The ongoing partnership between Red River College and the Shenyang Institute of Engineering (SIE) has led to an award-winning project in which Power Engineering Technology lectures are delivered online to students in China.

The new initiative, in which two courses per year are delivered through a mix of online and on-site lectures, recently resulted in a 2011 Learning Innovation Award for RRC instructor David Kinasevych (Mechanical, Manufacturing & Communications) and Duojiao (Sarah) Guan, a visiting faculty member from Shenyang, China.

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Aboriginal youth aged 11 to 13 got their first taste of trades and technology programming, while participating in Red River College’s second annual Hands-On Activity Week for Kids (H.A.W.K.).

The five-day summer camp, which ran July 25 – 29, blended cultural programming, recreation time and team-building exercises with hands-on activities and games that introduced them to such skilled trades- and technology-related programs as Construction Trades, Electronics, Mechanical Engineering Technology/Manufacturing, Aviation and Civil Engineering.

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Staff and instructors at Red River College helped expose young women to an array of trades- and technology-related career options this summer, by hosting the Girls Exploring Trades & Technology (GETT@RRC) Camps over three weeks in July.

With a focus on technology and applied skills, the GETT@RRC camps provide girls 12-14 with a chance to explore non-traditional career options via hands-on activities and encounters with female mentors. The camps reinforce the importance of pursuing science, advanced math and industrial arts courses in high school, by stressing the impact these subjects can have on future career choices.

“During the five-day GETT camps, the instructor and assistants emphasize to the girls the importance of continuing with Math and Science courses because many occupations, particularly technical ones, require a solid grounding in these subjects,” says Dr. Dale Watts, Dean of the School of Construction and Engineering Technologies. “An awareness of that requirement at this age may provide the motivation for these students to continue taking Math and Science courses throughout secondary school.”

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Shaw TV’s loss is Red River College’s gain.

Longtime Shaw TV personality Joanne Kelly has revealed she’ll be leaving the community-access channel by mid-August, having accepted a new position as a journalism instructor with RRC’s industry-renowned Creative Communications program.

“I can’t believe I am writing this,” Kelly said in a Twitter post yesterday, “but after seven amazing years at Shaw TV I am moving on to my other dream job — teaching CreComm!!!”

Kelly — who’s served as host and producer at Shaw since 2004, and a producer at CTV stations in Winnipeg and Vancouver in years prior — will take over broadcast journalism duties from former CreComm instructor Steve Vogelsang, who retired in June. Read More →

Red River College instructor Linda Ament accepted a prestigious honour on behalf of General Mills Winnipeg recently, after the company was named Employer of the Year at the Manitoba Food Processors Association’s Industry Excellence Awards.

The award was based on a wide range of criteria, including General Mills’ employee relations, training, communications, continuous improvement, labour relations, and compensation and benefits practices. Ament (shown, bottom right), who serves as Human Resources Manager at GM’s Winnipeg plant, says the honour comes at an especially important time in the company’s evolution.

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Bill Fraser has been appointed the new Chair of the Aviation and Aerospace department at Red River College.

Bill has been involved in aircraft maintenance training for 16 years, and has spent the last nine years as the coordinator for the Aircraft Maintenance Engineering (AME) diploma program at RRC's Stevenson Campus in Winnipeg. Previously, he worked for several companies as an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer, including eight years as a crew chief supervising AMEs and apprentices. Bill holds a current AME M1 and M2 license.    

An accomplished writer, Bill is the author of “CARs for the AME”, a text on the Canadian Aviation Regulations used by approved training and maintenance organizations across Canada. He has also published articles for the CBC, Wings magazine and the Winnipeg Free Press. Bill has been very active within the Manitoba aerospace and aviation industry, and has received an award of recognition from the Manitoba Aerospace Association for his leadership in organizing aviation events, such as the Centennial of Flight Aircraft Display.

"Bill is very enthusiastic about the future for aviation and aerospace in Manitoba, Canada and globally," says Don MacDonald, Dean of RRC's School of Transportation, Aviation and Manufacturing. "We are excited to have him lead our aviation and aerospace programs, staff and students — ensuring we meet the challenges and opportunities of the future."    

Diagrams and PowerPoint presentations have been replaced by real-life technology thanks to a new simulation lab that's been added to Red River College's Medical Laboratory Sciences (MLS) training curriculum for biochemistry.

This innovative new teaching approach — the result of a partnership with Diagnostic Services of Manitoba Inc. (DSM) and Roche, a diagnostic vendor — provides RRC students with a more dynamic learning experience and better prepares them for both their on-site practicum and eventual employment.

"I was surprised that by just changing the way you teach and how you present your information, you can dramatically alter how we — the students — perceive the topic and our recall ability," said Anthony Villanueve, a med lab technologist-in-training who was among the first group of RRC students to use the simulation equipment.

"The activities stimulated our minds and made us think, instead of just absorbing. Instead of asking (us) what we would do in a situation, the situation was created and we were asked to fix it."

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Staff and graduates of RRC's Youth Recreation Activity Worker program were joined by community leaders and local dignitaries earlier this month, to celebrate the program's 10th year of making a difference in the lives of inner city youth.

The program — which prepares young adults (aged 18 to 29) to work with inner city youth by providing healthy recreational activities — was launched in 2001, in response to a need for trained staff to facilitate drop-in programming at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Winnipeg.

Building on existing materials from RRC's Child and Youth Care program, a new 10-month certificate program was created to train young adults as recreational leaders.

Students involved with the program — all of whom face multiple barriers themselves — study such topics as child and youth care, psychology and first aid. Many go on to find employment with Boys and Girls Clubs and other inner city youth agencies, and as childhood educators and teacher's aides.

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Student athletes who are adept on the soccer pitch are sure to be in demand at Red River College this fall, as RRC will be fielding collegiate soccer teams for the first time in recent memory. Participating in the Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference (MCAC), the RRC Rebels will compete against teams from Providence College, Canadian Mennonite University, Collège universitaire de Saint-Boniface, and University of Winnipeg.

Twenty spots will be available on each of the men’s and women’s teams, with tryouts to be held in early September. The upcoming season — which will consist of eight games for the men and six for the women — is scheduled to extend through the end of October, culminating in a championship showdown.

“We’re really excited about the new RRC soccer teams and are confident they will carry on the Rebels sports tradition of success and sportsmanship,” says Ryan Ratushniak, Manager of Athletics and Recreation Services at Red River College.  “This new addition will give the RRC community of Rebels supporters and sports fans one more reason to cheer this fall.” 

For more information on Rebels Athletics, visit www.rrc.ca/athletics. 

The Association of Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC) has named Ray Hoemsen, Director of Applied Research & Commercialization at Red River College (RRC) as their prestigious Gold Leadership Excellence Award winner.

“Mr. Hoemsen was recognized for the exceptional work he has done in creating and leading sustained applied research, innovation, and commercialization programs in Manitoba,” said James Knight, ACCC President and CEO. “His leadership in this area has been a model for other colleges regionally and nationally.”

Every year, the ACCC recognizes an individual from a Canadian college that has made the greatest impact on his/her institution and, as a result, the communities it serves.

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