News

With the start of a new year, Red River College is proud to open its newest facility, the Paterson GlobalFoods Institute (PGI).

The first group of residents moved into PGI earlier this month, and classes officially started on January 9th for 300 students enrolled in programs in our School of Hospitality and Culinary Arts.

The Culinary Exchange café will start serving the public on January 15th, and Jane’s restaurant will open its doors on February 21st, which is also when a grand opening celebration will be held for this wonderful new addition to Red River College’s Exchange District Campus.

Several local media have featured stories on the facility over the past few weeks, including:

• CBC Manitoba Radio
• Winnipeg Free Press
• Global Winnipeg
• CBC Manitoba TV

Red River College students can avail themselves of financial advice from one of Canada’s leading experts, when TV host Gail Vaz-Oxlade stops by the Notre Dame Campus next week.

The no-nonsense host of TV’s Til Debt Do Us Part and Princess, Vaz-Oxlade will visit RRC on Wednesday, January 16 from 2:30pm – 3:30pm in the South Gym. Her appearance can also be viewed via video-stream in Room 107 of the Exchange District Campus.

If you want to learn more about how to break free from student debt, how to keep your finances under check, or how to build a strong financial foundation that will last a lifetime, come visit Vaz-Oxlade as she swings by RRC as part of her Canada-wide tour to promote the new book Money Rules.

From the official announcement: “Money management doesn’t have to be full of tricks. Although money management isn’t rocket science, having discipline and making sound money decisions often feels more complicated than it should.”

Vaz-Oxlade is one of Canada’s most successful and respected financial writers and has authored several bestselling books, including Debt-Free Forever, Never Too Late, Money-Smart Kids, and It’s Your Money. In addition to her TV work, she’s a radio host on Newstalk 1010.

Earlier this month, Red River College’s Paterson GlobalFoods Institute opened its doors for a very special “sneak peek.”

Donors, partners and supporters of the College were invited to spend an evening in the Exchange District’s newest gem. Guests shared drinks and laughs while admiring the restoration of the historic Union Bank Tower.

They also took tours of the new facility, visited state of the art kitchens, classrooms, labs and even the new student residence — all while learning more about the equipment and sustainability features on campus. Andrew Paterson (shown, second from left), President and CEO of Paterson GlobalFoods was on hand to welcome the crowd and to announce the heart of PGI — upscale restaurant Jane’s, which is located in the building’s breathtaking former bank hall — was a special tribute to his mother.

PGI is scheduled to open its doors in January 2013, and will serve as the new home of RRC’s Culinary Arts, Professional Baking and Patisserie, and Hospitality and Tourism Management programs.

Students and staff at Red River College got into the Christmas spirit a little early this year, with help from a Students’ Association initiative that gave them some face-time with Santa Claus himself.

From Dec. 5 to 7, Students’ Association staff and reps paired with Professional Photography students from RRC’s School of Continuing Education to host a “Photos with Santa” fundraiser in support of the SA’s Food Bank.

The photos were taken in Lockers Lounge, and helped to raise nearly $450 for the Food Bank.

Click here for more information about the Red River College Students’ Association.

(From left): Jonathan Strauss, President, Strauss Communications; Michael Pye, General Manager, Fairmont Winnipeg; Keith Muller, Dean, RRC School of Hospitality and Culinary Arts; Chantal Sturk-Nadeau, Senior Vice-President, Tourism, Economic Development Winnipeg.

Red River College’s leading culinary expert talked turkey with Winnipeg’s tourism industry yesterday, as the keynote speaker at Tourism Winnipeg‘s annual holiday lunch.

Keith Muller, Dean of RRC’s School of Hospitality and Culinary Arts, addressed a festive crowd of local industry reps gathered at the Fairmont Winnipeg, providing details about the College’s soon-to-open Paterson GlobalFoods Institute (PGI) and its anticipated impact on the local economy.

“All indicators show there will be a labour shortage in specific sectors of the hospitality industry in Canada of over 220,000 skilled workers by 2025,” said Muller, who also donned an apron and chef’s hat to help carve the turkey served to guests. “We at Red River College are ready to take on the challenge of training industry-ready students.”

As Muller explained, the PGI will provide industry-relevant courses and programs designed to serve the hospitality and tourism sectors — on a local, national and international level — while also engaging members of the community through general interest programming, event rentals, a new urban upscale restaurant, and seven floors of student residence space.

Those gathered also heard from Marina R. James, President and CEO of Economic Development Winnipeg, who congratulated industry reps on the role they’ve played in making Winnipeg a unique and cosmopolitan destination. As well, they were treated to details of the Winnipeg Foundation’s latest initiative — the Nourishing Potential endowment, which provides healthy foods and snacks to community-based after-school programs for kids.

“Winnipeg is in a state of transformation unlike anything we have ever experienced,” said James. “We are awash with iconic destination architecture and asset development — and our usual mild, meek nature has given way to boosterism, pride, boundless enthusiasm and embracing bold new ways of thinking.”

Red River College President Stephanie Forsyth addressed a packed house at an Aboriginal Chamber of Commerce luncheon this week, speaking on the topic of Aboriginal post-secondary education.

Forsyth discussed the College’s longstanding commitment to engaging and supporting Aboriginal students; shared some success stories about Aboriginal graduates who are making a difference in their communities; and outlined how the College plans to make Aboriginal student achievement a strategic priority by integrating traditional knowledge and practices throughout the organization.

The full text of President Forsyth’s speech is below.

Read More →

Story by Elizabeth Catacutan, second-year Creative Communications

What would you do with a three-year supply of the world’s finest chocolate?

Red River College’s Paterson GlobalFoods Institute (PGI) is sharing it with their culinary students to teach them the art and science of chocolate making.

The in-kind donation comes from a partnership between PGI and Cacao Barry and Callebaut, the world’s leading manufacturers of high-quality cocoa and chocolate products. Cacao Barry and Callebaut are recognized around the globe as innovative masters in chocolate products.

“Chocolate isn’t cheap,” says Chantalle Noschese (shown, above), Chef and Culinary Arts Instructor at Red River College.

Noschese returned from training with a master chocolatier from the Barry Callebaut Chocolate Academy late October. This valuable experience is another extension of the partnership agreement with Callebaut, which will see one RRC Culinary instructor sent to Quebec each year to train at the Chocolate Academy.

“It’s important that if I’m teaching students, I need to be as educated as I can be,” says Noschese. “I feel better prepared and more knowledgeable, and I can pass that down to the students.”

The partners have also put in place an agreement that Callebaut’s technical advisor will visit RRC every second year to run a demonstration for aspiring chefs. Callebaut’s master chocolatier was at RRC in early November 2012 for his first visit.

“We’re on trend and that’s only going to enhance the experience for the students,” says Noschese. “They’re getting the best education we can provide thanks to these partnerships.”

Click here for more information about RRC’s Culinary Arts program.

Red River College student Jamie Mckay has been recognized by the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business, with a Shaw Media Award presented by the Foundation for the Advancement of Aboriginal Youth (FAAY).

Mckay, a second-year Creative Communications student at RRC, is one of thousands of Canadian students who’ve received support in the form of FAAY scholarships and bursaries over the years.

A public relations major, Mckay is currently working as an intern at poetry magazine Contemporary Verse 2. Her goal is to use her new skills in the service of a career that allows her to benefit the Aboriginal community.

“I want to spend my life being creative and using my gifts to help others,” Mckay told the CAAB. “Above all, I want to help Aboriginal people — reach them, inspire them, and lift them up so they will be able to do the same.”

Click here for more info about Mckay’s award, and here for more info on RRC’s CreComm program.

(From left): Debbie O’Donnell, interim chair of Community Services at RRC; Janet Forbes, executive director of Community Living – Winnipeg; and RRC instructors Harry Havey, Tara Mullen, Cheryl Martens, and Michelle Lodewyks.

Red River College’s Disability and Community Support program has been recognized by Community Living Manitoba for its leadership role in advocating on behalf of those with intellectual and other disabilities.

A team of DCS representatives (shown above) was on hand to receive the President’s Award for Leadership at a joint national conference hosted by Community Living Manitoba and People First of Manitoba in September.

The award is given annually in recognition of excellence in practice, commitment to inclusion of children with disabilities in community programs, innovation, and spirit of caring.

As a participant for the last 15 years, Red River College grad Sean Grassie brings a unique perspective to his time with the MCA Bonspiel, the biggest and longest-running curling competition in the world.

So it’s no surprise Grassie, a 2009 Creative Communications grad, and skip of both the 1999 Manitoba junior champion and 2009 Canadian Mixed champion teams, has put all that inside info to good use via a new book chronicling the Bonspiel’s 125-year history.

Kings of the Rings was completed as the major project for Grassie’s final year of CreComm, and is the result of more than 100 interviews and untold hours spent poring through the Winnipeg Free Press archives. The book was published by Great Plains Publications, with an initial print run of 3,000, though given the level of curling’s popularity in Manitoba — not to mention the Bonspiel’s pending 125th anniversary — Grassie might soon need a second run.

First launched in 1887, the Bonspiel has become a cultural institution in Winnipeg — and remains unparalleled in sport as an event where amateurs might find themselves competing against world champions.

“It’s unlike any other bonspiel you’ll see in the world,” Grassie told the Winnipeg Free Press. “Most bonspiels feature either the really elite teams of the next tier, but the MCA is that rare event that brings together the whole fabric of the curling community — from the world champions to the once-a-week curlers. That’s what attracts me.”

Grassie himself came within one game of winning the entire bonspiel last year — skipping his team all the way to the finals before losing in the last game to a team from Wisconsin.

Click here for more information on Kings of the Rings, and here for more about RRC’s Creative Communications program.