Wider Horizons - Winter 2013

NEW PRESIDENT P. 2 • SCORING POSITION P. 8 • IN AWE OF ALGAE P. 14

A PUBLICATION OF LETHBRIDGE COLLEGE THIS ISSUE HAS BEEN ENHANCED WITH INTERACTIVE CONTENT USING LAYAR

President’s message I’d like to start by wishing a happy new year to all of the readers of Wider Horizons. The last year has been a time of change and transition at the college, but we have moved forward without missing a beat thanks to the solid plans and strong leadership we have at so many levels of the institution.

The year ahead is filled with promise – and much of that promise comes from the relationships with our partners. When I look around the campus, I see so many examples of thriving partnerships. You will find this issue of our magazine filled with stories of some of the different people and groups that work together to make the college prosper.

One of the core partnerships we celebrate at Lethbridge College exists between instructors and students. We see this in action in the classroom, in the field (or kitchens, or labs, or shops), in the office, after class or even online where questions can be answered and leaps of understanding are made. It is this alliance that motivates and inspires all other work we do at the college.

Lethbridge College’s learning environment transcends the traditional classroom – making every space a learning and collaboration space. This new reality can be seen in our plans for the Trades and Technology Renewal and Innovation Project. This project is not just another building; it is a learning environment that creates the opportunity for us to nurture collaborative learning between faculty and staff and our students and industry associates. The TTRIP project allows us to engage our business, industry and community partners in research and innovation; this collaboration will assist us in creating not only a vibrant college but also a vibrant community.

So many other partnerships can be seen in action at Lethbridge College. In this issue of Wider Horizons, you can read about the applied research underway with college instructors and students and their industry partners; about the well-established collaboration between the college and community sporting organizations such as the Prairie Baseball Academy and the Lethbridge Hurricanes; about the enduring and expanding relationships between the college and the First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities; and about the generous donors who support so many essential programs and projects here at Lethbridge College.

Peter Leclaire Lethbridge College Interim President and CEO

And, of course, there is a story about the newest partnership we have established – the one between the college and community and our new President and CEO, Dr. Paula Burns.

We all look forward to welcoming her to southern Alberta and our campus on Feb. 4. She brings a tremendous amount of knowledge, experience and enthusiasm with her, and she joins a dynamic leadership team looking to strategically position the institution for a prosperous future.

We are eager to continue the college’s work enhancing the learning experience, empowering our employees and creating and expanding our partnerships with business, industry and community. We have much planned for the college.

I hope you enjoy reading all of the stories in this issue. We feel fortunate to have so many great stories to tell.

What’s inside Augmented reality: Bringing print to life In this issue of Wider Horizons, we invite our readers to enjoy more – more content, more photos, more information, and more of the people and places you love to read about in this magazine.

It’s as easy as one, two, three.

1. Download a free application called Layar on your smartphone.

2. Look for the Layar logo throughout the magazine.

(In this issue, you’ll see it on pages 7, 9, 23, 27, and 50.)

3. Scan the page with the Layar app and enjoy what happens next.

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with

Vol. 6, No. 2, Winter 2013 Wider Horizons is Lethbridge College’s community magazine, celebrating the successes and accomplishments of its students, employees and alumni by promoting them throughout the community and around the world. This publication aims to educate its readers, engage stakeholders and recognize donors through compelling stories and images that relate to, and resonate with, its readers.

Wider Horizons is published by the Lethbridge College Advancement Office.

We thank you for picking up this copy and we hope you enjoy the read. If you would like to suggest a story or find out more about our magazine, contact us.

Your smartphone might show you a video of how to make this issue’s recipe, the succulent Sacher Torte. Or it might take you to stats and facts about a sporting team. It might even tell you more of the story, giving you behind-the-scenes details.

Augmented reality in general – and the Layar app in particular – provides a new way for us to infuse print media with interactive experiences.

We hope you enjoy everything about the experience. Let us know what you think by emailing us at WHMagazine@lethbridgecollege.ca.

Meet FNMI’s new Inuk elder................................................................................... 4 Poetry, pop culture and pucks ............................................................................... 6 Their recipe for success .........................................................................................17 Austrian chefs in Lethbridge kitchens...................................................................18 Grammarama .........................................................................................................30 Partners in print.....................................................................................................32 Partnerships key to effective CYC recruitment.....................................................34 Barrier-free fun......................................................................................................36 Partnership roundup..............................................................................................38 Lethbridge College 2011-12 donors......................................................................40

In every issue

Q & A............................................... 12 From our kitchens............................. 22 Campus in season............................. 24 Office intrigue................................... 26 My perspective.................................. 28

Wider Horizons c/o The Advancement Office 3000 College Drive South Lethbridge, AB T1K 1L6 WHMagazine@lethbridgecollege.ca publisher: Peter Leclaire editor: Carmen Toth chief writer: Lisa Kozleski designer: Dana Woodward photographers: Rod Leland, Rob Olson, Jonathan Ruzek, Gregory Thiessen magazine staff: Leeanne Conrad, Rod Leland, Elisabeth Morgan, Shawn Salberg, Kasha Thurston, Gwen Wirth contributors: Megan Shapka, Jane Harris-Zsovan In addition to free distribution to our regional community, Wider Horizons is also mailed to all Lethbridge College alumni. Alumni are encouraged to stay connected to the college by emailing alumni@lethbridgecollege.ca or by updating their contact information at the Alumni Relations website: lethbridgecollege.ca/alumni To share this issue with others or access even more content, visit us at widerhorizons.ca To change the address where you recieve Wider Horizons, email WHcirculation@lethbridgecollege.ca

News and notes................................ 42 My life.............................................. 48 It’s a family affair.............................. 49 Widen your horizons.......................... 50 A word or two................................... 51 Where are they now?........................ 52 1

Dr. Paula Burns, who will start work as Lethbridge College’s eighth President and CEO in early February, sees countless opportunities for innovation at Canada’s first public college.

D

r. Paula Burns had much to take in when she made her first trip to Lethbridge last fall – and she noticed it all.

serving as Interim President and CEO since Edwards’ departure at the end of last June.

She saw a vibrant college where people seemed genuinely happy to be at work and in class, a growing city that is home to an increasingly diverse population, and mountains that are close enough to hike in on any pretty day.

Currently Provost and Vice President Academic at NAIT in Edmonton, Burns has spent more than 10 years in postsecondary leadership roles. Her previous work experience is sure to serve her well at Lethbridge College. She has worked with and in a variety of departments across post-secondary institutions, from teaching to curriculum development to leadership positions.

And then there were the running trails – the dirt and paved pathways that meander up and down the coulees, across the river and through miles of parkland. As an avid recreational runner, Burns knew she could feel at home on those trails.

She’ll get her chance to discover them soon – as well as the college, city and mountains that looked so appealing when she came to interview last fall for the position of President and CEO of Lethbridge College. A few weeks after her visit, the Lethbridge College Board of Governors announced that Burns was its choice to lead the college into its sixth decade. She starts work on Feb. 4.

The board’s decision came at the end of a seven-month international search and interviews with many talented candidates – and the search committee, board and college community are thrilled with the choice.

These experiences align well with the successful programs and well-developed plans Lethbridge College already has in place.

They also will allow her to start her work with a well-established understanding of how successful programs, departments and post-secondary institutions operate.

Reached a few days after her appointment was announced last November, Burns said she is looking forward to getting to work at a place that felt right from the start.

“The board firmly believes Dr. Burns is an outstanding candidate to boldly lead Lethbridge College to the next level of aspiration and achievement,” said Board of Governors Chair Randy Jespersen. “With a wealth of experience developing government relationships and building strong community partnerships, she will be an excellent advocate for the college.”

“It’s all about the fit – what does a particular institution need that I can bring, and what does it offer in terms of learning opportunities for me,” she said. “The whole feel and energy and culture of Lethbridge College needed to connect with me for it to be the right place – and it did. The size is perfect.

The people I’ve met are all so friendly and welcoming.

The city itself is appealing and close to so much. I love hiking and to have the mountains so close is fantastic. I am a runner and love seeing all of those trails and paths all over the city.”

Burns will succeed Dr. Tracy L. Edwards, who announced her resignation in April 2012, and Peter Leclaire, who has been

Burns said what she is most looking forward to is “tapping into the energy and love for the place that’s already there.” With

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As a college, I think we excel at building partnerships. We have so many great opportunities. ” — Dr.Paula Burns

Photo by Gregory Thiessen

a passion for collaborative leadership, she is also looking forward to developing strong leadership teams.

From a leadership perspective, Burns said it’s an exciting time to be in higher education. There are certainly challenges facing all post-secondary institutions, she noted, especially when it comes to funding, but she also sees that as a real opportunity.

“That challenge really motivates us to think about how we can do things differently, more efficiently, more effectively,” she said. “If we don’t innovate, we’ll move into slow death. Lethbridge College is so well positioned.

There is already a great foundation for innovation; there are well-established flexible learning pathways and online learning opportunities. We have a real opportunity to differentiate ourselves as a college.”

Burns, who has four children (Kelson, 11; Darby, 13; Karleen, 16 and Ashton, 17), said she feels fortunate to work in the college sector. She explained that “we can respond more quickly and with more flexibility to the needs of the marketplace.”

Burns got her own start in higher education as a college student at Fanshawe College in London, Ont., where she earned her Respiratory Therapy diploma in 1987. From there she went on to the University of Waterloo, where she earned her Bachelor of Science degree in 1996; Central Michigan University, where she earned a Master of Arts in Education in 1999; the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education/University of Toronto, where she earned her PhD in 2005; and Royal Roads University, where she earned her executive MBA in 2010.

Burns undertook many of those educational opportunities while working full-time. Her early work experience includes holding

several positions at the Michener Institute for Applied Health Sciences in Toronto from 1994 to 2008. Starting as a respiratory therapist faculty member, she went on to work as chair of the department and coordinator of the program. She continued to teach until 2003, even while coordinating the institute’s distance education program. Staying within the Michener family, she later went on to work as a curriculum consultant and director, and eventually was named vice provost of the institute.

She left Michener for NAIT in 2008, first to work as associate vice president of Academic Affairs and most recently as Provost and Vice President Academic. In her most recent job, she was a member of NAIT’s executive team and provided leadership and direction to many groups and departments around campus.

She said she sees great potential at Lethbridge College to continue building relationships in applied research, entrepreneurship and other kinds of partnerships.

“We want to continue the development of the relationships with the community and the partnerships with business, industry and other educational institutions,” Burns said. “As a college, I think we excel at building partnerships. We have so many great opportunities.”

Paula Burns will be the eighth president of Lethbridge College. The first seven presidents led as the college grew from its inaugural class of 38 students who met in the wing of a local high school to more than 4,000 students attending classes at the college’s six southern Alberta campuses today.

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Photo by Rob Olson

Christina Tikivik-Sherman is eager to share stories of her life in Nunavut with the southern Alberta community.

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hristina Tikivik-Sherman, the new Inuk elder at Lethbridge College, finds herself thinking of home when she sees the blue of the prairie sky and the coulees rolling like waves on Frobisher Bay. Aside from this, she says that southern Alberta, with its landscape of tans, browns and greens and its hunters seeking deer or elk and not polar bear or seal, feels starkly different from the place she still thinks of as home. She is looking forward to working in her new role at the college to help the Lethbridge community better understand Nunavut, the land she loves, as well as the customs and traditions of the Inuit people.

We are so very fortunate to have Christina with us this year.”

— Robin Little Bear

“We are so very fortunate to have Christina with us this year” says Robin Little Bear, former manager of FNMI services at Lethbridge College. “We’re one of a handful of post-secondary institutions in Canada to offer students the support and guidance of an Inuk elder as well as First Nations and Métis elders. The elder visits and cultural activities are just two ways that the college supports students of all backgrounds.”

Tikivik-Sherman is originally from Iqaluit on Baffin Island in the territory of Nunavut, about 3,000 kilometres away as the crow flies. She will join First Nations elder Beverly Hungry-Wolf (Honorary Bachelor of Applied Arts, ‘11) and Métis elder Rod McLeod (Child & Youth Care ‘03) as

elders who support the college’s Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students in achieving their career and personal goals. While the college has worked with students and teachers in the FNMI community for decades, it was former President Tracy L. Edwards who cultivated FNMI relationships carefully and allowed them to develop into the thriving partnerships that exist today.

For her part, Tikivik-Sherman is happy to be in Lethbridge.

“I love it here,” says Tikivik-Sherman, who has lived in Lethbridge for about a dozen years. “But my top place to be would be Iqaluit.”

One of the first lessons Tikivik-Sherman, who wears a sealskin barrette in her hair and kamiks – moccasins – on her feet, shares with the community is the correct usage of Inuk and Inuit, the singular and plural forms of the word for the culturally similar indigenous people living in the Arctic regions of Canada, Greenland, the United States and eastern Siberia.

And there are countless other lessons she would like to pass on to the students and staff at Lethbridge College, many of which she learned from her father.

“My dad was a very good man,” she recalls. “He helped so many people – he helped raise many people, people who were homeless or needed support. He showed us how to be strong for him and for our elders, how to learn how to love people, to be loving, to be caring, to be praying.”

Life in Nunavut was hard, she recalls, especially for young people who faced challenges finding work close to home.

There, Christina Tikivik-Sherman saw education as a way to achieve success. In her work here in southern Alberta, far away from Nunavut, she says she is looking forward to sharing that same message.

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Poetry, pop culture

AND PUCKS:

College and Hurricanes join forces to make education work around ice time, road trips and research paper deadlines.

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onday morning arrives and they shuffle slowly into class, baseball caps on and book bags in hand. They look tired, but are ready to learn the lessons planned by their instructor that day.

Their exhaustion can’t be blamed on the usual weekend escapades of young college students though. For this group of 16 men, Friday and Saturday nights are most often spent on the ice – in Lethbridge and around western Canada and the United States.

The students are members of the Lethbridge Hurricanes, the team that competes in the eastern conference of the Western Hockey League (WHL) and that has played home games at the Enmax Centre since 1987. The WHL provides the young hockey talent with the opportunity to maintain their academic goals while perfecting their skills on the ice; for college-aged players in southern Alberta, that means taking transferable post-secondary courses at Lethbridge College.

For the last five years, the college and Hurricanes have worked together to set class times according to the team’s game,

6 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

Photos by Gregory Thiessen

practice and road trip schedule. The players attend classes together, which creates a closeness and camaraderie that is an important dynamic for a team sport. Instructor Brent Cottle teaches the courses – Introduction to Literature this semester, film studies or composition other semesters.

Dr. Brent Cottle – affectionately known to the boys as ‘Doc’ – has truly been flexible. His commitment has contributed tremendously to our success at the college.”

The partnership truly benefits the players, says Jim Stewart, the Hurricane’s educational advisor.

“It’s very fun,” says Cottle. “It’s also very challenging sometimes. These guys eat, sleep and drink hockey.” That can make it tricky to get the students excited about poetry or short stories – turning the talk from breakaways and blind passes to personification and protagonists – but it’s a challenge Cottle embraces.

“Not only do they get to play hockey at an elite level, but they have the opportunity to take college-level, universitytransferable courses,” he says. “This allows them to keep their academic skills sharp. A lot of players do not make it to the professional level, and obviously, education is a preferable route to a career.”

Cottle enjoys the work.

Former students look back at their time in Cottle’s classroom with fondness.

Cottle agrees.

“It’s really good for the Hurricanes,” says Cottle. “They know that most of the players won’t go on to the NHL. And so they want them to have the educational opportunity. They realize these kids still need an education.”

The partnership is good for the college as well, as it brings students from across Canada and the United States to campus and adds new voices to conversations in the halls and food court. It shows what can happen when community institutions – a hockey team and a post-secondary institution – join together.

Stewart credits the coaches’ commitment to developing student athletes – not just athletes – as a reason for this success. He also praises the college for making the partnership work.

“Each year they make education a priority in the team’s schedule,” says Stewart. “The School of Liberal Arts has really accommodated this venture. They are very willing to be creative and flexible to meet our unique needs. In particular,

I was definitely happy that I was able to take classes while playing in the Western league.”

— Craig Orfino “One the most memorable moments I had was actually when I ended up getting traded halfway through one of the classes I was taking,” says Craig Orfino, who is now studying at the University of Lethbridge. “I talked to the prof and he let me finish the class and do the work while playing in Regina. It just sticks out in my mind, as he took the time to keep in contact with me so I was able to complete the class.”

Orfino concludes: “I was definitely happy that I was able to take classes while playing in the Western league.”

Each year they make education a priority in the team’s schedule.”

— Jim Stewart

Want more Canes news? Watch a video clip and see player stats with

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SCORING Partnership between college and Prairie Baseball Academy sets students up for academic and athletic success.

Baseball is more than a game. College is more than a class.

And the 50 or so young men who are part of Lethbridge’s Prairie Baseball Academy and who attend Lethbridge College get to experience the truth of both of these statements each year. At the end of their time on the field and on campus, they walk away truly prepared for the future – whether that future involves continuing their education or playing professional baseball.

“It’s a great partnership,” says Joey Underwood, a shortstop from Fruitvale, B.C., who finished 2½ years of studies at the college in December and transferred to Tennessee to continue his studies and play baseball. “When you first come to the PBA, you think you’re here to play ball. You learn very, very quickly that school comes first. And you need that to move on, whether you’re playing baseball or going to school.”

The college and academy have been working together since 1995 on a unique partnership that provides Canadian baseball

Photos by Gregory Thiessen

8 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

POSITION: players the chance to prepare to play college baseball in the United States and possibly go on to play professional ball.

“For a Canadian kid to go from high school to a college south of the border was hard to do, so the PBA was started to help these kids bridge from high school to college ball,” says Todd Hubka, who has spent 17 years with the PBA and is in his third year as head coach. “The college jumped on board with us a few years after we started.”

Between 40 and 60 young men take part in the academy each year. While a handful attend the University of Lethbridge, the majority attend the college as regular, full-time students.

Players are recruited from across Canada, with many coming from the Maritime provinces. After finishing up two or three years here, dozens go on to North American colleges and universities to continue their studies and play baseball. More than three dozen former PBA players have gone even farther, spending at least a year playing professional baseball.

The people at the college and the PBA make this program what it is.”

— Travis Steinke

“It’s an easy road for kids planning on playing college ball in the United States,” says assistant coach Ryan MacDonald (Computer Information Technology ‘07). “We explain that they won’t get their four-year degree during their time in the PBA, so why not go to the college, get good grades and get a scholarship. They take General Studies courses and can transfer them into any degree they take later in life.”

On the college’s end, the students receive dedicated academic advising and help planning for a four-year degree. Much of

Check out which PBA players went on to pro careers with

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Learn more about the PBA by visiting www.prairiebaseball.com

that aide comes from Natasha Buis Deering (Community Services and Therapeutic Recreation, General Studies ‘96), the college’s manager of Academic Advising and Recruitment.

The students have to perform academically if they want to play.”

“We encourage them when they’re not doing well in class, give pep talks to the players when they need them and to the parents when they need them, too,” says Buis Deering. “We work as a liaison as they work to transfer to four-year institutions. We work hard to teach the students how to balance school and athletics. We talk about time management, and making a commitment to their education.”

— Natasha Buis Deering

Travis Steinke, a catcher from Red Deer, says the opportunities the college and PBA provide together are second to none.

The PBA, as Underwood explained, places a great emphasis on academics.

“The people at the college and the PBA make this program what it is,” says Steinke. “They’re always on the same page.

They’re always working to make the players better, both on and off the field.”

“The students have to perform academically if they want to play,” Buis Deering says. “I have seen them send home the best players if the academics aren’t there.” MacDonald agrees that “academics come before athletics. We’ve kept kids on the roster because of their good work ethic.”

Buis Deering says she truly enjoys working with the players.

The college benefits by having a more diverse campus. As Hubka explains, “Before PBA, how many Maritime kids came to Lethbridge College?” And the players make the campus a more energetic place, Buis Deering adds. “It certainly helps build on our brand as a world-class institution when it comes to recruiting out-of-province,” she says.

“I see them move here as young boys with more swagger than you could shake a stick at,” says Buis Deering. “I watch them over their two or three years here evolve into incredible young men who take responsibility for their educational endeavours as much as they do their athletic ones. I like to believe that I play a small role in helping them grow up into the amazing young men they become.”

It certainly helps build on our brand as a world-class institution when it comes to recruiting out-of-province.”

Photos by Gregory Thiessen

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— Natasha Buis Deering

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Q&A

Q&A

WITH STEPHANIE WIERL

Wider Horizons asked Stephanie Wierl, Projects Coordinator at Lethbridge College’s Be Fit for Life Centre, to share her thoughts on health, fitness, families and fun. Wierl is one of the organizers of MEND (Mind, Exercise, Nutrition, Do It!), a 10-week program offered with Alberta Health Services that is for children aged five to 13 and their families. It combines lessons in healthy eating, active living and behaviour change.

MEND has been offered two times at the college. Two more sessions – one for children between the ages of five and seven and another for children between the ages of seven and 13 – will be offered this winter from January to March. For more information go to http://bit.ly/ahs-mend. In the meantime, look to Wierl for ideas of how to make fitness – and healthy living – truly fun for people of all ages.

Photos by Gregory Thiessen

Wider Horizons: What are some fun games or activities anyone can try this winter?

STEPHANIE WIERL: Play outdoors.

It’s simple, requires no equipment and you can do it anywhere. Build snow forts, snowmen or play a game of shinny or tag.

WH: What activities can you recommend for summer – some sports or games we might not immediately think of?

SW: It is important to try a variety of activities in a variety of environments to develop physical literacy. Maybe think of trying canoeing or kayaking this summer.

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WH: What is one of the biggest barriers to living a healthy life?

SW: Hectic schedules. Families and students are all running in different directions throughout the day and say they don’t have time for physical activity. Simply schedule it like any other part of your day; then you will be more likely to get out and move. Adults should aim for 30 to 60 minutes of activity per day. Children ages five to 11 should aim for at least 60 minutes per day. This can be in 15 to 20 minute bouts throughout the day and does not have to be done all at once.

WH: What are three changes we can all make to improve our health?

SW: We can move more, adopt healthy eating habits, have fun and laugh!

WH: What about food? Does healthy living mean we’re destined to face plates filled with kale and quinoa every night (nothing against kale and quinoa, of course)?

SW: Not at all. Start off with simple changes like adding an extra serving of fruit and vegetables each day or drinking more water. Small, simple changes over time are more manageable than changing

everything all at once. You will increase your chance for success and be more likely to stick with it with small, simple changes.

WH: What kind of feedback have you heard from the children who have completed the MEND program?

WH: Potato chips, chocolate, ice cream – we all have our favourite treats. Any tips on how to say no to these temptations, or at least how to enjoy them in moderation?

SW: Most children who have participated in our program are shy, introverted or lack self-esteem. They have found that MEND has enabled them to make more friends.

SW: Moderation is the key. Allow yourself those treats from time to time but not on a regular basis. If we deny ourselves those foods, we are more likely to overindulge when we can get our hands on them.

WH: What do their parents say?

SW: Parents have said that their children’s self-confidence has increased.

One child tried out for multiple school teams every year and was very

disappointed when he didn’t make the team, but after being in MEND, not making the team was not such a big deal after all. He found other activities that interested him to keep himself active.

WH: What is your own favourite activity to beat away the winter blues?

SW: Simple…walking. I love getting outside in the crisp air and enjoying the scenery.

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For our students, it really helps their resumes to have true lab experience.”

14 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

– Tom Graham

Photo by Gregory Thiessen

When industry and higher education work together, science and students benefit.

IN AWE OF

ALGAE S

ome of the world’s most pressing problems are being solved right now, on the fourth floor of the state-of-the-art Cousins Building at Lethbridge College, in the most unassuming of places – petri dishes.

Inside those petri dishes are different strains of algae, the efficient organisms that can be grown in ponds, seawater, saltwater, freshwater and even contaminated water. What makes the work on the fourth floor of the Cousins Building so exciting – and one day, perhaps, life-changing – is how efficiently algae do their job. Algae can generate more oil per acre compared to plants like canola and, in theory, algae can produce oil even more efficiently when fed greenhouse gases and sewage.

In short, algae fabricate their useful fuels with incredible efficiency, while cleaning up other environmental problems at the same time.

It’s a recipe for success being explored by scientists and biotechnology companies around the world. And one aspect of the research is being done here at Lethbridge College, thanks to the partnership between biology instructor Tom Graham and his students and Lethbridge-based Phytocentric Biotech Inc. The end goal of their research – which is one small section of the algae research puzzle – is to enhance and even breed new strains of algae that will allow for the most efficient production of oil.

Ultimately, Phytocentric would like to license out its algae to algae farmers in the industry. In the next year or so, according to Phytocentric President and CEO Trevor MacMillan, the college and company should be well on their way to doing that.

Eventually, the oil produced by these strains of algae will be used in the “nutraceutical” industry, providing the important omega-three fatty acids and other antioxidants to the makers of supplements and health food products.

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“I really think there is a lot of potential in algae’s application to solving some of the world’s problems,” says MacMillan.

“Research on algae addresses issues of waste management, sequestering carbon dioxide emissions and providing a source of food and fuel for the world.”

Graham, who has been a full-time instructor at the college since 2007, is delighted to be a part of the process – and especially pleased that students can play a role in this applied research project.

“For our students,” says Graham, “it really helps their resumes to have true lab experience.”

This project provides an environment where students are able to learn some of the skills that are used in the industry today”

– Trevor MacMillan

The college also involves third- and fourth-year students from the University of Lethbridge, who in turn work with full-time researchers. All of the students benefit from working with Graham, MacMillan, and the full-time researcher working on the job, Farkhanda Khowaja.

“This project provides an environment where students are able to learn some of the skills that are used in the industry

16 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

It provides a real-world kind of work environment for the students to learn in.”

– Trevor MacMillan

today,” says MacMillan. “It provides a real-world kind of work environment for the students to learn in.”

The work on algae is just one applied research project Graham juggles in his lab, which he calls “the biggest playground you’ll ever find.” He is also working with Hyperion Research Limited on research into Giardia, one of the worst parasites found in water supplies in North America, and is in the midst of negotiating other proposals involving biofuels and biodiesel research with Kyoto Fuels Inc. Maintaining an active research agenda is an essential part of Graham’s work as a teacher.

“If I’m going to be a good biotech instructor,” he explains, “I’d better be able to walk the walk.”

MacMillan says he is pleased to be able to partner with Graham and the college.

“It really has been amazing,” says MacMillan. “Without the college’s and Tom’s and the students’ help, we really wouldn’t be where we are today.”

Photo by Gregory Thiessen

Living + Laughing + loving=

Their Recipe

for Success Culinary colleagues and companions for more than 20 years on what makes their partnership thrive at work, at home and on the road.

The first thing you notice when Betty van der Lee and Allen

Clampitt are together is how much they laugh. Whether they are talking about their love for winter camping or what’s for dinner, the two Lethbridge College culinary colleagues and long-time companions seem to live their lives proving Charlie Chaplin’s argument that “a day without laughter is a day wasted.”

“We just enjoy everything the same way, we’re on the same wavelength,” says van der Lee, who has worked at the college since 1989 and is now the dining room supervisor. “There are three ‘Ls’ in our life – to live, to love and to laugh.”

Their partnership of more than 20 years works, she says, “because he makes me laugh. He keeps me young.”

They have worked side by side for decades, even sharing an office for three years, although they rarely work or teach together. Many culinary students are surprised to learn, at the end of their programs, that the two share four children and six grandchildren, as well as a love for camping that has them on the road about 100 nights a year.

Van der Lee and Clampitt say that one secret to their successful relationship is their ability to leave work at work – although van der Lee says she is more than happy to concede the cooking duties at home to Clampitt, a chef.

Clampitt, who has been teaching in the culinary program since 1986, adds with a laugh that at home, “I know who is boss.

There is no doubt about that – and that’s exactly why it works.”

17

Austrian Chefs in

Lethbridge Kitchens

By Megan Shapka

T he M o c ha C a b a n a di n i n g ro o m is full o f g ues ts w a itin g f o r an out-o f -c o un t r y di n i n g e xp e rien c e in their o w n b a c ky a rd. I n t he k i tc hen, a n A us t r i a n c he f w o rks a lo n g s ide the executiv e c he f, inf u sing he r E ur o p e a n t e chn iq ues w ith tho s e s he’s lea rn in g in C ana da w hi l e o n a n e x c ha n g e p ro g ra m a t Lethbridg e C ol l ege. A s M o c ha C a b a n a ’s p a tro n s en jo y their m ea ls , the stu d en t di n e s o n t he i n va lua b le lea rn in g exp erien ce this o n g o i n g p artn ers hip p ro v ides .

18 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

Photos by Rob Olson and Rod Leland

I

n June, four culinary students from a cooking school in Austria came to Lethbridge College to experience Canadian cooking techniques and culture. Through the college’s exchange, Austrian students Julia Bauer, Marina Felder, Jasmin Hürland and Michelle Künsler worked at Mocha Cabana, Firestone, Earl’s, Lethbridge Lodge and the Cheesecake Café. In these settings they practiced new techniques and experienced local cuisines.

Martina Böck, service instructor at Tourismusschulen Semmering, accompanied her students on a trip that she says led to remarkable growth for the students in their workplaces.

“The chefs there are very confident with the students’ work,” Böck says. ”They are part of a team, they accept the roles, they have fun during their exercises and the result, especially in the Mocha Cabana team, is brilliant.”

In addition to studying Canadian foods, Mocha Cabana gave the students the opportunity to share their culinary delights with Lethbridge. For three weeks, the Wednesday night feature dish was Austrian and designed by one of the students (see page 22 of this issue for the Sacher Torte recipe the students prepared). Böck says the students benefitted greatly by being able to share their cuisine with Canadian diners.

Chef Mark Dieser, instructor at Lethbridge College, had travelled to Semmering last year with Lethbridge College

When you go work with other chefs, you learn so much.”

— Mark Dieser 19

We really try hard to support the community because that’s who’s supporting us.”

— Karen Ohno

students as part of the exchange program (see the Fall 2011 issue of Wider Horizons to read about the Lethbridge students’ experiences in Europe). He says these exchange opportunities are invaluable for the students, the instructors and the colleges in both countries. The opportunity to make connections in other parts of the world expands a chef’s culinary horizons.

“When you go work with other chefs, you learn so much,” Dieser says. “When we come back we look at our systems and our places and say you know we could do this differently or we’re doing this really well and we should keep doing this and maybe refine it.”

Karen Ohno, owner of Mocha Cabana, says she was thrilled when Lethbridge College asked her restaurant to participate in the exchange.

20 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

“We really try hard to support the community because that’s who’s supporting us,” she says. “We hire exclusively from the college culinary program.”

Chef Marc Gedrasik (Culinary 2006), executive chef at Mocha Cabana, showed the Austrian students cooking techniques used in Canada, many of which are quite different from the techniques they used at home. In Canada, he explains, restaurants typically focus on preparing individual plates and the kitchen staff works on the line where each team member has a specific job. In Austria, food preparation happens in a more family-style manner and the staff in the kitchen work on multiple tasks.

Gedrasik says he probably learned just as much from the Austrian students as they did from him. That said, he was eager for the students to return to Austria with a technique that is

very important to him and Mocha Cabana – the slow food movement and using local suppliers.

Böck says that in addition to valuable culinary experiences, her students were exposed to beneficial social and cultural experiences.

“In our time, you never know in advance where you will end up,” she says. “So collecting experience and specific knowledge in foreign countries is a door opener for further applications.”

Dieser says Lethbridge College has made connections for future exchanges with Austria, Sweden and Italy. Two student chefs are already set to go to Semmering in the spring of 2013. Canada’s cooking culture is young and there are many techniques Canadian chefs can learn from chefs in countries with long cooking traditions.

Bauer, Felder, Hürland and Künsler are already talking about returning to Canada to enjoy more cooking and cultural experiences, including possibly completing practicum hours and working for a summer in Banff. In the meantime, they’re back in Austria sharing Canadian recipes, including their new favourite dish – cheesecake.

In our time, you never know in advance where you will end up.”

— Martina Böck

21

From our kitchens

Recipe by Chef Charles Parker + Chef Stephen Klassen

Sacher Torte T

o bring a taste of Vienna into your kitchen and onto your table, try this recipe for Austria’s most famous dessert – Sacher Torte. The original recipe dates to 1832, when Austrian Prince Wenzel von Metternich asked his personal chef to make a memorable dessert for some very important guests. But the head chef was sick that day – and so it fell to a 16-year-old apprentice cook, Franz Sacher, to come up with a cake using the ingredients he had on hand. The result, which can be found on almost every menu in Austria, is this dense layer cake with apricot filling and a smooth, dark chocolate icing. Add a bit

of whipped cream and a fresh cup of coffee and you’ll suddenly start humming the Viennese Waltz.

When preparing this and other recipes, Lethbridge College’s chefs recommend baking and cooking using weights, not volume (after all, a cup of marshmallows is not the same weight as a cup of packed brown sugar). Introducing a scale into your kitchen is a small change in the way you cook that can make a big difference in the outcome. Why not give it a try on this sumptuous cake?

Ingredients For the cake Butter . . . . . . . . . .

Sugar . . . . . . . . . . .

Dark baking chocolate . .

Egg yolks. . . . . . . . .

Vanilla . . . . . . . . . . .

Egg whites. . . . . . . . .

Salt . . . . . . . . . . . . .

120g or ½ cup 120g or ½ cup 150g or 5½ squares 120g or about 6 medium eggs 1 teaspoon 180g or about 6 medium eggs pinch

22 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

Sugar . . . . . . . . . . . 100g or ½ cup minus four tsps Sifted cake flour . . . . . 120g or 1 cup Apricot jam. . . . . . . . 150ml or about 2/3 cup For the icing (ganache) Bittersweet chocolate. . 330g or 12 squares (about 2 ½ cups) Heavy cream. . . . . . . 250g or 1 cup

Photo by Jonathan Ruzek

Method 1. Preheat oven to 325F or 165C. 2. Line the bottom of a round pan with parchment paper.

3. Melt the chocolate. You can either place the chocolate in a small pan placed into a larger pan of boiling water (a Bain Marie, or hot water bath), or if using the microwave, heat in 10-second intervals to make sure it doesn’t burn.

4. Cream together the butter and sugar. Add the melted chocolate. Add the egg yolks and vanilla.

5. In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites with the salt.

Add the sugar and whip to soft peaks.

6. Fold the egg whites into the batter alternatively with the sifted flour. Be careful to not overstir.

7. Pour into pan. Bake for 45-60 minutes.

Once it is completely cooked, remove the cake from the oven and let it cool.

1. Next, split the cake into two layers.

2. Warm the jam. Spread the jam on top of one of the layers.

3. Sandwich the layers together. Cool until it is set.

You can even put the cake in the refrigerator while you prepare the icing.

Once it is completely cooled, prepare the icing (ganache).

1. Chop the chocolate into small pieces. Set aside in a stainless steel or glass bowl. Set up a Bain Marie (hot water bath).

2. Bring the cream just to a boil (scald). You can do this either by placing your pot in the Bain Marie, or by placing your pot directly on a burner and taking extra care to not let it burn. Once the cream is just about to boil, remove it from the stove and add it to the bowl of chopped chocolate.

3. Place the bowl over the Bain Marie and stir until completely melted and glossy.

4. Pour over the chilled cake and chill until set. Note that this will not be like regular icing – it is smooth, shiny, delicate and will melt in your mouth.

Watch chef Stephen Klassen make this treat with

23

Campus in season

24 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

The stark winter sky and wind-swept prairie provide a dramatic contrast to the hustle and bustle of the classrooms and corridors this time of year.

Photo by Gregory Thiessen

25

Office intrigue

Carbon fibre and aluminium range poles for accurate measuring

Prisms to reflect infrared light beams

Lethbridge College “One Book”: I Am the Messenger

Piece of driftwood that has grown around a rock -- one of Pinches’ favourite items in his office

26 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

Tribrachs to connect the prisms to the tripods

Jim Pinches feels right at home in his “concrete bunker” surrounded by the tools of his trade. After 27 years in the survey industry, Jim joined the School of Engineering Technologies in 2004 and works with all three engineering programs offered at the college. In his role as lab technologist and casual instructor, Jim works with 20 to 50 students daily in the classroom, in the field or at the equipment sign-out counter. This “office” is filled with the great gear and gadgets that help engineers and surveyors get the job done.

jim.pinches@lethbridgecollege.ca

Photo by Rob Olson

WD-40 – the fixer of many problems

Rags to wipe off wet equipment

Favourite coffee cup

Survey field book for recording notes – while many measurements are taken electronically, it helps to have a written record, too

Electronic data collectors – hooked up to GPS to collect measurements and information

Tripods

Learn more about Geomatics Engineering with

27

My perspective

Wider Horizons asked:

REBECCA

Photo by Gregory Thiessen

28 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

Rebecca Mercer earned her Multimedia Production diploma in 2005. Originally from North Battleford, Sask., she spent four months working as a media specialist at the college and started working fulltime in that same position a year later.

“I was one of the 11 students from the Multimedia Production program who applied to and was accepted into the media specialist practicum position.

We were all located in one room and this made our area very creative and collaborative and at times very crazy.

At the end of the practicum, the college decided that it would like to keep many of us in a project position to continue the work we were doing. This required that I reapply and go through the interview process again. When the project timeline was over, full-time positions opened up

and, once again, I applied and had another interview and was welcomed into the new position.

“Being able to learn and grow in a safe environment is the key to a good practicum experience. It really is a good time to explore who you are as an employee and learn what you can about working with others. Also, having people more experienced surrounding you gives you a chance to pick up on some new skills and make connections.

“I had a great time doing my practicum at Lethbridge College. I used to be a very shy person but the atmosphere allowed me to really come out of my shell. Even though the practicum is done and I’m employed full time as a media specialist, I’ve never stopped learning.”

Max Koshney earned his diploma in Computer Information Technology (CIT) in 2011. The Lethbridge native worked at Tangle Media for his practicum experience and was hired full-time after convocation.

“At Tangle we do primarily web application development – meaning everything from small portfolio websites to full online business automation systems. I had never programmed in PHP (the main language we utilize) when I started my practicum, so it was a bit of a steep learning curve. I elected to do my final CIT project in PHP to help slingshot the learning process and haven’t looked back.

“After spending my practicum learning the ins-and-outs of Tangle Media’s

Kayla Nash earned a degree in Fashion Design and Marketing in 2010 and in Communication Arts-Print Journalism in 2012. She came to the college from North Battleford, Sask., and spent both of her practicums working in different roles for Lethbridge Living magazine, where she now is employed full-time as an editorial assistant.

“When it came time to find our practicum hosts during the second year of the Fashion Design and Marketing program, I really had no idea where I was going to go. Luckily, Lethbridge Living features Collide-O-Scope, the year-end fashion show put on by the School of Media and Design, in its March-April issue each year.

That photo shoot was my first practicum job, and that was the first time I met Jenn Schmidt-Rempel, the editor. After that day, I went in to the office about once

MAX development process and programming tools, I transitioned directly into a paid position. My practicum offered me an extended training period and helped to leverage myself into a position where I would be a very effective full-time employee – the transition was quite easy after my 200 hours. Right from the getgo with Tangle Media I was working on real projects for real clients. This helped me understand and learn the process of working on live code as well as handling client relations.

“The college gave me a great set of tools and a base level of knowledge needed to get my foot in the door, but my practicum showed me how it all comes together in a business sense – in the real world.”

Photo by Rob Olson

or twice a week and did little odd jobs for them.

KAYLA

“When it came time to apply for a practicum my second year in Print Journalism, it was easy. This time around, I was able to do much more. Jenn had me writing for the magazine and online, editing, proofing, blogging, basically anything a regular employee would do.

“For a good practicum experience I think it’s really important to make sure your practicum placement is one that you want, not one that is just available. I went through two different programs at the college that required practicum hours and saw some of my peers end up with a practicum host they didn’t really want.

Also ask lots and lots of questions. It’s how you learn. And don’t be afraid to ask to try something you want to try.”

Photo by Rob Olson

29

NEED GROUNDING IN GRAMMAR?

There

Their

They’re

is an app for that.

GRAMMARAMA 30 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

Photo by Rob Olson

Grant from Lethbridge College’s Applied Research office creates a partnership among experts in clear communication and computer code.

Lethbridge College English and writing instructor Lance

Semak has recently joined forces with two computer scientists to create smartphone applications for the classroom.

The first mission of Semak, Ben Burnett and Chris Sanden is to make the learning of grammar less dry, more likely to stick, and maybe, just maybe, more fun.

The outcome of this effort is an application called Grammarama. Unlike most grammar apps, which offer only multiple choice questions and answers, this app is interactive and allows students to slide and click their way to understanding. Students in Semak’s English 150 class last fall – a university- level writing course – tested the prototype of the Grammarama app. In addition to their textbook readings and paper assignments, Semak asked them to drag and drop phrases, clauses and punctuation to form proper sentences.

“It’s been a wonderful experience from start to finish,” says Semak. “We learned a lot during the development process, and the students were enthusiastic about the application.

They responded in numbers we never would have expected.

Almost all of them have smartphones and are eager to use them for learning.”

Semak, who has worked at the college since 2007, created this southern Alberta partnership with a grant from the college’s Applied Research office. He joined forces with two master’s graduates working at the University of Lethbridge to create a business – Windy Software – that has linked the love of clear communication with the love of code. All last summer, Semak turned his grammar lectures into smartphone content, and his partners, Sanden and Burnett, took care of the technology.

“

Along the way, they brought on two more employees to help, Tarikul Sabbir and Tom Forbis.

The three partners agree that while exploring new technologies and building quality software were important aspects of the project, it was the ability to work with friends that made the experience truly memorable.

“Working closely with a small group of friends as well as highly skilled and creative people has been one of the best parts of the project,” says Burnett.

Creating an application that is both useful and innovative also brought them satisfaction.

“I was initially drawn to the idea of creating a product that could be used to help students learn outside of the classroom,” Sanden says. “Developing a platform for students to learn in an interactive setting using new technology was an exciting opportunity.”

The other partners agree.

“The technology was undeniably a draw, but most rewarding was working on something that people would actually use,” says Burnett. “The software is something that may have an appreciable and positive effect on its users.”

Once the bugs are worked out, Semak and his partners would like to see Grammarama used college-wide, perhaps as early as next fall. And they’d like their partnership to keep producing educational software. The next mission? It just may be another app – perhaps essay writing next time around.

The technology was undeniably a draw, but most rewarding was working on something that people would actually use.”

— Ben Burnett

31 31

Partners IN

PRINT:

Western Canadian Game Warden magazine relies on experience, expertise of Lethbridge College alumni, faculty and students.

degree with honours in 2005, uses the lessons learned in the classrooms – and on fieldtrips – every day in his work as a conservation officer and editor of Western Canadian Game Warden magazine.

S

ome of the best times Lindsey Leko remembers from his days as a student in Lethbridge College’s Environmental Science program were the field trips – even if it meant prying himself out of bed at three in the morning in the middle of a blizzard to watch a sharptailed and sage grouse dancing ground while in the midst of a fisheries field trip to the Crowsnest Pass.

It was during these trips that Leko says he really grew up.

“My priorities became clearer,” he says, “and I realized that this education was going to be the foundation of my career.”

He was right. Leko, who received his Renewable Resource Management diploma in 1993 and his Bachelor of Applied Conservation Enforcement

32 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

Leko works closely with another Lethbridge College alumnus, Jeremy Lindsay, in producing the magazine, which is distributed three times a year to 16,000 conservation officers, government officials and outdoor enthusiasts across Canada and the United States. Among their contributors are Lethbridge College instructor Allan Orr and, from time to time, current and former Lethbridge College students.

Orr writes a column called “Violation Scene Investigation” in each issue, which addresses the latest topics in field forensics.

“I have been honoured with the opportunity to contribute to the success of this magazine since its inception,” says Orr. “It is a great way for me to stay current with the field and to provide both the public and the conservation law agencies with some information that they may not otherwise have access to. The college benefits through exposure to a targeted audience and the magazine benefits by having access to information not easily gained otherwise.

“It’s a great partnership.”

The mission of the magazine is to educate and inform the public and its supporters about the work that is done by game wardens and conservation officers in western Canada.

Society has to understand and appreciate the valuable resources that we have.”

— Lindsey Leko

“Society has to understand and appreciate the valuable resources that we have,” explains Leko, “and just how vulnerable they are to outside influences and abuse.”

Leko, who has worked as a conservation officer since 1993 and has been editing game warden magazines since 2002, credits college courses such as forest fire management, evidence and court procedures, criminalistics, and more with helping to prepare him for what he would find in the field.

“I went to my first predation complaint and was able to identify characteristics of the predator that I had learned in class,” he explains. “I felt comfortable when I entered a court room for the first time as an officer because I had some courtroom experience in class.”

It was a technical writing class he was required to take that still helps him in his work as editor in the day-to-day running of the magazine.

“One of the major issues I see today with officers and graduates is their inability to write properly,” says Leko. “Sometimes I just want to tell them to tell the story – just like you would be telling it to a friend.”

Telling good stories is one of the best parts of their work. Working with a fellow Lethbridge College grad is also a pleasure, the partners agree.

To read Western Canadian Game Warden online, go to www.westerncanadiangamewarden.com.

33

CYC

Partnerships key to effective Child and Youth Care recruitment.

By Jane Harris-Zsovan

34 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

L ocal employers who are a part of Lethbridge College’s Child and Youth Care Advisory Committee came to a meeting last year with a problem.

They didn’t have enough men, immigrants or First Nations, Métis and Inuit people working in the field. So they asked if the college could help.

The college said yes – and this long-time partnership between industry and the college resulted in a new initiative to recruit more men, immigrants and FNMI students into the Child and Youth Care program and ultimately into waiting jobs.

“Locally and more broadly, throughout the province of Alberta, there are very significant shortages,” says Ron Solinski, a Child and Youth Care (CYC) instructor at Lethbridge College.

Attracting a broader pool of workers can be a challenge though. “Men are successful in this career, but I think that, in some cases, people may misunderstand the work we do,” Solinski adds. “In some cases, they may be confusing Child and Youth Care with early childhood education. What we do is very similar to social work – we work with children, youth and families.”

Graduates of Lethbridge College’s CYC program find a ready supply of jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities after finishing their studies, most often in residential care, family support, child protection, and as school youth and child care workers. Graduates may also complete degrees through partnerships with Alberta and British Columbia universities and Griffith University in Australia. The college signed an agreement with the University of Lethbridge just last fall to allow CYC students to take their diplomas and transfer easily into the university’s Addictions Counseling degree program.

To reach out to a more diverse group of students, Solinski and another member of the committee, Mark Weninger, Program Surpervisor, Sifton Family and Youth Services, worked with the college’s FNMI Manager, Robin Little Bear, to secure support for the new recruitment policy from the Aboriginal Council of Lethbridge. Lonnie Slezina (Child and Youth

For more information about the Child and Youth Care program, go to www.lethbridgecollege.ca/cyc

Care ‘90), Chief Executive Officer, Child and Family Services Authority, Southwest Alberta, also threw her support behind the new policy.

Slezina says that industry partners are looking for employees with diverse backgrounds to work with clients who come from a wide variety of places and experiences.

“Aboriginal people in the field might be better able to connect with some clients,” says Slezina. “Similarly, males might be able to speak more effectively to a male parent.

And our immigrant population is also growing,” and a CYC practitioner with experience in immigration might be the most persuasive person to help.

The demand for trained child and youth care practitioners is great – and the college is shifting its recruiting efforts to reflect this reality.

“Child and Youth Care is a highly marketable educationto-employment program,” says Natasha Buis Deering (Community Services and Therapeutic Recreation, General Studies ‘96), the college’s manager of Academic Advising. ”We’re seeing a lot of opportunities to leverage the demand – especially for men, immigrants and FNMI students – in our recruitment.”

We’re seeing a lot of opportunities to leverage the demand – especially for men, immigrants and FNMI students.”

– Natasha Buis Deering 35

BARRIER-

I loved the hands-on aspect of the program. We had the opportunity to do two separate fieldwork placements in facilities where therapeutic recreation is used.”

— M e g a n Or r

36 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

Photo by Rob Olson

fun

-FREE

Recreation therapists help seniors access and

adapt activities to achieve health and wellness.

Some days, Megan Orr gets paid to play cards.

Other days, going to work means going to garden.

And then there are the days that she earns her paycheque through pet therapy, or shuffleboard, or a host of other activities designed to help senior citizens maintain or improve their cognitive, social, physical or emotional abilities.

It’s all part of her work as a recreation therapist who has specialized in gerontology, which is the study of the social, psychological and biological aspects of aging. Orr earned a two-year diploma in May 2012 from the college, the only place in Canada to offer a diploma in Therapeutic Recreation – Gerontology.

“It is extremely important for recreation therapy to be a part of the community,” explains Orr, who has been working since her graduation at Blue Sky/Golden Acres Lodge as the full-time activity coordinator. “Therapeutic recreation helps people who are in facilities or in their own homes continue doing what they enjoy by removing barriers and modifying activities to suit their abilities.”

Trained practitioners are in high demand, says Kathie Ervin (Recreation and Leisure Services ‘90), the program’s advisor and an instructor at the college. That demand is only expected to grow as the baby boomer generation continues to age.

“Our program is well-known nationally,” says Ervin. “Students come across Canada to study at the college. One of the benefits the program offers is our partnerships – we have personal, professional and educational relationships that make the student experience meaningful. Even our relationships with our provincial and national organizations come back to benefit the students by providing networking and employment opportunities, giving access to experts in the field and being kept informed on the profession of therapeutic recreation as it continues to evolve rapidly.”

One of the partnerships the program enjoys is with Green Haven Garden Centre. Students took a field trip there last fall to learn the basics of gardening so that later, in their practicums and in their work, they could support and assist senior citizens they may be working with who love this pastime. This partnership allows for real hands-on learning that could not be provided in a classroom setting.

“I loved the hands-on aspect of the program,” says Orr. In addition to field trips like the one to Green Haven, “we had the opportunity to do two separate fieldwork placements in facilities where therapeutic recreation is used. To me, those two fieldwork placements were the best experience a student could gain. It really showed us what the ‘real world’ is like and how to apply our knowledge of therapeutic recreation into reallife situations.”

The next step for the college is to build partnerships with four-year degree universities where students can continue their education if they desire. The college is working closely with the University of Lethbridge to explore new opportunities that might exist between the two institutions. Currently the Therapeutic Recreation – Gerontology program at the college has four transfer agreements in place with recreation specific degree programs at Douglas College in British Columbia, the University of Regina, Dalhousie University in Halifax and the University of Waterloo.

These partnerships will become more and more important as the demand for workers in this profession increases – which it does each year.

“We know research indicates that active living promotes physical, cognitive, social and emotional health and wellness throughout the lifespan,” says Ervin. “Age, disease or disability no longer needs to be a barrier to a healthy, active leisure lifestyle. The program is about ‘living versus existing’ and teaches recreation and leisure with a purpose to achieve health and wellness.”

37

Partnership WINTER 2013 WIDER HORIZONS The stories and photos in this issue of Wider Horizons highlight just a few of the college’s ongoing partnerships, and we hope you’ve enjoyed reading about them.

Roundup

The list below contains a few more examples of great partnerships at the college – but it is by no means exhaustive. Future issues of Wider Horizons are sure to share new partnership stories, so if you’d like to pass along details about a Lethbridge College partnership you are proud of, just email us at WHMagazine@lethbridgecollege.ca. In the meantime, here is a glimpse at some other Lethbridge College relationships that are thriving.

Students graduating from Lethbridge College can transfer and receive credit or advanced standing at these partner institutions: Griffith University in Australia (Institutional); Robert Gordon University in Scotland (Business Administration); Montana State University (Engineering); and Minot State University in North Dakota.

In addition, specialized training and education partnerships are available with the School Foundation of Nippon Institute of Technology and Kansai Gaidai University.

General Studies partnered with the Peigan Board of Education to offer four General Studies courses last fall in Brocket. This partnership began in the fall 2010 semester, and the college is eager to congratulate the first General Studies grads from the Peigan Board of Education Academy this year.

38 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

Lethbridge College has many partnerships with institutions across the world giving students and staff access to many international opportunities.

College students can attend a partner institution for one or two semesters over the duration of their program at Kajaani Polytechnic in Finland (Business Administration); University of Burgundy in France (Business Administration); Tourismusschulen Semmering in Austria (Culinary Careers) or Konkuk University in South Korea.

The college has partnered with the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Branch for more than a dozen years. This is a provincial law enforcement agency appointed under the office of the Solicitor General. The college’s role is to deliver their recruit training every summer. It goes beyond simply delivering training; the CVEB recognizes and acknowledges the college’s contribution to its training efforts and is very genuine in its appreciation for the work the college does. In turn, CVEB has always hired many of its officers from the college’s Criminal Justice program and has also provided practicum and summer job placements for students in the program.

A final, unique aspect of the program is that the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement certificate program (recognized by the college and AEAE) is the first law enforcement recruit training program in North America to be recognized as a post-secondary credential.

Partnerships can be found in every part of Lethbridge College – with the community, with industry, with other educational institutions, with government, with volunteer organizations and beyond.

The college’s Educational Enhancement Team partners in countless ways with Lethbridge College staff, helping to make technological tools accessible and effective in the workplace, and especially in the classroom. The team works with staff to develop curriculum, make the most of educational technology, integrate instructional technology, help assess prior learning experiences of students, offer professional development, deliver instructor certification programs, provide audio-visual support, and support instructors involved in flexible (online) learning classes. Some of the courses provided this semester for instructors include instructional skills workshops, introduction to teaching classes, course design workshops, an orientation to facilitating online learning, and an analysis of teaching and learning.

Instructors in the college’s FASD Education program have created a community of urban and rural partners, caregivers, research institutions and service providers who live and work with those with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. The online community gives those in the field the opportunity to network and receive support from others facing the same challenges around the world. The virtual community can be accessed at http://www.fasdcommunity.ca/.

The college has a 17-yearold partnership with the NIT Foundation in Japan. This involves students coming from Japan to Lethbridge to complete a year of English training in Blairmore, and then coming to the main campus to complete their General Studies diploma.

The Early Childhood Education program is part of a community-wide initiative where Lethbridge College students go out into rural communities around Lethbridge and offer parent education and child activities. This is a three-way partnership with the college, local family and child service agencies, and the Parent Preschool Program board; it has been the source of high quality preschool education in rural communities in southwestern Alberta for years. The Parent Preschool Program operates with college ECE students and staff working in seven rural locations – Coaldale, Taber, Coalhurst, Magrath, Picture Butte, Nobleford and Fort Macleod. Relationships made with those providing community services, as well as connections made through practicum experience, benefit students during and beyond their time at the college.

39

Thank you

TO ALL 2011-12

Lethbridge College donors.

539370 Alberta Ltd. 851622 Alberta Ltd. 1006954 Alberta Corporation 1097775 Alberta Ltd. 1359935 Alberta Ltd. Lorne Abells ACAMP Access to the Future Tom and Deb Ackerman Advance Glass and Aluminum Advanced Water Technologies Inc. Advantage Financial Services AFP Southern Alberta Ag-Seis Management Ltd. Airtech Heating and Air Conditioning Ltd. Alberta Agriculture and Rural Dev. Wheat Board Monies Alberta Association of Colleges and Technical Institutions Alberta Auto Recycling and Dismantling Association Alberta Blue Cross Alberta Branch, Canadian Seed Growers Association Alberta Conservation Association Alberta Culture and Community Spirit Alberta Irrigation Projects Association Alberta Land Surveyors’ Association Alberta Milk Alberta Ready Mixed Concrete Association Alberta Society of Surveying and Mapping Technologies Alberta Therapeutic Recreation Association Alberta Workplace Solutions Inc. Alcoa Foundation Don Allen Alpenland Ski and Sports AltaLink Management Ltd. Alta Aluminum Inc. Sally and Peter Alexander Anca Enterprises Inc. Cheryl Andres Alan Andron Anthony Matlashewski Charitable Foundation Armstrong Mitchell Lawyers John and Wendy Arnold Astro Insurance 1000 Inc. Asuchak and Day Optometry ATB Financial ATCO Gas AUPE Local 71 Chapter 001 Aurora Dental Clinic - Dr. Ricardo Molano Lottie Austin Avison Young Lethbridge Inc. Avonlea Master Builder Christopher and Jen Babits Back in Balance Wellness Centre Kyle Baines Penny Balfour Balog Auction Services Inc.

Melanie Barbero Scott and Dianne Barton Tom Batchelor Kenneth and Lorna Bateman Bateman Bluekens Wealth Management Professionals Rob Bauer BCT Structures BDO Dunwoody LLP Ben and Donna Walter Farms Ltd. Mike and Diane Bennett Beta Sigma Phi City Council BFC Management Ltd R and L Bieganek Nancy Biggers* Black Velvet Distilling Company Rick and Liane Blakeley Blood Tribe Administration Blood Tribe Employment and Training Blood Tribe Irrigation Management Garth and Julia Bluekens BMO Bank of Montreal Dale and Kerri Bobinec George and Kim Bohner Booster Juice Ray and Tina Bonetti Deb Bosch-Friedrick Botting and Associates Alberta Ltd. Melissa Bourret Craig Braden Janice Braden Brandon Area Community Foundation BrettYoung Seeds Bridge City Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ltd. Geraldine and Andrew Bronson Brown Okamura and Associates Ltd. Emma Bulmer Dustin Bunney Ron Bunton Paul Burke Bryn Watson Professional Corp.

Campbell Associates Ltd. Nancy Campbell CanadaHelps.org Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers Canadian Home Builders Association - Lethbridge Region Canadian National Canadian Tire Lethbridge North Canadian Tire Lethbridge South Laura and Andy Carlson* Mrs. Castelli Central Crane Services Ltd. Chapman Land and Environmental Services Inc. Charlton and Hill Ltd. Victoria Chester Child Care Directors Association of South Western Alberta Child and Youth Care Association of Alberta Dennis and Sylvia Chinner Chinook Respiratory Care

40 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

CIBC Private Investment Counsel Chinook Country Bison Producers Both Chol Don and Cathy Clark Clear Sky Radio Inc. Clockbuilder Consulting Inc. Coca-Cola Bottling Company Coca-Cola Refreshments Canada Company Coco Pazzo Italian Café College Ford Lincoln Sales Ltd. Collide-O-Scope Communications Group Lethbridge Dawna Coslovi Shannon Cosovan Brent Cottle Country 95/B 93 FM County of Lethbridge #26 Sharie Cousins and Collin Markle* Cox Financial Group Ltd. CTLI/College and University Preparation Jean Culler Cummins Western Canada D and D Machine Works Ltd. D.A. Building Systems Ltd. D.A. Electric Ltd. D. L. Mulroy Professional Corporation Susan Dakin Kerry and Kathy Dalton Darka’S Merle Norman Boutique Davidson and Williams LLP Bart and Cynthia Davies Davies Park and Associates (Calgary) Inc. Davis GMC Buick Ltd. Davis LLP Dawson Wallace Construction Ltd. Natasha and Jason Deering* Danny and Lori Degenstein Degenstein Trucking Co. Phyllis Day Chief Didsbury Vet Services Doeve’s Dairy Ltd. Christine Doke Gordon Dolph Douglas L. Myhre Professional Corp.

Douglas F. Stroh Professional Corporation Dr. David P. Stroud Professional Corporation Dr. Jose A Lopez Inc. Dr. Perry Kurz Orthodontist Prof. Corp.

Draffin’s Pharmasave Terry Dreaddy Ducks Unlimited Vincent Duckworth and Christine Fraser Keith Dudley Marc and Sandra Dufresne Clint Dunford and Gwen Green Ellen Dungen Randy and Louise Dunlop Dunlop Ford Sales Ltd. Dunlop Western Star Truck Centre Ltd. Dwayne Graham Steven Dyck and Callie Craven

Dynasty Keith and Ellie Dys Eagle Commodities Janine Ecklund and Scott Sakatch* Tracy Edwards and Les Ostrowski Element Volleyball Darrell and Gail Ell* Paul and Kelly Elser* Enercon Water Treatment Ltd. The Engineering Technology Scholarship Foundation Enviro Watch Products Ltd. E.R. Wilde Professional Corporation Esthetics by Amy Carolyn Ethier Evcon Farm Equipment Ltd. Evergreen Driving Range Inc. Exlco Family Ties Association* Family Ties Social Club Ron Farrell Sharlene Farrell Fatburger Donald Fellger Ferrari Westwood Babits Architects Sharon Ferrari Donna Fetting Jim and Myrna Fleming Shirley Fleming Lisa Florendine Steven Florendine D’Arcy and Joan Foder Barry Foster Foster and Sons Jewellers Ltd. Derek Fraser Freddies Paint Sheila French Jane Friesen and Randy Samuel Gary W Fong Professional Corporation Galko Homes Ltd. Wayne Gallant Bruce and Shanaley Galts Gas King Oil Co. Ltd. G.E. Jong Professional Corporation Geldart Consulting Group Inc. Gentlemen II Investments Ltd. Gentlemen Three Menswear Gerald and Diana Geremia Herbert and Lois Gerwing John and Laura Getkate Anup Ghai Anne Gillin Edith Gillis Elio and Myrna Girardi* Robin Goates Gold and Gold Productions Green Acres Foundation Greengate Power Corporation Grenville Management and Printing Blaine and Connie Gross* Karen Gunn H-5 Holdings Ltd. H and R Transport Ltd. Haig Clinic

Cory Halischuk Kyle Halischuk Bill and Lisa Halma Judy Hammerstedt* Harco Developments Inc. Karen Harker Ruth Hart Budd Paul Hartley Ashley Harvie Nick Hayes Headwater Equipment Sales Ltd. Jan Heetebrij Heitman and Associates Bradley Hembroff Nicole Hembroff Ian Hepher Heritage Fine Drycleaning Hidi Rae Consulting Engineers Inc. Marko Hilgersom James D. Hill Eric and Barbara Hillman Robert Hirano Hironaka Employee Benefits Inc. Norris and Brenda Hironaka Gayle Hiscocks Hi-Way Service Ltd. Kirk and Barbara Hofman* Holiday Inn Lethbridge Gail Holland Stan and Polly Hollingsworth Holy Spirit School Division No. 4 Barry Horner Ingrid Hoveling Hungarian Canadian Old Timers Society of Lethbridge Dr. Ian B. Hurdle Hwy 52 Beef Producers Ltd. HyTech Production Ltd. IAAP Lethbridge Chapter Integra Air Inc. Instream Water Control Projects Ltd. Integrity Hyundai Todd Irvine Steve and Sharon Ivanics Bob Ivison J. H. Holloway Scholarship Foundation J.R.S. Management Corporation John and Debi Jacobson Ronald and Mariette Jacobson Nyepieth James Carol Jardine JoDee Jasiukiewicz Jennifer Spriddle Psychological Services Jerry Arnold Gallery Randall L. and Cheryl Jespersen Dean Jetten Rob Jetten John J Memorial Golf Fund Johnson Wealth Management Group John Talerico Financial Services Ltd. Brett and Michelle Johnson Johnson Kia Lori and Dean Johnson* Cynthia Johnston

We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give.”

– Winston Churchill

Mr. and Mrs. Jones* Jong and Company Chartered Accountants Roy and Pat Jurgens Kelsy Kadino Tosh and Kaz Kanashiro Malcom Kano Kawneer Company Canada Limited Fred Keck The Keg Steakhouse and Bar Dianne and David Kerr* Brian and Ruth King Jack and Ellen King Mike King* Kinnear Financial Ltd. Sarah Koch KPMG MSLP Lisa Kozleski and John Harding Krushel Farrington Barristers and Solicitors Penny Kwasni LA Chefs! Catering and Events Land-O-Lakes Golf and Country Club Lantic Inc. Janet Lapins LCSA Office Administrative Assistant Club Peter and Jill Leclaire* Legends Sports Pub and Grill Leon’s Furniture Chris and Charlene Leront Lethbridge Basement Ltd. Lethbridge Caterers Ltd. Lethbridge College Alumni Relations Lethbridge College Faculty Association Lethbridge College Students’ Association Lethbridge Construction Association Lethbridge Country Club Lethbridge Crime Stoppers Lethbridge and District 4-H Council Lethbridge and District Auto Dealers Association Lethbridge and District Exhibition Lethbridge Iron Works Company Ltd. Lethbridge Lakeview Lions Club Lethbridge Real Estate Board Co-Op Ltd. Lethbridge Regional Police Service Lethbridge Toyota Lethbridge Volkswagen Lethbridge West Riding Dean and Gail Leuzinger Liberty Boilers and Mechanical Services Inc. Linda N. Xie Professional Corporation Jone Lindsay and Brian McGladdery Anne Livesay Daryl and Jamie Lockyer Logos Embroidery Long and McQuade’s Music Education Centre George and Shannon Lomas Lucerne Foods Terryl and Kim Luhowy Bruce Macdonald MacDonald and Company Rodney and Nora MacGregor

John Maegaard Miriam Mahnic and Richard Hayward Barbara Mantello Marsh Canada Ltd. Ian and Kathleen Matheson Martin Bros. Funeral Chapels Ltd. Gary Massier Val and Flora Matteotti Maximum Return Investment Inc. Doug and Rita McArthur Patricia McCorkle and Thomas Dore Leslie McCoy Robert W. McCutcheon McDonald Auto Centre Jim and Barb McDonald McDonald Nissan Sonja McDonald McFadden Honda Niki McIntyre McIntyre Ranching Co. Ltd. Tom and Karen McKenzie* McKillop Insurance and Registry Services Ltd. Patricia McMillan and Myron Currie Brian and Lois McNaughton MechWave Engineering Ltd. Diana Meeks M.E.F. Services Ltd. Melcor Developments Ltd Joe and Helen Meszaros MicroAge Computer Centres Mid-West Pump (90) Ltd. Midwest Surveys Inc. John Milder* Milestone Homes of Lethbridge Inc. Milestone Mazda Paul Minck Peter and Dawn Minck Mr. Cash ATM Network Inc. Mr. R’s Limited Jim and Joyanne Mitchell* MNP Mobile Home Services Molson Coors Moxie’s Classic Grill M. S. MacLean Livestock Ltd. Mulberry’s Design House Kevin and Janet Murphy Chris Murray and Chantal Boucher Murray Chevrolet Cadillac Ltd. Doug Myhre Teri Myhre NeoChem National Bank Financial National Salvage Ltd. Gary Nicolson Rose Niedermier Jeff and Ronda Nielsen* Earl Nilsson Heather, Taylor and Zoe Nish Chris Noble Janice and Mickey Noji Kimberley Norbury-Sulin* Paul Norris Northside Lethbridge Dodge

Chrysler Jeep Ltd. Nutri-Source Inc. Karen and David O’Dwyer Dave Olson Omega Flooring Ltd. Order of the Eastern Star Laurel Chapter 43 O.E.S. Bruce Orpin Brian and Carolyn Otto Georgia Otway Pahulje Enterprises Ltd. Bill Paisley P and H Milling Group Palko Environmental Ltd. Trevor Panczak Papworth Farms Ltd. Ann Parks Rick and Joanne Pasemko Ronald Pasemko Joanne Pashkowich Paskal Cattle Company Dino Pasquotti Patricia A. McMillan Professional Corporation Erin Paxman Pella Windows and Doors Overhead Door Company Knud Petersen Kim Peterson Kevin and Tracy Petrisor Robert Pike Pioneer Promotions Ltd. Pizza Hut Campbell and Carol Potts Pratt and Whitney Canada Inc. Plum Daniel Pottage Praxair Distribution - A Division of Praxair Canada Inc. Private Giving Foundation Provident Farm Ltd. Dale and Ann Pushor Keith Pushor* Quality Holdings Ltd. Quality Inn RBC RBC Financial Group Troy Reeb* Regent Restaurant Karen Reid Robert and Mieke Rice Hugh Richards Ricky’s All Day Grill Ring Container Canada ULC RKH Architecture Ltd. Robert Heggie Trucking Ltd. Robots and Pencils Roest Acoustics Ltd. Rohan Sales Ltd. Paul Rommelaere Romulus and Remus Italian Canadian Club Ron G. Campbell Sales Ltd. Rotary Club of Lethbridge (Downtown) Aaron Roth

Coreen Roth* Royal Canadian Legion, Alta/NWT Command Cindy Royer Trent and Lorilee Runge Rural Alberta Development Fund Kelly Rusiecki Mr. and Mrs. Ryant* St. Michael’s Alumnae Frank and Alberta St. Amand Kathy Sassa Kevin Sassa Ken Sauter Ellen Schacher Lanna Shanks Ted and Debbie Scholten* John Schooten Scotiabank Joan Scott Scougall Motors Ltd. Glen Seeman Servicemaster of Lethbridge Servus Credit Union, Uplands Branch Pat Shackleford Shaw Communications Inc. Shaw Media Shear Persuasion Dennis Shigematsu Jim and Dolores Skow Michael Sikorsky Silver Automotive Ltd. Simpson Plumbing Shirley Smith Tom and Deanna Smith-Windsor SMP Engineering Shannon Spenceley Kathi Solomon-Duda Southern Alberta Newspapers Southern Rewind Ltd. Speedy Paint and Body Shop Ltd. Richard Stamp Michelle Stegen* Ramona Stewart Stringam Denecky, Barristers and Solicitors Doug and Cheryl Stroh Stuart Olson Dominion Construction Ltd. Dimples Stump Subaru of Lethbridge Brian and Colleen Sullivan Kim and Dianne Sullivan Summit Motors Ltd. Sutton Group Lethbridge Sysco Food Services of Calgary Taber Diesel Service Ltd. Taber Transport (1980) Ltd. TAC Mobility Cathy Takeda Joanne Taylor Ken Taylor TD Asset Management Inc. TD Bank Financial Group (Toronto) TD Bank Financial Group (Wellington) TD Canada Trust TD Insurance Meloche Monnex

TECTERRA Inc. Howard and Sharon Tennant Textile Surface Design Guild Alan Thomson Bradley Tomlinson Tony Roma’s Torry Lewis Abells LLP, Lawyers Carmen and Jim Toth Dave and Della Toth Train Oilfield Services Ltd. TransAlta Wind Gerald Truscott Veronica and John Turcotte* Mieka Twesdoclib Oliver and Terry Twizell* United Way Toronto University of Lethbridge The UPS Store Jim Urasaki Urban Insight Development Group Ltd. Alvin and Marcie Valin Val Matteotti Ranches Ltd. Jason Vandenhoek* Will and Sheila Van Horne Lana and Everett Vandesteeg Varsteel Ltd. Glenn and Janice Varzari* Vestas Canadian Wind Technology Les Visser* Linda Vogel Volker Stevin Contracting Ltd. WA Environmental Services Ltd Bev Wallace Jim Walsh Lana Walsh* Frank and Donna Walton Ward Bros. Construction Ltd. Wayne L. McKenzie Professional Corporation Greg and Joanne Weadick Gayle and Goldie Weeks* Wendy Weninger Mr. Weninger Wesbridge Construction Ltd. West Family Dental Western Canada Welding Products Ltd. Western Financial Group Dan and Karen Westwood Tom White Brian Wichers* John and Sandra Wickend Annette Wodtke Bret Wolfer* Woods Dispensary Wil Yee Young Parkyn McNab LLP Young’s Equipment Inc. Yukon Engineering Services Judy Zaychuk Ralph and Faith Zentner Zrim Masonry Ltd. Zubar Holdings Ltd. * Lethbridge College Alumni

41

News and notes

NEWS&NOTES

Photo by Rod Leland

College Receives $100,000 Gift from Headwater Equipment A $100,000 gift given by Headwater Equipment to Lethbridge College in October illustrates the ongoing support the college maintains with its industry partners as well as the value placed on trades and on training the workforce of the future.

The gift will support the college’s Trades and Technology Renewal and Innovation Project (TTRIP) and will found the Headwater Equipment Sales Ltd. Heavy Equipment Research Bay within the Crooks School of Transportation.

“The opportunities available to the students in trades are continually evolving and Lethbridge College is growing with each respected industry,” says Headwater Equipment founder Mike Stringer. “Their programs align with the work we do at Headwater Equipment and founding this Research Bay was a great fit for us and for these students who make up a part of our future staff.”

The Oct. 19 announcement is a further extension of the continued goodwill that Headwater has shown Lethbridge College. Not only does Headwater hire and support apprentices from the Heavy Equipment, Welding and Drafting programs, they have also provided the college with donations of equipment that is already being utilized by its instructors in the education of apprentices.

42 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

These kinds of relationships allow students at the college to thrive; they also demonstrate what can be accomplished when education and industry work together.

“As a post-secondary institution, working with the leaders in industry, like Headwater Equipment, allows us to turn out highly trained workers,” says Lethbridge College Interim President and CEO Peter Leclaire. “Working together with our partners is building the innovative and skilled workforce that industry is demanding. As a result, the students we have here today will be the leaders within that same industry tomorrow.”

Headwater Equipment first originated in 1997, although its founder Mike Stringer had started his industry journey 45 years prior. A licensed heavy duty mechanic, Stringer ran a successful road building and oilfield construction company prior to opening Headwater Equipment Sales. Now a family-run business with his son Matt and partners Cori Petersen, Steve LaPorte (Agriculture/Heavy Duty Mechanics ‘02) and Mark Tollestrup, Headwater is an independent equipment dealer servicing clients around the world.

The company also maintains a fleet of service trucks that serve the mining and oilfield industry in western Canada and has recently created Headwater Fabrication. The newly formed branch will focus on design and engineering, fabrication and welding, and mechanical applications for oilfield industry.

Chamber Names College Winner of ‘Spirit of Lethbridge’ Award

Chefs Win Gold at World Culinary Olympics

For its support and promotion of the city it has called home for 55 years, Lethbridge College received the Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce “Spirit of Lethbridge” award at the 2012 Business of the Year Awards in October.

Lethbridge College Chef Doug Overes (TEC Partsmen Technician ‘87) and Apprentice Tyler Ivey, members of Team Alberta, won a regional team gold medal last fall at the World Culinary Olympics in Europe.

More than 400 people attended the breakfast ceremony where seven area businesses received recognition for innovation, leadership and customer service, among other attributes. The chamber and Business Development Bank of Canada, which co-sponsor the awards, selected Lethbridge College for its efforts serving and promoting the community through time involvement, energy and volunteer hours spent.

Team Alberta was one of just two teams among nearly 50 that received a gold medal. Six other Canadian regional teams won silver medals, according to Overes. Overes sent an emotional email to the college explaining, “we were less than half of one point out of first overall – so second in the world. Not bad!

The young members were vibrating. I am so proud of them and their hard work.”

Lethbridge College’s Interim President and CEO Peter Leclaire said the award reflected the efforts of the entire institution. “It really is the 1,000 employees who work at the college who made this award possible,” he said. “We may have taken ‘community’ out of our name, but community is always a part of what we do.”

The World Culinary Olympics, the world’s largest professional competition for chefs and pastry chefs, were held for the first time in 1900 and take place every four years. A quick glance at the numbers shows how vast the undertaking is. During the two-week event, the Culinary Olympics used an estimated 9,360 pieces of cutlery, 12,900 napkins, 20,000 eggs, 1,000 kg of meat, 2,500 litres of cream and milk and 100 kg of salt, among other items.

New Power Line Technician Program Announced With a growing demand for skilled tradespeople in Canada, Lethbridge College is pleased to announce a Power Line Technician program that has started this month.

The founding partners of the program are Lethbridge College, the City of Lethbridge, AltaLink and Rokstad Power Corporation. Support has also been provided from MVA Consulting, Compass Rose Power Solutions Ltd., K-Line Group and HD Supply Calgary.

This 15-week intense training program will immerse students in hands-on and theoretical training related to overhead and underground utility distribution installation. Students will learn a wide range of construction techniques with an emphasis on safe work practices. Upon completion of the Power Line Technician program, students will have the skills needed to find an entry-level job in the electric power transmission and distribution industry.

College graduates police recruits for southern Alberta Ceremonies for the 2012 summer graduation of the Police Recruit Training program took place under sunny August skies in Galt Gardens. This year saw 10 Lethbridge Regional Police Service and 13 Canadian Pacific Police Service recruits graduating.

Graduates had taken courses that met or exceeded provincial standards in the areas of police recruit training and which further enhance the skill set needed to be effective in the policing field.

The Police Recruit Training program was designed in collaboration with the police services of southern Alberta and Lethbridge College. The Centre for Advancement in Community Justice (CACJ) comprises Lethbridge College, Lethbridge Regional Police Service and Taber Police Service.

43

News and notes

Rod McLeod, Alumnus and College Metis Elder, Given Blackfoot Name Lethbridge College alumnus and college Métis Elder Rod McLeod received a special honour at October’s FNMI Awareness Days: a Blackfoot name.

Blackfoot Elders Francis First Charger (Agricultural Technology ‘83) and Bruce Wolf Child gave the Blackfoot name of Iistakata, which means “Dependable One,” to McLeod at the second of the three-day celebration at the college. “Giving a Blackfoot name to someone who is not a Blackfoot person is both an honour and a responsibility,” says Robin Little Bear, manager of FNMI Education Services. “It’s given to someone who has made an important contribution to the community, and to someone who is committed and responsible for carrying that name and continuing to support the community.”

McLeod came to the college at the age of 66 in the Child and Youth Care program. He received his diploma in 2003 and was soon employed by Family Ties Association. He also attended night school at the college and received his diploma in Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Disorder in 2006 at the age of 70.

He received the college’s Community Leader Award in 2012 in recognition of his success in collaborative projects.

Canadian Blood Services Recognizes College with National Award Lethbridge College was recognized at Canadian Blood Services national event in September, Honouring Our Lifeblood, as one of nine partners at the heart of Canada’s blood system.

The Alberta Region of Canadian Blood Services nominated Lethbridge College based on the tremendous support and results in the annual blood drive organized by the college each fall. Through the annual one-month challenge, Lethbridge College has contributed a total of 741 blood

44 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

donations. This includes donations from 200 first-time blood donors. Each blood donation can save or improve up to three lives.

Honouring Our Lifeblood pays tribute to blood donors, volunteers and community partners from across the country.

These individuals and organizations provide a lifeline to hundreds of thousands of Canadians who need blood, blood products or stem cells. Without their commitment and support, there simply would be no blood system in Canada.

Showing Support for Sustainability, College Pledges $250,000 to international “green” challenge In its continued effort towards achieving a “greener” campus, Lethbridge College has pledged $250,000 toward the Billion Dollar Green Challenge (The Challenge).

The Challenge encourages post-secondary institutions to join together and invest a combined total of $1 billion dollars in self-managed revolving funds that are dedicated to improving energy efficiency on campus. The college will be a charter member of this global effort in support of sustainability.

“Lethbridge College is the only institute in Alberta to make this commitment and one of only three in Canada,” says Peter Leclaire, Interim president and CEO of Lethbridge College. “We’re excited to be able to support projects that work towards saving energy, reducing carbon emissions and lowering energy expenses while creating a green revolving fund for future sustainability upgrades along the way.”

The Challenge was launched in October 2011 with 32 Founding Circle institutions, which included Dartmouth, Harvard and Stanford. Lethbridge College will join what has grown to 38 institutions with $83 million overall committed. Other Canadian institutes that have committed are the University of British Columbia and Thompson Rivers University.

Former College President Receives Public Service Leadership Award

New rural campus opens in Vulcan County

Former Lethbridge College President and CEO Tracy L. Edwards has been named the winner of one of Alberta’s most prestigious honours for public service, the Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration.

Lethbridge College’s Vulcan County Campus became an official part of the college community last summer through an agreement between the college, the Vulcan Business Development Society and the Vulcan County Adult Learning Council.

The award acknowledges the exceptional achievements Edwards made during her seven years as president and commends her for demonstrating distinctive leadership in the area of public administration. Edwards was also praised for her vision, leadership and tireless efforts in forging strong partnerships.

“I am both honoured and humbled by this recognition,” said Edwards, who served as President and CEO of Lethbridge College from 2005 to 2012. “But the award recognizes more than one person. It reflects the excellent work of the students, staff and supporters of Lethbridge College.”

The Honourable Donald S. Ethell, Lieutenant Governor of Alberta, presented Edwards with the award at a ceremony at Lethbridge College on Dec. 6. The award is jointly sponsored by the Calgary and Edmonton regional groups of the Institute of Public Administration of Canada (IPAC).

The Lethbridge College Board of Governors nominated Edwards for the award. An additional 16 people wrote letters in support of her nomination. These letters, which came from community members, elected officials and provincial representatives, described her as a natural leader whose innovation, dedication and creativity launched Lethbridge College onto the national stage; they also explained how Edwards led the college and its people on a transformational journey which helped position the southern Albertan post-secondary institute as a college of distinction and an employer of choice.

The new campus is unique from the college’s other rural campuses in that it is managed collaboratively by all the partners. The partners work together to determine and deliver relevant Lethbridge College programming directly in the community, using flexible delivery methods.

The community provides various facilities, including video conference suites, classrooms and a dedicated wind turbine electrical lab, while the college is primarily responsible for program delivery and student support. Available programs include Unit Clerk Training, Wind Turbine Technician and Pre-Employment Trades.

Commercial for Lethbridge College Wins International Award A 30-second commercial promoting Lethbridge College has been awarded a gold medal in an international advertising competition.

The commercial, which shows the hands-on, immersed, flexible education available to Lethbridge College students, aired on television stations in Alberta, Saskatchewan and southeastern British Columbia last January. It was entered in the educational category of the annual Aurora Awards.

Lethbridge College’s Marketing and Communications department and The Commercial Factory of Lethbridge collaborated to create the commercial. For more information about the awards, go to www.auroraawards.com. To see the commercial, go to http://bit.ly/wtyf-award.

45

News and notes

College Students Win Provincial Awards Culinary Program’s Chef Finalist for Lethbridge Award The Culinary program’s Chef Charles Parker, who was a finalist for Lethbridge’s 2012 Immigrant Achievement Awards in the category of Arts and Culture last fall, can organize a dinner for Alberta’s premier as easily as he can plan how to feed thousands of volunteers at the Alberta Summer Games.

It’s not like he’s cooking for the Queen of England, after all.

He used to, though.

“In 1968, I was apprenticing at Christ College in Cambridge and there was a call to the kitchen in the fall, maybe around October, asking if anyone would like to go to Sandringham Estate for a month,” Parker recalls. “I said I’d go, so I did.

And for three or four years after that I would go for a month to Balmoral, Windsor Castle, Sandringham or Buckingham Palace and we’d put on state dinners and special functions.”

Parker recalls that the royal family put all of the chefs and staff members at ease.

“They’d ask you how you were enjoying it and make sure you were comfortable,” says Parker. “The Queen would walk her corgis and stop and talk to you. People see all of the pomp and pageantry… but when they are in their own homes, I think the royal family just likes to be relaxed and enjoys talking to people. If you didn’t know the Queen was a queen, you’d think she was just a very lovely aunt.”

And his cooking wasn’t limited to the royal family and guests.

“One of my first jobs was to prepare dinner for the corgis,” Parker says. “Fresh rabbit – cooked and diced.”

Congratulations to Parker on being named a finalist for this award – and to all of the guests of the Garden Court, whose meals have been planned and are occasionally prepared by the same man who once cooked for a Queen.

46 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

Lethbridge College students make their marks in their disciplines and are regularly recognized as being among the top students in the province and country. Recent winners include: Second-year Therapeutic Recreation – Gerontology student Katelyn Hornecker received the Alberta Therapeutic Recreation Association Student Award at the provincial organization’s annual gathering in October. The ATRA award recognizes students who have demonstrated academic ability, promise of a contribution to the field of recreation therapy, and have worked in the recreation therapy field.

Another second-year Therapeutic Recreation – Gerontology student, Nicole Vandenbrink, was the successful recipient of the 2012 Calgary Chapter Alberta Gerontology Association Student Scholarship. Nicole received the $1,000 scholarship and individual certificate in Calgary last summer.

Agricultural Technology students Angela Alder of Stettler and Natalie Forest of Coaldale were two of the three winners of the 2012 Canadian Farm Business Management Council awards. The awards are valued at $1,000 each.

Kodiaks Men’s Golf Team Wins ACAC Gold Medal The Kodiaks men’s golf team won the ACAC Gold Medal last fall, edging out Grant MacEwan University at the Desert Blume Course in Medicine Hat. The players stayed steady despite facing difficult, windy conditions on the course.

This is the first ACAC gold medal for the men’s team.

Congratulations to Mitch Matichuk, Justin Stoski, Taylor Irvin, Taylor Jetten and Luke Meadows-Birch for their excellent play.

Photo by Zach Hertzmann Caitlin Power’s spring 2013 runway photos by George Pimentel

Fashion alumna earns rave reviews at Toronto’s Fashion Week The spring 2013 clothing collection of Lethbridge College alumna Caitlin Power (above left) was the hit of the catwalk at Toronto’s Fashion Week in October, the premier designer fashion industry event in Canada.

In the days leading up to her show, Power was named one of “Three to Watch” in the Globe and Mail and a “Rising Star” in the Toronto Star. Reviews of her designs received high praise, with one fashion critic noting that “the fit of each piece is flawless. The entire collection is very well constructed. This collection continued to have a very strong futuristic vibe and the highlight was definitely the last piece which metallic leathers were used.”

“Tailoring is important within the brand,” Power explains on her website. “I focus on sophisticated, classic silhouettes, but make them youthful with edgy details.

I use leather in unexpected places, and focus on the female form, making lines accentuate a woman’s curves.

My woman commands attention and dresses sharp to receive it.” Power’s designs can be seen on her website, caitlinpower.com, and in fashion magazines across North America.

Fashion Design Student Places in National Competition Second-year fashion design student Maryam Nikandam Moghaddam placed in the top ten in a national competition last fall. Her garment was a hand-sewn bodice and skirt.

The competition was ‘”Designer Style Challenge,” Canada’s search for outstanding original designs. It was

the first ever designer style challenge in Canada, a mixed media challenge with awards of distinction in Toronto.

The challenge was creating an original mixed media work of art, an expression of creativity. Maryam’s design was shown in Toronto at a fashion show and awards ceremony Oct. 12-14.

Designs were judged on inspiration, creativity, craftsmanship, quality, intricacy, complexity of design, innovative use and diversity of materials, and finishing.

Entries came from all around Canada, from fashion students, fashion grads, teachers and designers working in industry.

Dress and Cape Sketches by Fashion Design Student Impress Judges in National Competition Second-year Fashion Design and Marketing student Jena Dee Murray has been named one of 25 finalists in the national Telio Fashion Design competition. Her sketches of a dress and cape stood out among the 140 entries received from students at 23 schools across Canada who entered the “Canada’s Breakthrough Designers 2013” contest.

As a finalist, Murray spent December sewing her creation with fabric supplied by the company; she must submit it in mid-January. In early February, Murray and her instructor, Brenda Low, will travel to Montreal for the competition where her work will be shown as part of Montreal Fashion Week.

“This is the first time that Lethbridge College has had a finalist selected,” says Vicki Hegedus, chair of the School of Media and Design. “There are thousands of dollars of scholarships being offered and lots of professional opportunities for the five winners.”

47

My life

When the partners are also the parents (and sisters, and brothers) Diane Stringam Tolley (Journalism ’75) was born and raised on one of the last of the large old cattle ranches in southern Alberta.

Her life now is about writing stories – her stories.

By Diane Stringam There is something very special about being raised on a ranch – something about being close enough to the land to breathe in the scent of baked sage on the warm summer breeze, something about witnessing renewal in the faint first blush of green in the spring and seeing the first gopher poke his timid head above the ground.

Fall brought more noise and confusion as the calves were weaned and the cattle returned to their respective pastures.

Winter was usually quiet, consisting of hauling hay, changing and fluffing bedding, and chopping holes in the ice to facilitate watering. Then we could catch our breath for a bit until calving began and the whole cycle started over.

To be able to call this work? Wonderful. To do it with the people you love most? Perfection.

Working with any group of people has its challenges, but working with your parents as your boss and your siblings as your co-workers, functioning together as a smooth, cohesive unit was . . . easy.

In its heyday, the Stringam Ranch covered over 90 sections of land along the Canada/U.S. border between Milk River and Del Bonita. It was home to several hundred head of Hereford cattle, the horses needed to work them, and the small village of people needed to keep everything running smoothly.

The organization and coordination required to direct such an operation was challenging, constant and year-round.

Spring calving was a misnomer as it usually began in January, when cows had to be closely monitored. A cold calf is a dead calf.

Summer saw the family haying. The youngest person who could reach the pedals would drive the tractor, and one of the older boys would stack. Summer also brought branding, with its fever pitch of excitement as neighbours gathered to help.

48 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

There is a certain kind of joy when your family shares everything – a fulfilment. Work is more fun. Good times are better. Hard times are less scary.

And gathering around the table to compare experiences, laugh and simply enjoy being together while eating Mom’s wonderful food made ranch life a small slice of heaven.

Diane Stringam Tolley is the author of two books, Carving Angels and Kris Kringle’s Magic, both by Cedar Fort Publishing and available to order from Amazon. She also writes two blogs: www.dianestringamtolley.com and www.dlt-lifeontheranch.blogspot.com.

It’s a family affair

By Megan Shapka There are eight members of the Quinn family and all of them have attended Lethbridge College at some point in their lives.

Cyrena, the oldest of the six Quinn siblings, says she loved her time at the college because of the student-oriented atmosphere.

“They really care about the students,” she says. “The first week of classes all the staff wear name tags and I even saw the president giving unaware students directions and help.”

The Quinn family is active in the Lethbridge community, volunteering for 10 years at the soup kitchen and five years at handicapped riding, as well as participating in air cadets and the Kiwanis festival. “We wanted to join a community-driven postsecondary institution,” Cyrena says.

The Quinns initially looked to the college for its convenience, but after Cyrena and her two sisters had such a great experience, she says it became the family institution.

The Quinns Brandon, animal inspection agent

Studied: General Studies courses (2010) and registered with the Alberta Apprenticeship Board as an electrical apprentice.

Nathaniel, volunteer emergency medical responder with St. John Ambulance

Studied: Emergency Medical Responder (EMR) and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) and registered with the Alberta Apprenticeship Board as an electrical apprentice.

Darnell

Studied: Ag/Heavy Equipment Technician program (2012) and registered with the Alberta Apprenticeship Board as an electrical apprentice.

Kathy (mom), school aide

Studied: Workforce Re-entry program (2000).

Bryana, registered nurse with Chinook Health Region

Studied: Bachelor of Nursing (NESA) at LC and U of L (2011). She is currently in the Perioperative Post-Diploma Nursing program at the college.

Cyrena, registered nurse at Chinook Regional Hospital and Crowsnest Pass Hospital

Studied: Bachelor of Nursing (NESA) at the college and the University of Lethbridge (2011). Along with Daicya, Bryana and Nathaniel, Cyrena also served at Lethbridge College’s Fine Dining. Her partner, Lanny Anderson, works at the college as the Development Officer in Advancement.

Daicya

Studied: Culinary Arts (2010). She went to Europe to cook for four months through the college and competed in Skills Canada.

Dean (dad), electrician, owner of Q-6 Electrical

Studied: Masters Electrician program (2000). He taught at the college for a semester in 2000.

Are you a multi-generational Lethbridge College family?

We are looking for stories of families where at least three members across one or more generations call themselves Kodiaks. Email WHMagazine@lethbridgecollege.ca to tell us about your Family Affair.

Photo by Imajen Photography

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Widen your horizon

Social media and small business In the wake of the inaugural Social in the South conference held this October at Lethbridge College, small businesses and entrepreneurs are wising up online with social web tools to sell, listen and engage more effectively with their customers.

Leland focused on the numbers and measurements that go along with social media. He stressed the importance of tracking in general and how to use easy measurements to show success.

Lethbridge College Social Media Specialist Rod Leland, who helped organize and spoke at the conference, gathered tips and tools from the conference speakers to help small business owners make the most of this new medium.

“Do not measure success by the number of fans, likes or followers you have,” he advised. ”That’s not what matters.

Measure how good your content is. Take the number of people who have seen your content, and put that number below the number of user actions (retweets, shares, comments or likes).

That gives you a basic measure of engagement, and the more engaging you are online, the more your following will grow.”

Raylene Wall, who gave the pre-conference seminar, encouraged business owners to work within their time constraints to ensure that they’re performing well on the networks they choose to participate in.

“It’s much better to do one network very well than to participate in four poorly,” she advised. “Customers understand that businesses have a finite amount of time to spend online, but they want real answers and authentic interaction on the networks they do use. Pick one network, probably the one you are personally the most familiar with, and rock that one, before expanding to other networks.”

Ernest Barbaric’s talk focused on marketing strategy. He suggested that before starting to use social web tools, outline who your target audience is, what type of content to post (and with what frequency), what networks are best used to target them and what type of content is going to be best for that audience.

The highlight of the conference was an appearance and keynote address by WestJet’s Darren Hailes. Hailes, the Emerging Media Coordinator at WestJet, gave insight into how WestJet’s customer service standards in the air and on the ground translate to communication online. He advised taking what already works well for your company – in his case, WestJet is known as a fun, friendly, caring company – and making sure to apply those ingredients to your use of social media.

An ever-increasing need for businesses to make themselves available online means it is important to have the knowledge and training to communicate effectively with their communities. With Social in the South 2012 wrapped up, attendees will be changing their statuses with customers from “single” to “in a relationship” more and more.

View excerpts from the conference with

50 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

A word or two

Photo by Rob Olson

A Word or Two

Wider Horizons asked Parker Wood and Riley Anderson (Business Administration, 2012), owners of a portable pork pit that travelled to 15 venues last summer, to share a word or two on the savoury and stimulating aspects of building your own small business. Wood and Anderson took advantage of the college’s 2+2 agreements and are adding to their two-year diplomas with four-year degrees at the University of Lethbridge. Anderson took a break from his studies to answer the questions below.

First off – why a “Pork Pit”?

We wanted a business that could be profitable in just one summer.

Favourite item on your menu?

Definitely the pulled pork sandwich.

What was the best part about operating your own business?

Having absolutely no idea what the next day would bring.

What’s the most unusual sight you saw last summer?

Real jousting, sword fighting, people on stilts and people ordering food in old English at the Brooks medieval fair.

Did you draw on any lessons learned at Lethbridge College to make your business a success?

We used something from all of our classes. Our college experience gave us the drive and motivation to think outside of the box, and the confidence to get active and make an idea into a reality.

Last question – and most important – bacon or sausage?

Bacon-wrapped sausages…put it on a skewer with pineapple, caramelize it with brown sugar…mmmmm.

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Where are they now?

Celebrating the successes of our alumni in their careers and throughout their lives.

2014 Jordyn Siurko, Conservation Enforcement Bachelor of Applied Science Jordyn Siurko, a student in the college’s Conservation Enforcement - Bachelor of Applied Science program, received her diploma from the Environment and Natural Resources Technology at Aurora College as well as an esthetician diploma from Marvel College in Red Deer before returning to school. The Fort Smith native has worked as an emergency firefighter and wildlife officer. Siurko says she will probably come back up north after she gets her degree.

Hayley Tanner, Print Journalism After completing her practicum with Coaldale’s Sunny South News and Westwind Weekly newspapers, Hayley Tanner was offered a full-time position. In a news story last April in the Sunny South News, the native of Taber says she has competed in many music festivals and has been a part of several drama productions throughout the years. The fresh newspaper reporter says so far she has experienced covering stories ranging from profiles, features, crime and editorials to sports and town council meetings.

2010 2012 Paige Murray, Print Journalism Lethbridge College print journalism grad Paige Murray knew from a very young age that she would one day become a journalist. When Murray was in grade five she had to write a fake news story; it turned out so well that her teacher told her parents that she had found her profession. Years later, Murray’s interest was piqued in the college’s journalism program after her cousin took the same program and told her of her positive experience. Murray plans to work in Lethbridge for at least a year at a term position and then go on to obtain a bachelor’s degree in communications.

Amelia Naismith, Print Journalism Amelia Naismith is working at the Ponoka News newspaper. The Bentley native started work at one of the busiest times of the year. Editor George Brown said it was “the right time to see what the community of Ponoka is all about.”

52 • WIDER Horizons/Winter 2013

Marta Blicharz, Multimedia The University of Lethbridge’s first ever new media graduate student got her start at Lethbridge College. After Marta Blicharz completed her bachelor of fine arts degree at the University of Calgary, she was interested in doing her masters at the University of Lethbridge; however, the programs weren’t ready yet. In the meantime, Blicharz attended Lethbridge College to brush up on her multimedia production skills. Blicharz was featured in the Lethbridge Herald last April for holding her first Master of Fine Arts Exhibition at the university’s Penny Building in downtown Lethbridge.

David Murray, Criminal Justice The town of Vulcan has a new bylaw officer. After graduating from Lethbridge College’s Policing Program in 2010, David Murray worked at the Lethbridge Correctional Centre and then the Edmonton Remand Centre before accepting his current position within the town of Vulcan. In a Vulcan Advocate article that appeared last May, Murray states that he doesn’t simply issue tickets. ”It’s going to be issuing warnings

and trying to educate the public as to why I’m on their case,” he said. Murray added that he was looking forward to working with the public, and he will be working with the RCMP on a couple of projects, including check stops.

Jaycee Wall, Fashion and Design After Jaycee Wall graduated from Lethbridge College’s fashion design and merchandising program, she immersed herself in French culture, a move which is evident in her youthful, chic designs.

Wall debuted her new line of clothes in Regina last year, featuring a maxi dress ideal for a garden party and a colourful, playful pair of short shorts. She was one of three designers to be featured during the 2012 Saskatchewan Fashion Week, and in the May 11, 2012, article of Regina’s Leader Post.

2005 Shawna Leigh Martin, Early Childhood Education and General Studies Shawna has been working as an elementary school teacher following her studies at Lethbridge College.

Tahlon Sweenie, Golf Management Tahlon Sweenie, 27, loves his full-time position as head pro at the Edson Golf and Country Club. He says he enjoyed the sport of golf so much he decided to make a career out of it. Sweenie says being head pro means you have to run the shop, which includes answering phones, ordering and putting out merchandise, overseeing the back shop staff and ensuring the power carts are ready to go. The most enjoyable aspect of the job for Sweenie is the chance to indulge his passion for learning and teaching the game of golf.

Mandy Pearson, Conservation Enforcement

2003

1990

1980

Melissa Rhodes, Business Management Melissa Rhodes was settling in to her position as the Picture Butte financial officer, according to an article last year in the Sunny South News. After completing her education, Rhodes took on a CAO position within the Village of Champion at the age of 23. After two years, she moved on to Civic Solutions, a contract-based company providing municipal government services. In her newest role as financial officer within the Town of Picture Butte, Rhodes is responsible for budgets, payroll and banking as well as working with grants.

Kristi Edwards, Early Childhood Education Kristi Edwards has been recognized for her outstanding services in childcare. An article in the May 28, 2012, edition of the Beaumont News states that Edwards has become the fifth consecutive employee at the Town of Beaumont’s Early Learning Childcare Centre to be awarded the Childcare Professional Award of Excellence. Edwards accepted her award at a banquet in Edmonton last month along with 12 other recipients from across the region. After achieving her early childcare certificate plus a diploma in rehabilitation, Edwards returned to northern Alberta to build her career and has now been in the childcare profession for more than 20 years.

Karen (Ketcheson) Wintonyk, Recreation Management and other studies Karen is the community program/ mentorship coordinator in Athabasca for Family and Community Support Services. After her graduation from the college, she worked in Hinton at the Recreation Department for the summer and got to know the Family and Community Support Services director, who gave her an application to apply for the job in Athabasca. She has now been with this program since 1980. “It is a terrific program that has allowed me to work in the many areas of prevention,” she writes.

1981

Jerry Cheshuk, Conservation Enforcement Edmonton native Jerry Cheshuk served 23 years in water, utilities and public works for the city of Yorkton and eventually became the assistant director of public water works. After 23 years, Cheshuk and his wife packed up and moved to Squamish, B.C., where Cheshuk got a job as a water and environmental services manager with the Resort Municipality of Whistler. Not long after, the technology graduate who studied at Lethbridge College discovered that Saskatchewan was home, and was featured in the Nipawin Journal after moving and accepting the position of director of works and utilities in Nipawin, Sask.

1999 Mandy Pearson, Conservation Enforcement Mandy Pearson writes that she worked two summers as a seasonal conservation officer and then migrated home to the Yukon. She then started a horse packing and trail riding business from home called Yukon Horsepacking Adventures, where she takes guests out on trail rides, steak dinner rides, two- to eight-day camping trips into the mountains by horseback and also hosts workshops from the business’ dining lodge. She has spent 12 years developing this company as well as a small expediting company.

The expediting company hauls freight to different gold mines and exploration camps in the Yukon. Pearson writes: “We typically have three to five employees between both businesses. I have a small son now and my partner Armin and I enjoy working from home, spending time with family, working a small gold mine in the summer and racing sled dogs in the winter.” To learn more about Pearson’s business, check out her website: www.yukonhorsepacking.com.

Carol Lynn Thomson, Communication Arts Carol Lynn has been working in radio since she graduated from LCC in 1981, primarily as a radio personality/deejay.

She works for Saskatoon Media Group in Saskatoon. Carol Lynn has also helped with promotions and took on a producer position for a few years. Most recently the Lethbridge College grad has moved into the news department of the three radio stations and website that are part of Saskatoon Media Group – CJWW, Magic 98.3, 92.9 The Bull, and saskatoonhomepage.ca.

1979

New baby? New job? New hometown?

Tell your classmates all about it by emailing WHMagazine@lethbridgecollege.ca.

Be sure to include your name, your program or area of study, the year you completed your program, and a little bit about what you have been doing since you left Lethbridge College. We can’t wait to hear from you.

53

THE

Future LOOKS

Flexible Thinking of going back to school?

Looking at adding another credential?

Need flexibility for when and where you learn?

Then look to Lethbridge College. In addition to traditional classes at our six southern Alberta campuses, we offer more than 160 online classes that let you set your own schedule for school. You can also try out a “blended learning” program that mixes traditional classes with online classes, giving you the best of both worlds.

At Lethbridge College, you can learn about what you love – when the time is right for you.

Lethbridge College.

Welcome to your future.