasium. 10 am to 3 pm

Wednesday, February 23 • Staff Funspiel. Lloydminster Curling Club.

1 to 4 pm. $5 entry fee. To register call Campus Rec before 4 pm on Feb. 16

Vermilion campus Wednesday, February 8 • Parent information evening. Fireside room.

7 to 9

Monday, February 14 • Valentine's Day Tea. Student Services office. Hosted by the Registrar, Admissions, Learning Centre, Library, Students' Association and Conference Services offices. 2:30 to 4 pm

Program information sessions & tours Tuesday, Feb. 15 Lloydminster campus Monday, Feb. 28 Vermilion campus Everyone welcome. High school students, parents & people looking for career options.

7 to 9 pm. Call Recruitment at 780 853 8789 or 1 800 661 6490 for details.

is published biweekly from September to May by the department of Advancement for staff and members of the college community. Submissions regarding college news and initiatives are welcome and published at the editor's discretion. The deadline for submission is Thursday at noon prior to the publication date. The Lakeland Link is available in Outlook's Public Folders and online at www.lakelandcollege.ca/link.

High school students Melissa White and Jolaine Timpano from St. Jerome's School (seated) and Stephanie Grasby from Blessed Sacrament School (back left) are the first three participants in a new dual credit course offering at Lakeland College. They were at the Vermilion campus for an orientation Feb. 1 and welcomed by their online ECACS teacher Sherry Garnier, and Lakeland's Joanne McDonald and Janice Aughey.

Students bridge the learning as dual credit project begins Three young high school students from Vermilion and Wainwright are getting a taste of college studies early as participants in the new dual credit project, entitled Bridging the Learning in the 21st century. Project partners are Lakeland College, East Central Alberta Catholic Schools (ECACS), and Credenda Virtual High School.

Jolaine Timpano and Melissa White, both from St. Jerome’s School, and Stephanie Grasby from Blessed Sacrament School were welcomed to the Vermilion campus Feb. 1 for a student orientation day. They were greeted by Lakeland’s Janice Aughey, innovation project facilitator, Joanne McDonald, instructor and program head of early learning and child care, as well as ECACS lead teacher Linda Koskie, online teacher Sherry Garnier, and school division superintendent Stephen MacKenzie. They also received a campus tour and were able to roll up their sleeves and familiarize themselves with both Moodle and Elluminate Live - the learning management system and online classroom software that they will be using during the semester to take the class.

The three-year project enables ECACS students in Grades 10 to 12 to take college courses and receive college and high school career technology studies credit in subject areas relevant to both high school and college curricula. Using the latest in technology, students take courses online during the school semester and are supported by ECACS teachers and Lakeland instructors. The students also have face-to-face, hands-on learning opportunities integrated into their studies.

The three students, the first to be part of the dual credit project, are taking ED 120 Play, a three credit course from the college’s early learning and child care program. Students will complete the class’s theory portion at their respective school and complete continued on page 2

New EAs for college execs

Centennial trek

A successor for Isabelle Moses has been selected.

Laura Baker has been hired to fill the position of executive assistant to the president and chief executive officer and to the chairman of the board of governors.

Baker officially starts March 1, the day after Moses retires.

“Isabelle has been a very good mentor and I know I have big shoes to fill,” says Baker.

“This will be a new challenge for me. I’m excited about having the opportunity to work closely with Glenn Charlesworth and the board members.”

Baker joined Lakeland College in August Heather Watt and Laura Baker 1994 as the receptionist in student services at the Lloydminster campus. Her Lakeland career path has included administrative assistant positions in residence and the schools of business, computer technology, and academic and professional advancement. In addition to her work at the college, she’s spent time in the classroom earning a recognition of achievement in business administration and a certificate in human resource management. She’s currently enrolled in the university transfer program and has completed several courses.

Since 2006 Baker has worked as the executive assistant to the vice president, student and college services. “I’ve enjoyed working with Ralph (Troschke) and learning about the financial side of Lakeland,” says Baker.

Replacing Baker as the executive assistant to the vice president, student and college services is Heather Watt.

“I’ve been happily employed at Lakeland College since August 2002. Over the years, I have had the pleasure of working in student services, the schools of business, computer technology, and academic and professional advancement as well as the department of advancement on the Lloydminster campus,” says Watt, who recently returned from her second maternity leave.

“I look forward to delving back into the career portion of my life and a position that should prove to be both challenging and rewarding,” she says.

A word from the volunteer subcommittee Getting ready to go where no volunteer planning team has gone before, the division of Lakeland College’s Centennial planning team is preparing to recruit, register, orient and train volunteers who will be front and centre at our centennial celebration activities or working behind the scenes.

Our aim is to engage Lakeland staff, alumni and community supporters to become involved with Centennial preparations, events and activities, and to make sure their experiences as volunteers are gratifying.

Volunteerism plays a huge part in Lakeland College’s success and our Centennial is the driver in formalizing a volunteerism component to Lakeland. In the next few months, we will announce how this system will operate.

As volunteer opportunities arise we will advertize them using Lakeland publications and social networks such as Facebook. We’ve already started with an item in the January 24 issue of the Lakeland Link for Century Club committee members.

Making our volunteers successful is our focus! We will provide volunteers with the training needed for positions selected.

As centennial volunteers, everyone will receive the appropriate orientation to the history, goals and purpose of the centennial events and tasks at hand.

After volunteers have registered with the volunteer planning team, we will track their volunteer hours with the college. Volunteer time is valuable and Lakeland College wants to acknowledge all volunteers so we are also able to say thank you.

Members of the volunteer subcommittee are Tony Neilson, Lonnie Boothman, Debbie Maddex, Wendy Gill and Brunetta Mariani.

If you’d like to sign up as a Centennial volunteer, or if you have questions, please call Brunetta Mariani at ext. 8736.

Dual credit project begins cont'd from page 1 the hands-on portion at a community childcare facility. Upon completion of the course, they will have the additional advantage of being eligible to apply for child development assistant certification from the Alberta government. This is the first level of childcare staff certification required to work at licensed daycares.

For the ECACS students, it was too good an opportunity to pass up. White, who is in her graduating year, explains.

“After I graduate, I want to pursue a career where I can work with children. This class fits really well into my schedule and if I choose to come to Lakeland in the fall, it will make my course load more manageable,” says White.

Timpano and Grasby say the class will help them decide if early learning and child care is a career path that they want to pursue.

“I know I want a career working with children and this is a good way to explore program options,” says Timpano, a Grade 11 student. Grasby, also in Grade 11, agrees.

Aughey says that in addition to the credential and early certification benefits, she hopes the experience gives the students the confidence they need to successfully transition from high school to college life.

“The orientation for the students was very exciting and you can sense the enthusiasm among the group,” says Aughey. “It was also very important for them to meet the people behind the scenes who will be supporting them to be successful.”

Bridging the Learning in the 21st Century is an initiative of Alberta’s Advanced Education and Technology Department.

A Lakeland minute Available in Outlook’s Public Folders are minutes from Executive Committee meetings held Jan. 13, 2010.

Lakeland students head to London in May to study macroeconomics Field trips to Lloyd’s of London, the Central Bank of London, and the London Stock Exchange will add a live the learning flavour to an upcoming macroeconomics course offered by Lakeland College.

This spring 15 Lakeland students will spend two weeks at Regents College in London taking macroeconomics from Lakeland instructor Brad Onofrychuk. There’s no better place to take macroeconomics than in London, the financial centre of the world, says Onofrychuk.

“Macroeconomics deals with issues such as employment, fiscal policy, international payments and more. We’ll study topics such as international banking systems in class and later visit the Central Bank.

I think it’s a great opportunity for the students. The field trips will really complement their course work,” he says.

The Lakeland contingent—which includes 14 business students and one university transfer student—will be in London from May 8 until May 22. They’ll live in residence at Regents College and classes will be held Mondays to Thursdays with tours Tuesday and Thursday afternoons.

Fridays are for exams and presentations, and on the weekends, they’ll sightsee.

While in England the students are required to blog about their experience.

“It will be great to come out of college with a unique experience that really adds to our education. I think it will broaden our thinking about business,” says Jon Hines of Marwayne, a student in the bachelor of commerce program.

Katelyn Schmidt of Wainwright is the lone university transfer student on the excursion. She saw the poster promoting the opportunity to study in London and knew she had to take part. In high school she went to Italy with members of her school band and it was an incredible

Heading to London in May to study macroeconomics are, front row: Kyrsta Murphy, Raelene Winter, Ashley Gruhlke, and Adelle Peters. Second row: Shane Crooks, David Dahl and Ashley Cox. Third row: Jon Hines and Juanita Joe. Top row: Alex Scheidt, Katelyn Schmidt, Misha O’Donnell and instructor Brad Onofrychuk. Not pictured are William Brost, Marcel Alexandre and Terra Merk.

experience. “I love to travel. It’s fun and you learn so much,” she says, adding that she’s looking forward to living the college experience at Regents.

Micro and macroeconomics are mandatory first year courses for Lakeland College business students.

Microeconomics was offered in the fall semester and Onofrychuk is currently teaching macroeconomics to about 80 students at the Lloydminster campus.

Those who chose to participate in the London trip are doing online assignments to prepare for the intense two-week course. “They need to have a certain level of understanding of macroeconomics because in London we’ll discuss more advanced topics,” says Onofrychuk.

The group meets every two weeks at the Lloydminster campus to plan and

prepare for the experience. The course tuition fee is the same as what it costs at Lakeland. They plan to fundraise about $15,000 to offset some of the expenses, but students are expected to cover about half of the cost of the trip. One fundraiser is a student auction for a half day of labour. The auction will be held during the Lloydminster Chamber of Commerce Feb. 9 mixer at the Lloydminster campus.

Students are also selling tickets on a 50” 3D television, Blu-ray Player and 3D Shrek collection. The draw date is March 2.

Study abroad opportunities are becoming more common at Lakeland. Last year about 20 students in human services programs travelled to Australia to help organize a Fun4Kids Children’s Festival.

New SLP recruits 2011-2012 A new cohort of students in the sign language interpreter program (SLIP) began their studies last month in Edmonton.

Some of the students relocated to the Alberta capital from as far away as Winnipeg and Calgary to take the program. Lakeland is one of five colleges in Canada and the only one in Alberta to offer the SLIP diploma. Pictured (left to right) are: Front row: Angela Jensen, Meghan Ward and Laura Patterson. Middle row: Krista Quaife, Debbie Walker, Lisa Mahe, Erin Lorenz, Judie Bauer. Back row: Amber Miller, Karin Mclaughlin, Katie Stickney and Samantha Gurney. The program is offered in a blended format with some classes delivered face-to-face at the University of Alberta campus and some delivered online through eCampusAlberta. The group will graduate in June 2012.

Web-based wellness New this year, Lakeland’s Employee and Family Assistance program is offering free monthly wellness webinars provided by HumanaCare. Sessions will be delivered in an interactive format and topics will focus on work and life issues facing most people today.

For information about webinar dates and topics, and to learn how to register, go to Public Folders/Human Resources/ HumanaCare. The first session to be offered Tuesday, Feb. 8 is “What are you waiting for? How to stop procrastinating and start living.”

Questions? Call Ilona Hoglander in the human resources department at ext. 8619.

Your esthetician & massage treatment await

Enjoying an award winning design showroom in Toronto, Ont., are Lakeland interior design students (left to right) Adrielle Morton, Dani Rau, Laurel Siemens and Chandi Kornfeld.

Lakeland students experience Toronto design industry Jetsetting to the big city bright lights of T.O., Lakeland College’s second-year interior design technology students had a live the learning experience they’ll never forget.

Nineteen students, along with instructors Fiona McLeod and Cindi Plant, left for the program’s week-long annual field trip to Toronto, Ont., Jan. 24. Their action-packed itinerary included lunch at Chef’s House, a restaurant operated by George Brown College culinary arts and hospitality students, design showrooms, the Distillery District, the Bata Shoe Museum, the Royal Ontario Museum, the Ontario College of Art and Design, and the Art Gallery of Ontario. They also attended the Design Show at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre and the Alternative Design show at the Gladstone Hotel. They toured several galleries and retail shops along Toronto’s downtown King and Queen streets.

One of the highlights of the trip was a visit to a showroom designed by YABU PUSHELBERG. The showroom was featured in the December 2010 issue of Interior Design magazine as Best of Year in the showroom category.

YABU PUSHELBERG has design studios located in Toronto and New York and specializes in luxury design. It has been honoured with multiple awards for exceptional achievement in design for the hospitality and restaurant industry. The firm has also been named Designer of the Year by Contract magazine and has been inducted into the Interior Design magazine Hall of Fame.

“The trip to Toronto was great,” says student Laurel Siemens. “We saw so many beautiful and interesting aspects of design everywhere. All of the showrooms, including Avenue Road, were filled with amazing furniture and design. The trip was definitely worth it.

“My favourite part was the design show. We saw so many new and innovative designs and products that we never would have seen anywhere else.”

Lakeland College’s interior design technology program is the first program in Canada accredited by the National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA). The program has also received an Excellence in Education Award from the NKBA. The award recognizes excellence in design instruction at North American colleges, universities and technical institutes and is based on an annual review process.

Here’s another great idea for some personal health and wellness care.

The public clinics run by students in the esthetician and massage therapy programs are back and are ready to serve you.

A variety of treatments are available.

Newly added for this semester are facials, back treatments, body treatments, hot rock and relaxation massage.

Appointments for esthetician treatments will be booked until April 6. The spa is located in 204A, Lilac Landing building, in the residence village. Evening appointments are Monday and Tuesday evenings, morning times are Wednesday to Friday. Call 780 871 5454 to book an appointment.

The student-run massage therapy clinic is open March 28 to April 29. Cost for a one hour massage is $20. For bookings, call 780 871 5715.

Students better the world A Hearts Unite Evening of Romance fundraiser will be held Feb. 12 at the Lloydminster campus to support education for girls in Malawi. The event is hosted by Rotaract, a service club for students and young professionals.

University transfer instructor Fakhra Shahid is Rotaract’s president and UT student Tyson Tetoff is chair of its international service community group.

Tickets are $50/person or $80/couple and are available at Student Services. For details call Fakhra Shahid at ext. 5772.

Erase hunger campaign: Vermilion campus students collected $180 and 20 items for the Vermilion Food Bank, and $100 for the Red Cross, in a social awareness campaign held Jan. 26.

From diploma to degree: Two + two transfer agreements make it happen Two plus two. It’s all academic for students wanting to turn a two-year diploma into a four-year university degree.

Two-plus-two transfer agreements enable students to apply credit earned from a two-year college diploma program directly towards a program of a higher academic credential, typically a four-year bachelor degree. With several sectors now demanding that employees come to them with balanced training and education that includes theoretical knowledge as well as hands-on experience, two-plus-two transfer agreements are a perfect fit to meet that need.

Lakeland College, which offers twoyear programs in agriculture, business, environmental sciences, human services, health and wellness, interior design as well as university transfer has more than 80 block transfer agreements with universities located in Canada, the U. S., and Australia.

Kayla Balderson, a 2009 graduate of Lakeland College’s environmental sciences program, took full advantage of Lakeland’s two-plus-two transfer agreement with the University of Alberta. She is now a fourth-year student in the U of A’s bachelor of science environmental conservation program majoring in conservation biology. She is also president of the U of A chapter of the Wildlife Society.

Balderson says she has no doubt that her decision to begin her post-secondary education at Lakeland College and then go to university helped her be a more successful student.

“My time at Lakeland helped me be more successful at university because I was able to manage the transition from high school, to a smaller college and then to a large university. At college, I was also able to develop strong study skills and a solid work ethic that would be necessary to be successful at university,” says Balderson. “I also felt more confident in my field skills that I obtained at college and, therefore, was able to successfully participate more fully in university laboratories and field trips.”

Balderson describes her two-plus-two experience at Lakeland and at the U of A as giving her a more well-rounded learning experience.

“It was always my goal to earn a degree, however it was appealing to me to receive more hands-on and useful field training as part of my education,” says Balderson.

“There are classes such as field skills and various wildlife identification classes

Kayla Balderson at the U of A.

at Lakeland that are not available at university but are important to a wellrounded degree in the field.”

She adds that her earlier college experience also gave her a definite advantage when it came to securing employment opportunities.

“My hands-on training experience at Lakeland gave me plenty of industry connections which helped me get great summer jobs in the field. These industry connections made early on in my education give me more opportunities for employment,” says Balderson.

UFA crop specialist Dana MacMillan is another Lakeland College grad who benefited from a two plus two transfer agreement. As a Lakeland agricultural sciences student, she graduated from the agribusiness program and went on to complete a bachelor of sciences degree in agriculture studies at the University of Lethbridge.

With so many career paths in the agricultural sector, MacMillan says her two years at Lakeland gave her time to mature as an individual and narrow down her educational options.

“I knew as soon as I was finished high school that I wanted to earn a degree in agriculture but I did not know where I wanted to go or what program I wanted to take at university,” says MacMillan. “I decided to go to Lakeland first and take the agribusiness program. It turned out to be a great decision.”

MacMillan adds that going to college right after high school gave her more time to mature as a young adult and prepare for the pace of university life in a big city.

“Lakeland was a great place to transition from high school. As a high school grad, I don’t think I had the maturity that I may have needed to excel in university at the time, so going to college first allowed me to adapt to smaller class sizes, guidance from instructors and ‘real life’

experiences,” says MacMillan. “I believe that part of the reason I was able to do so well at university was because of the experience that I had at Lakeland.”

Now in the field as a working agriculture professional, MacMillan believes that much of her career success has a lot to do with her Lakeland education.

“The university did not have an elaborate farming operation as part of its agriculture faculty so all the handson learning opportunities and farm management operation experiences that I gained from Lakeland’s Student Managed Farm equipped me with the skills I need to do well in my career.”

With population trends showing a need for greater access to educational opportunities, the need for more twoplus-two transfer agreements also continues to grow. In July 2010, Lakeland College announced another new block transfer agreement with the University of Saskatchewan for early learning and child care graduates. Work to secure more transfer agreements with institutions for more of its programs is ongoing.

“Twenty years ago, few two-plus-two transfer agreements existed,” explains Registrar Barbara Gordey, “however, their proliferation within the last five to ten years has really opened the door for many students. Two-plus-two transfer agreements also speak to the commitment of colleges and universities to work together to offer increased access to educational opportunities and enhanced learning experiences for students.”

And it’s this collaboration and cooperation that is helping to produce competent, well-rounded graduates and field professionals—just as MacMillan is now, and Balderson will be this spring.

“Not only did Lakeland instill within me essential field skills and knowledge, but more importantly, a confidence that allowed me to pursue and achieve opportunities at university that I would not have achieved as quickly,” says Balderson. “The combination of my college and university programs will enable me to be better grounded when I begin my professional career.”

Lakeland College also has transfer agreements in place that allow students who have taken courses at other institutions to receive transfer credit at Lakeland. This year, 232 students transferred credit to Lakeland from other Alberta, out-of-province and international post-secondary institutions.

To learn more go to www.lakelandcollege.ca.

Leadership on the Edge of the World A Lakeland College alumnus is preparing for an incredible two-week experience in which she’ll learn more about how she can contribute to a more sustainable future.

Jennifer Keller will spend most of March in Antarctica participating in “Leadership on the Edge,” a program run by renowned polar explorer Robert Swan and his crew from the organization he created called “2041”. The organization is named 2041 after the year the moratorium expires which currently prevents any mining or industrial exploration in Antarctica. The goal of the organization is simple; “To protect Antarctica and the rest of our planet, we must inspire leaders to return home and create change on the personal level, the community level, the corporate level and beyond,” says Swan.

Keller, a fellow coworker and six other Canadians are among a group of approximately 70 people from around the world who will explore the Antarctic Peninsula for two weeks and then bring back information and skills to create awareness about the continent’s fragile ecosystem.

A graduate of environmental conservation and reclamation in 2002 and bachelor of applied science: environmental management in 2004, Keller is an environmental specialist with Solstice Canada Corp. She lives in her hometown of Edmonton and currently manages a group which specializes in site remediation, reclamation, decommissioning, and approvals management.

“Our trip is sponsored solely by Solstice, which is a huge investment given the size of our company and the cost of the expedition. We expect to bring back information and skills to help our company, and also to share our experiences to create awareness on how vulnerable Antarctica is,” says Keller.

Keller will be at Lakeland College’s Vermilion campus on April 7 to present information gained from her experiences in the Antarctic.

To learn more about Leadership on the Edge and 2041, visit www.2041.com.

Solstice Canada Corp. annually presents a $500 scholarship to a Lakeland College student majoring in environmental conservation and reclamation.

Jennifer Keller will spend two weeks in Antarctica during a Leadership on the Edge program. She'll be at the Vermilion campus April 7 to talk about the experience.

BAppSc:EM capstone presentation day Twenty-one students completing the bachelor of applied sciences: environmental management (BAppSc:EM) program showed the world what they accomplished during their eight month industry practicums with industry, government and regulatory agencies with capstone presentations Jan. 31 at the Vermilion campus. In their presentations, students discussed their projects in technical detail while incorporating academic knowledge, research and information about practical skills and experience gained.

Industry hosts and practicum supervisors also attended the event including Husky Energy's Gary Lorenz who has supported the BAppSc:EM program and has been a practicum supervisor since the program began 15 years ago. He recently retired from Husky after 30 years of service. Left: Gary Lorenz (centre) with students Brandy Boha and Jeremy Pashniak (right) who completed their practicum placements at Husky. Also in the picture is Husky's Phil Burry and Aaron Studer who also supervised the students. Studer is a Lakeland alumnus and completed the applied degree program in 1999.

Glenn Charlesworth, college president, and Dr. Lee Arthur, program head of the BScApp:EM program, present Lorenz with a certificate recognizing his past contribution, dedication and support of Lakeland College students and Lakeland's environmental sciences programs.

AHT instructor first in Canada certified in equine massage

Crop technology student Jake Miller gives an enthusastic thumbs up as he and fellow croppers Dalyn Woloshyn, Breann Woolsey and Stephanie Lepage attend Farm Tech.

Students attend FarmTech conference, Lakeland recognized by organizers for ongoing support Last month instructor Peter Walsh and 33 crop technology and agribusiness students attended FarmTech, a major agronomy annual conference, in Edmonton. FarmTech hosts excellent guest speakers and agronomy and technology experts from across North America and worldwide.

During the three days, students attended presentations on topics including the world economic situation, market outlooks for different crop types, new technologies used for crop by-products, triticale, pest management and herbicide-resistant weeds. They also had a chance to mingle with potential employers and learned that there is much demand for full-time, part-time or contract positions.

Lakeland College received a mention in the conference’s opening remarks as a longtime event participant. Organizers appreciated the students attending the event.

Students found that there was much to learn about their industry and were glad for the chance to hear such a variety of experts in the field.

Lorraine Serhienko, an instructor in Lakeland’s animal health technology and veterinary medical assistant programs, has earned a unique distinction.

She is the first person in Canada to earn certification in equine massage.

In 2009/2010, Serhienko attended the nationally recognized Northwest School of Animal Massage located in Washington, U.S.A. There, her training in equine massage included three levels of classes: general massage practitioner, performance massage practitioner and rehabilitation massage practitioner.

After successfully completing her education and writing the exam offered by the National Board of Certification for Animal Acupressure & Massage (NBCAAM), she is now recognized as a certified equine massage therapist—and she’s the only NBCAAM member currently in Canada.

The NBCAAM, which was established in 2008, establishes and upholds professional standards for animal acupressure and massage practitioners.

Wind energy research continues Did you know that the average wind speed at Lakeland College’s Vermilion campus measures 4.2 metres/second at a height of 20 metres, 4.8 m/s at 35 m, and 5.3m/s at 51 m? This, along with other data, is helping to determine if a wind energy industry could be viable in the northeastern portion of Alberta.

For the past three years, the meteorological tower at the Vermilion Campus has been collecting wind data as part of an applied research project to measure potential wind energy. The project began in 2008 with funding from the Alberta Association of Colleges and Technical Institutes (AACTI).

Anemometer—to measures wind speed—are located on the tower at 20, 35 and 51 m heights. This information can be used to extrapolate wind speeds up to 80 or 100 m heights which is typical of large wind turbines.

Because available energy in wind increases exponentially with speed, more information is required to determine the potential wind energy than just using average windspeeds.

The frequency and duration of the various wind speeds are also analyzed to determine the potential energy output of a wind turbine. Data from the meteorological tower is submitted directly to Genivar, an engineering firm in Calgary, for analysis.

“This project and the data collected by Lakeland have attracted the attention of companies looking to expand or diversify into the renewable energy field,” says Mel Mathison, dean of the School of Environmental Sciences at the college. “We’re recommending that we continue our research as more years of data helps to offset yearly fluctuations in wind patterns that may occur.”

Sharing field experiences Environmental sciences alum Mike Burak (left) was a guest lecturer in Darcey Shyry's ZO250 class last Thursday. He completed his studies in wildlife and fisheries conservation (WFC) in 2009 and is now enrolled in the college's bachelor of applied science: environmental management program. During his presentation, he spoke to current WFC students about his experience conducting waterfowl surveys with the Canadian Wildlife Service last summer. Pictured with Burak is T.J. Rempel, a second-year WFC major, who hails from Sanford, Man.

Susan Brazeau

Brazeau receives award

Taking direction About 15 employees of Scout Communications were in Vermilion last week filming a provincial AUPE commercial. They shot a few scenes at Lakeland College’s Vermilion campus, including one scene with Lakeland employees Wendy Gill and Kevin Gannon.

Scott Luit (centre), creative director with Scout Communications, talked with Gill and Gannon prior to the start of filming Friday afternoon. The commercial will air throughout Alberta on March 21.

Posting of proposed changes to Board policies Lakeland College’s Board policy committee has reviewed its current board policies and is proposing some changes. According to college policy, these changes must be posted on the college’s website for review if so desired by stakeholders. Changes are marked in color. To review the changes, please go to www.lakelandcollege.ca/About-Us/ Administration/Board.aspx. These will be available for viewing until March 15.

If anyone has questions or would like to comment on the proposed changes, please contact Glenn Charlesworth, college president, at 780 853 8510 before March 15.

New childcare lab at Lloydminster campus taking shape Second-year early learning and childcare students travelled to the Lloydminster campus last week to get a sneak peak of the new child development centre that is currently being constructed at the Lloydminster campus. The new facility is part of a major campus renovation project valued at $1.7 million that also includes the construction of new labs for the massage and ethetician programs. The child development centre will be complete and licensed to take about 40 children aged 12 months to 5 years in September. The esthetican and massage therapy labs will also be complete and ready for student use in the fall.

Above, ELCC students Roxanna Maron (front) and Alyssa Bergo, and instructor Joanne McDonald view the centre's kitchen area with Jeff Dustow, capital project manager.

Congratulations to human services instructor Susan Brazeau who recently received a Graduate Student Scholarship valued at $3,000 from Alberta Advanced Education and Technology.

She is currently a student in Athabasca University’s masters of arts – integrated studies program and is working on two areas of specialization, cultural studies and educational studies.

The award is based on academic achievement. Brazeau’s GPA is 3.92 after seven courses. With four courses remaining, she expects to complete the program in 2012.

Brazeau says that receiving the scholarship is overwhelming and she credits a lot of her success to the support of her family and colleagues at Lakeland College.

“I was not expecting to win this award and I must thank the people who have always given me tremendous encouragement as I worked on my program,” she says. “First, there is my husband Wayne, who has always been my strongest cheerleader, followed by my dad who sadly passed away this summer, and my brother Bill.

“At Lakeland, special thanks go to all my fabulous colleagues in human services and to Audra Baddock, Alice Wainwright-Stewart, Judy Sarsons, Jason Dewling, Doreen Der, Dawn McKenzie-Weinhandl, Clara Thalheimer, Rocky Wallbaum, Phil Allen and Al Motley.

“Thanks also to the long term professional development committee for the opportunity to work towards one of my life’s dreams. I am absolutely enjoying the adventure and am already applying new knowledge in my classroom. The scholarship is an added incentive to continue to live the learning!”