Darrell Brown took the exact opposite path most kids dream of: he sold his arcade business and went back to school.

But the 47-year-old graduate of Red River College’s International Business diploma program (1998) hasn’t looked back, first founding a marketing company to connect European tourists with Manitoba First Nations, then a manufacturing company preparing office furniture orders for First Nations and government clients.

“I’m in business to make clients happy,” says Brown. “That, to me, is where it’s not about profit. It’s about delivering a good product or service.”

With a father in the army, Brown experienced the typical “base brat” upbringing, moving a number of times during his childhood, including two tours in Germany. His father’s final posting brought the family to Winnipeg, where Brown graduated high school, then worked for a major Crown corporation for 10 years.

It wasn’t a great fit.

“I didn’t care for the union mentality,” he says. “Toward the end of my time there, the company was offering buyouts during a two-week window and they accepted me. I took my meagre buyout, cashed in a boatload of RSPs and found a business to buy… Basically I was doing everything to make it happen.”

Brown’s arcade business, stocked with pinball machines and pool tables, had 15 locations at the height of its popularity. But this, too, wasn’t the fulfilling career he had envisioned. He wanted to take his career in a larger, more meaningful direction; one that tied in his native heritage. That’s when he found the International Business diploma at RRC. He sold the business and hit the books. Read More →

Sabrina Rogers, a Continuing Education student in Red River College’s Youth Recreation Activity Worker program, wasn’t so sure she’d make it to graduation after she received some unexpected news months before starting her program.

“I found out I was pregnant coming into the program,” says Rogers. “Because of that, I wasn’t sure if I’d even finish or if I was going to have to drop out. I almost felt bad because it was as if I was taking the seat from someone else who deserved it.”

Fortunately, she put all her doubts behind her and surpassed her own expectations. Today Rogers is not only a new mother to a beautiful, healthy daughter, Sophia, but is also only a handful of practicum hours away from completing her program.

“As my stomach kept growing it gave me more incentive and motivation to finish,” says Rogers. “I also wanted to do this for my family, instructors and everyone who supported me. My family wouldn’t let me drop out, no matter how much I wanted to at some points.”

The 22-year-old was born and raised in Selkirk. She moved to Winnipeg at the age of 18 to live with her aunt, who then introduced Rogers to the program.

“I was working as a hairdresser and I wasn’t doing much. I was doing the same thing everyday,” admits Rogers. “I did a program at the Aboriginal Centre for Policing and Corrections and I had a practicum at the Manitoba Youth Centre, which is where I eventually want to work.”

When asked what inspired her to pursue a career supporting youth at the Manitoba Youth Centre, Rogers recalls a special memory where she says it all clicked.

“There was a young girl who was being released during my practicum at the Youth Centre. She lived in the North End and lived with six siblings in a one-bedroom house with her grandfather. Her parents didn’t even come visit her the whole time she was there.”

“She had no clothes to leave with, so I brought her clothes from my closet. She promised she’d finish her school because of what I did for her. Knowing I gave her that little bit of hope made me want to continue,” says Rogers. Read More →

Mike Shillinglaw, a recent graduate of the Web Site Development certificate program at Red River College, has come a long way since last summer. After 12 years, the father of two was left jobless after being let go from his federal government position as a graphic designer when budget cuts were made at his research centre.

“It was interesting because I was actually looking for a change,” says Shillinglaw. “Working for the government, you often had certain responsibilities and it made it difficult to branch out. I felt my skills were lacking, and in order to be employable I knew I had to upgrade my skills.”

Thanks to an incentive program run by the government for past employees, Shillinglaw was eligible to receive an education allowance to help support his next career path.

Naturally as an RRC alumnus (he graduated in 1990 with a diploma in Advertising Art, now known as Graphic Design), Shillinglaw looked into RRC’s Continuing Education programs.

“I looked online and I liked the course offering. In the end I thought the Continuing Education program was the right fit because not only could it meet my training needs, but also my timing needs. I was able to work with the coordinators to fast track it and be done in nine months.”

Shillinglaw credits a big part of his success to physically being in the classroom with his instructors.

“My instructors went out of their way to make sure we were up-to-date with the current trends and new technology,” he says. “They know a lot about the industry and they’re not just giving you the book stuff.” Read More →

“When you’re working on a plane, fix it to the degree you would if the most important person in your life is flying on it next.”

By the time Dylan Pereira was a few weeks into Red River College’s Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (AME) program, each of his instructors had given him a version of this piece of advice. The 20-year-old Winnipegger, who graduated his program this spring and is now working as an educational assistant at RRC’s Stevenson Campus, said the maxim stuck with him.

“It makes you think … it reminds you of the importance of the work you’re doing,” he said.

Pereira, a Sisler High School grad, is happy he’s tackling that work. It’s clear Pereira is in his element as he runs through the different systems – hydraulics, electrical, plumbing, turbines, steel – that come together in the complex machines he gets to “tool around with” each day. After studying the theories behind modern airplane systems in a classroom, Pereira and his fellow students got their hands dirty working on College-maintained aircraft at the Stevenson Campus hangar, which is perched on the western edge of the Winnipeg airport. Course work grew in complexity as Pereira added more skills to his tool kit, until his final projects had him assessing and repairing a full airplane – though not by himself.

“It’s more of a team kind of class,” says Pereira of the AME course. “When you work on a plane in the real world, you’re part of a crew, so the class is set up the same way.”

The small team – in Pereira’s class, about a dozen students – almost didn’t get Pereira as a crew member.

“I originally planned to study dentistry in high school,” he says. “It was my father’s idea. He wanted me to get into something that makes good money … both my parents didn’t want me to work too hard and only live paycheque to paycheque.” Read More →

Each year, a maximum of four Lieutenant-Governor Medals are awarded to Red River College students who best combine academic and technical achievement, involvement in College and/or community activities, and good character.

JOCELLE CUVOS — Business Administration, 2013

A graduate of Red River College’s Business Administration program, Jocelle Cuvos first enrolled in the hopes of one day becoming an entrepreneur, and of eventually starting her own photography studio — a passion since high school.

Having now completed her studies at RRC (while maintaining a very busy extra-curricular schedule), she plans to continue her education by obtaining a degree from the University of Manitoba’s Asper School of Business.

While at RRC, Jocelle served as president of the Students’ Association, and played on both the soccer and volleyball teams. The experiences allowed her to give back to her community, as both an ambassador for the College and a volunteer in such initiatives as the RRC Shinerama, a charity event that raised funds for cystic fibrosis research.

Jocelle’s involvement in student life had a positive impact on her time here, and she plans to continue her involvement with the College as a volunteer Student Ambassador (who’ll promote RRC to prospective students) and by attending as many Rebels games as her schedule will allow!

She attributes her success in part to the love and support of her family and friends, and to the encouragement and support she received from her RRC instructors.

ABBY SILVA — Business Administration, 2013

A fellow graduate of RRC’s Business Administration program, Abby Silva was at first drawn to the College by the flexible and diverse career opportunities that awaited her in the field of business.

Like Jocelle, she also plans to leverage her RRC training as an entry point to further accreditation, by pursuing a designation as a Chartered Accountant (CA) while also seeking part-time employment in the accounting industry.

Also like Jocelle, Abby was heavily involved in athletics while attending the College (and twice won tournament MVP honours at the Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference). A member of the Rebels Women’s Basketball team, Abby says her involvement in sports kept her motivated and determined in her academic pursuits, by allowing her to develop an active routine that kept her healthy, focused and constantly striving for success.

She plans to maintain that routine as a member of an outside basketball league that also affords opportunity for community outreach, through fundraisers, tournaments and other volunteer-driven events. She attributes her success at Red River College to a combination of hard work, patience, and — most importantly — a positive attitude.

Kris Hancock has a few axes to grind. Then he’ll get them signed by rock stars and auction them off for charity.

The Ecole Selkirk Junior High teacher and Red River College grad (Industrial Arts/Technology Teacher Education, 2007) is the creator of the B.O.S.S. Guitar Works program, an afterschool course where Grade 7 and 8 students design and build custom electric guitars. (The program’s title stands for Building On Student Success.)

The guitars are then painted and sent to celebrities – among them Gene Simmons, Roger Waters, William Shatner and Jann Arden – for signatures before being auctioned off to support the Canadian Museum for Human Rights and other Manitoba charities.

When Hancock and other teachers planned the first auction in 2010, the goal was to raise $1,000. For this year’s event on May 30, the target is a hundred times that.

“It’s turned into something that’s truly amazing,” Hancock says. “It started as a small idea and the next thing you know, we’ve had celebrities sign over 100 guitars.”

Hancock says he had the first inklings of the fundraising plan while he was still studying to be an industrial arts teacher at Red River College. As his instructors and classmates discussed projects that would capture the attention of future preteen students, his own enthusiasm for playing electric guitar came to mind.

“You have to find something that engages, something that’s fresh and new. If a project is boring or not interesting, they’ll turn off. Your class won’t be fun for them and it won’t be fun for you.” Read More →

Imagine leaving your home of 40 years – the house where you threw down your bags after long days at work, raised your children, held your loved ones and, years later, wept at their passing.

For seniors downsizing to apartments or assisted-living facilities, the act of leaving their home can be a traumatic experience. Fortunately there are people like Lauren Cooke (Business Administration, 2004), owner of Leapfrog Moving Specialists, to make the transition easier.

“When I’ve recreated their living space in a smaller room,” Cooke says, “The look on their face, the happiness at keeping their ‘home’ even though they moved, that’s very rewarding.”

Cooke and her staff of three take care of “the finer things” when helping someone move to a smaller home, consulting with clients and using their own experienced judgements to pack just the essentials while disposing of a life’s worth of flotsam. The job, Cooke says, requires her to balance the roles of mover and counsellor at the same time.

“You have to be understanding and compassionate while still doing your job of getting them moved. I don’t try, I don’t force it, it just kind of happens. I’m attentive and sensitive to what they’re going through.” Read More →

He’s had a healthy obsession with technology since he was a kid, when a childhood friend got his very first computer as a birthday present.

Good thing Continuing Education grad Andre Bisseck has found a way to parlay that passion into a career, as a Senior Business Analyst with the Province of Manitoba.

Bisseck, who graduated from the Business Analyst program in 2011, says RRC provided the structured theory and framework to complement his existing knowledge. He also credits his instructors with helping to prepare him for his current role.

RRC: Where were you born and raised?

André Bisseck: I was a North End kid, born and raised.

When did you first become interested in technology?

A good friend of mine got a computer for his birthday one year and I was hooked. I think I used it more than he did, but ultimately it was responsible for my near-obsession with computers and technology.

What prompted you to enrol at RRC? Why the Business Analyst program?

After doing similar work for a major corporation for a number of years, I realized that I had fragmented knowledge of business analysis, but lacked the structured theory that provides the necessary framework. Also, I was looking to make a job change and wanted to shore up my experience with recognized education. I researched the available schooling options and chose Red River College for its reputation and course content. Read More →

Tyler Nelson wants you to have less of an impact.

The St. James born-and-bred graduate of Red River College’s Environmental Protection Technology program (2012) is fired up about people lowering the amount of waste they produce, as well as the energy and resources they consume. Nelson says even as a child, protecting the environment was on his mind.

“From an early age, I’ve always been recycling, composting, lowering my carbon footprint. It was just the way I grew up.”

When most 18-year-old high school grads plan their college or university studies, they turn to parents, peers and guidance counselors for direction. Nelson, on the other hand, was a bit more ambitious. He checked in with the provincial government.

“I emailed my MLA and he went, ‘Oh, sure I can help you out with some stuff,’ and he set up a lunch meeting with Neil Cunningham (the director of Manitoba Conservation and Water Stewardship) and Dan McInnis (assistant deputy minister for Climate Change and Environmental Protection),” Nelson says. “I asked about the environmental field, said I was curious about it. From there, they let me know it was the next big thing, it was important, that my passion was overwhelming and they said, ‘Go for it.’”

Nelson enrolled in civil engineering at Red River College, branching into the environmental stream when he hit his second year.

“There was a kind of stigma around the environmental program, because environmentalists are seen as tree huggers and save-the-whales type people, but in the environmental protection stream, you got to see it from the other side, from the side of ‘How do you lessen your impact? How do you set up programs to help people understand and take action?’”

“It was such a positive experience. Everyone was so overwhelmingly nice and passionate about what they were doing; not just the instructors, but the students.” Read More →

She’s an aspiring singer-songwriter with a long history of performing and caring for others  — and she’s looking for a career that will allow her to share those considerable gifts with future generations.

No surprise, then, that Continuing Education grad Angel Simard has already found her way back to Red River College — to further bolster her Youth Recreation Activity Worker credentials via a diploma from RRC’s Child and Youth Care program.

We caught up with Angel to find out what led her to RRC in the first place, and how her experience here has inspired her to embark on a career path where she can continue helping others.

RRC: Where were you born and raised?

I was born in Pine Falls, Manitoba, but raised in Winnipeg.

What was your favourite thing to do as a kid?

The number one interest of mine was always music. I’ve always had a passion for music, whether it’s singing, songwriting, or learning how to play a musical instrument. As a young child I used to sit down with my grandfather everyday to listen to him sing Hank Williams songs and play guitar, and I would observe him and help him record himself on a tape cassette recorder. He was a talented singer/musician who always wanted to be a country star. The farthest he came to that was singing a tribute to Hank Williams at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville during the 1940s. Music has been passed down from generation to generation in my family and I believe it’s meant to be a part of me and I’m supposed to use that gift and not waste it, and to share that gift when I feel ready to and also to keep passing that gift down to young people. (Which I have done with some of the youth I’ve worked with in my child and youth care practice.) Read More →