Pembroke

Pembroke : Soul-soothing and Spectacular

For those considering studying at our Pembroke Waterfront Campus, a recent article by The Wedge: A New Voice for Eastern Ontario introduces those new to Pembroke to the charm that our City has to offer.

“We finally traveled to the far northwest corner of the wedge. This is a milestone in our 1.1 years since launch. This node is a city named Pembroke–the largest in the Ottawa Valley. It sits on the Ottawa River and has a few rivers running through it, the Muskrat River and the Indian River.

Bridge over Muskrat River, flows by City Hall shown, Downtown Pembroke, Ontario, CANADA PHOTO BY the wedge.LIVE

Pembroke is a good 45 minutes West of the Town of Renfrew and one hour from the Town of Arnprior. The three offer travelers a perfect ‘puddle-jumping’ trek across the Ottawa Valley. Pembroke is also 30 minutes or less from Algonquin Park and could bring a trip to a perfect close this Fall and year-round.

“Technicallyyyy, we are the smallest city in Canada.”

“Technicallyyyy, we are the smallest city in Canada,” a few locals said. This is invariably uttered with a grin and a low brow. So it seems, the needle wiggles around 16,000 population–the miracle number that identifies a place as a ‘city’ and no longer a ‘town.’” Read more of the Wedge: A New Voice for Eastern Ontario article >>

Waterfront Campus Enrolments Top 1,000 Students for First Time

On Friday, September 1 at 11:44 a.m. Algonquin College’s Pembroke Campus made history. When second-year Practical Nursing student, Laura Edmonds, walked into the admissions office to enroll for her fall classes, she became the 1,000th student to register for the fall intake of students.

Student #1000It was the first time in the fifty year history of the campus that the enrolment in full-time programs exceeded four digits. Edmonds was greeted by clapping and congratulations by the admissions staff who were on the watch for student number 1,000, knowing the historical significance for a campus that started with 16-full-time students when it opened its doors in 1968.

The record enrolment is continuing a trend that started several years ago when the campus began introducing several unique programs that have helped it attract students from outside of Renfrew County. Programs like Outdoor Adventure, Urban Forestry-Arboriculture, Applied Nuclear Science and Radiation Safety continue to pull out of town students, and have been the primary reason why developers have built three privately owned and operated student residences to house visiting students.

PembrokeThere are now more than 170 students living in residence and many more who are renting or boarding in other apartments and homes in the Pembroke area. The out-of-town student population has grown to be about 50 percent of the students enrolled in the campus.

The campus now offers 21 full-time programs leading to certificates, diplomas, and degrees. As Algonquin College’s largest regional campus, it is blossoming as it celebrates its fifth year of operation at its Waterfront Campus which has become an anchor for Pembroke’s downtown, igniting a renaissance of the city’s inner core. The best example is the new residences, but the energy that has been created has resulted in new stores, façade and building improvements and increased investment in infrastructure such as roads, sidewalks and bridges.

Rome was not built in a day, and it has taken a lot of work by the dedicated administration, faculty and support staff at the campus to bring about record enrolments. The college employees who worked so hard at the old campus to create an exceptional learning environment for students, while making do with inadequate facilities, paved the way for creating a caring culture on campus.

The new campus has taken that commitment to student success, excellent teaching and customer service to a new level. With a beautiful facility built along the picturesque shores of the Ottawa River, it has become a destination campus for both local and out of town students like Laura Edmonds of Cobden.

Not many people have the opportunity to make history. Edmonds did, by being in the right place at the right time. She is student number 1,000 at a campus that looks forward to four-digit enrolments being the norm, not the exception, as its plans for the next fifty years.

Posted by Jamie Bramburger, Manager of Community and Student Affairs at Algonquin College’s Pembroke Waterfront Campus

 

 

 

An Incredible Week at Algonquin’s Pembroke Waterfront Campus

There are very few weeks in the 50 year history of Algonquin College’s Pembroke Campus that would rival this past week. A former Prime Minister delivering a convocation address, celebrating a high profile alumnus who has raised thousands of dollars for the campus and an inspiring big swim by a faculty member trying to raise awareness about a complicated environmental issue, were all part of the past seven days.

Convocation 2017, Algonquin College, Pembroke Campus Let’s start with former Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Paul Martin, who challenged the class of 2017 to do their part in helping Canada be the best that it can be. Canada’s 21st Prime Minister was speaking from the heart, after being deeply moved by the college’s acknowledgement of his late father’s political accomplishments through the awarding of a posthumous Honorary Degree.

The Right Honourable Paul Martin Senior spent 33 years as an elected member of the House of Commons and is best known for his work as Canada’s Health and Wellness Minister, and Secretary of State. What is not as well known is that he grew up in Pembroke, and many of his political views were formed from his childhood in Pembroke, where he contracted polio as a young boy and his family struggled to make ends meet.

Martin Sr. would be a father of universal health care, would ultimately make the decision to introduce polio vaccinations that would save thousands of Canadian children, and would be instrumental in having many additional countries enter the United Nations. In his speech, his son would tell the graduates, ” Yes, my Dad made history, but he never could have done it had the people of Pembroke not been there for him.”

Jason Blaine, Business Grad, Algonquin College, Pembroke CampusA few days before the graduation ceremony, one of the Pembroke Campus’s most successful graduates was being celebrated. Country Music Artist, Jason Blaine, was honoured with a plaque on a computer lab at the campus for raising $100,000 towards the building costs of the Waterfront Campus, which opened in 2012.

jason BlaineBlaine was in town for his annual concert and golf tournament which raised $90,000, and has now brought in almost $300,000 over its first four years. Moving forward, he has committed to using funds from his charity to establish an endowment for students in financial need, so they can attend the Waterfront Campus.

The week was capped off by the incredible and inspirational “big swim” by Environmental Technician Coordinator, Sarah Hall. After weeks of training, Hall swam more than 16 kilometres through choppy and cold water in the Muskrat Lake, raising more than $4,000 and bringing awareness to the serious environmental issues facing the watershed.

Sarah Hall

Hall and her students have spent countless hours doing research and trying to find solutions to the causes of algae blooms which have plagued the watershed for many years. Exhausted and cold, Hall was greeted to a heroes welcome when she reached the shoreline in the village of Cobden, after more than five hours in the water.

That’s a lot in one week, but it’s also a snapshot of how many great things are happening at Algonquin College’s Waterfront Campus in Pembroke. Truly amazing!

Posted by Jamie Bramburger, Manager of Community and Student Affairs

Waterfront Campus to Honour Great Canadian Paul Martin Senior at Convocation Ceremony

When Paul Martin Sr. rose in the House of Commons on February 24, 1937 to encourage the federal government to provide scholarships to outstanding students who could not afford to attend post-secondary education, he was reflecting on his own experiences growing up in a low income family in Pembroke.

The future Liberal cabinet minister had attended several higher education institutes including some of the most prestigious schools in the world, but none of those experiences would have happened without the generosity of others.

Paul Martin Sr.Martin’s original plans were to become a Priest and he received help through the Pembroke Diocese of the Catholic Church to pay tuition at a school in Gatineau, Quebec. While studying in Gatineau, he remained enthralled with the happenings at near-by Parliament Hill, where he climbed a tree to watch the funeral procession for one of his early political heroes, Sir Wilfrid Laurier. He had left home at only 15 years of age and by his late teenage years, he knew politics was where he wanted to be.

As a stepping stone to public life, Martin pursued a law degree by first studying at St. Michael’s College on his road to Osgoode Hall in Toronto. His interest in international matters led him to Harvard University in Boston and then Trinity College in Cambridge, England. When he returned to Canada, his quest to enter politics continued as he became involved with the Liberal party, making valuable connections across the country.

After an unsuccessful provincial election bid in his hometown, Martin settled in Windsor where he went on to win ten consecutive elections leading to a 33-year career in the House of Commons.

Paul Martin Sr.Best known for his work as Minister of Health and Wellness, Martin is widely credited along with Tommy Douglas as the fathers of universal health care in Canada. He also initiated the introduction of mandatory polio vaccinations for children, a move that saved thousands of lives. Martin and his son, the future Prime Minister, both suffered from polio as children, and he was determined to eradicate the disease.

Martin’s first cabinet post came ten years after he was elected when he became Canada’s Secretary of State. He was well respected at the United Nations and was a major influence to Canadian social policy following the second World War, advocating programs such as unemployment insurance, a minimum wage and the right of workers to unionize. After voluntarily leaving politics, he joined the senate as the government house leader and finished his political career as the High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.

Paul Martin Sr. was a great Canadian. He served under four Prime Ministers, and while he never had the opportunity to lead his country as its highest elected official, he arguably made some of the greatest contributions to our country though his work as a senior Liberal Cabinet minister.

On June 16, 2017, Algonquin College will pay tribute to his legacy through the posthumous awarding of an Honorary Degree to Paul Martin Senior. The Degree will be accepted by Canada’s 21st Prime Minister Paul Martin Jr., who is deeply touched by the college’s efforts. “This all the more so because of my Dad’s earliest initiative following his fist election in 1935 was to table a resolution in parliament, advocating more student aid which, as he said in his memoirs, reflected ‘my own experience as a boy whose parents could not afford to pay for his education.'”

All graduation ceremonies are special, but given the fact that Canada is celebrating its 150th birthday and the college is marking its 50th anniversary, listening to the address by the former Prime Minister will be a wonderful opportunity for all of the graduates and a life experience that will stick with them long after they leave Algonquin College.

The convocation ceremony will begin at 1 p.m. The ceremony is open to the public.

(Posted by Jamie Bramburger, Manager of Community and Student Affairs)

Spring Conference Delivers Great Professional Development Opportunity

Jim Kyte played a tough brand of hockey, but it’s not surprising he lasted 17 years in professional hockey, considering the obstacles he had to overcome. The NHL’s first deaf player will share his incredible story as the keynote speaker at Algonquin College’s annual Spring Business Leadership Conference on May 25, 2017 at the Waterfront Campus in Pembroke.

Jim Kyte, Keynote Speaker at Spring Business and Leadership Conference, Algonquin College, PembrokeNow into its third year, the conference provides great value to small town businesses in Eastern Ontario by providing high quality professional development opportunities at a very reasonable cost. In its first year, the conference attracted more than 60 people. That number jumped to more than 90 registrants last year, and this spring the College expects the conference to exceed more than 100 attendees, based on the positive feedback it has received on the conference.

Built on a theme of bringing a “big city” conference to the Ottawa Valley, the line-up includes several workshop presenters who have participated in larger conferences in places like Toronto, Ottawa and Kingston. The line-up is supplemented with the continuing education faculty from the Waterfront Campus, providing an opportunity to showcase the high quality trainers the College has available locally.

Amongst the presenters this year is Doug Wotherspoon, Algonquin College’s Vice-President of Innovation and Strategy, who will provide tips on how businesses can build a sustainable competitive strategy. Wotherspoon will introduce his audience to the “playing to win” model, a simple framework that looks to ask five integrated questions to help businesses think ahead and align their company for sustainable success.

Sylvie Rimbach is a human behaviour strategist who will focus her workshop on being a courageous leader in today’s competitive landscape. Rimbach’s session will explore the power and influence leaders have, turning leadership into a verb, not a noun.

Katie Tollis-Flabbi, Spring Business and Leadership Conference, Algonquin College, Pembroke

Katie Tollis-Flabbi is a young entrepreneur with a passion for marketing. As a business owner and part-time faculty member at the Waterfront Campus, Tollis-Flabbi will share six practical and easy marketing steps for a small business. The goal is to share ideas that won’t break the bank, but will generate revenue and much needed exposure for a small business with a limited marketing budget.

Two of the sessions will focus on the pending labour market shortage being driven by an aging population. Angela Hoyt is the President of Evolution Group and for the past 19 years she has helped organizations manage performance. Her session promises to provide the audience with tools they can use to attract the right employees at a time when they will be hard to find.

Chela Breckon is the Coordinator of the Local Immigration Partnership program in Renfrew and Lanark County. A passionate advocate for immigration in rural regions, Breckon will help business leaders build a welcoming strategy that will support their efforts to attract newcomers to their workplace.

There are also workshops on social media and public and media relations, areas that are evolving but becoming increasingly important for businesses and organizations of all sizes. The keynote address by Jim Kyte, lunch and a refreshment/networking break, an after conference social and the awarding of a business innovation award are all part of the conference.

Early bird registration rates for the conference are in place until March 31st and businesses that send three employees will receive a fourth registration free. At $199, plus HST, (early bird rate) the conference is very affordable and for most attendees will not require any additional expenses for overnight accommodation, travel or meal expenses.

The Spring Business Leadership conference has been designed to support small and medium sized businesses in both the private and public sectors. Given its growth since being launched in 2015, it appears it has hit the mark.

Posted by; Jamie Bramburger, Manager of Community and Student Affairs

 

Admissions Offer Day!

Ground HogWhile Punxsutawney Phil and Wiarton Willie prepare to celebrate the end of winter (we hope), the eve of Ground Hog Day is a time for celebration in the Ontario College system. It’s the day that colleges start sending out offers of admission to the thousands of prospective students who apply to college each year.

February 1st is known as the equal opportunity deadline, but it’s also the day colleges start letting applicants know if they have met the admission requirements for the programs they have applied to. Yes, there will be some disappointed applicants, but colleges are very good at making alternative offers that help applicants stay on their pathway to their chosen career.

At Algonquin College’s Waterfront Campus, applicants can expect a very personalized experience as they learn their admissions status. They will be able to check their application on the Ontario College Application Service website to see if the college has made them an offer of admission.

Open House - March 11, Algonquin College, Pembroke CampusLater in the day, they can expect a congratulatory email from the Waterfront Campus that will provide additional information on their next steps in the admissions process. The email will also include a congratulatory video message from their program coordinator and a personalized invitation to attend the campus March Break Open House on Saturday, March 11th.

By late afternoon or evening, college faculty and student services staff will be calling accepted applicants to congratulate them and answer any questions they might have about their program or the Waterfront Campus.

All of these touchpoints are part of the college’s effort to help applicants feel comfortable with the decision they are making to enroll in a post-secondary program. It’s also the first step in building a relationship with incoming students.

Over the course of the admissions cycle, there will be plenty of opportunities for new students to get to know the campus and the faculty who will be teaching them. There will be invitations to open houses, program preparation camps, jump-start academic programs and of course orientation activities. By the time, September rolls around, students will be very familiar with their new surroundings. Students and families can also get to know our campus by joining our online community through Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

It all starts on February 1st, when the Waterfront Campus says congratulations, you’ve been accepted into college!

Posted by: Jamie Bramburger, Manager of Community and Student Affairs

Canadian History Highlights 2017 Speaker Series

2017 is a very special year for Canada and Algonquin College. Both have a milestone birthday as the country celebrates being 150 years old and the College marks its 50th anniversary.

To celebrate these two occasions, Algonquin College’s Waterfront Campus is dedicating its 2017 speaker series to covering topics of Canadian history.

Speaker SeriesThe Speaker Series kicked off recently with Steve Paikin, long time host of TVO’s popular political program, The Agenda. Paikin has written a book on former Ontario Premier, Bill Davis, the founder of the Ontario college system.

Davis was Ontario’s second longest serving Premier and over his 14 years heading the province he had many accomplishments, but his legacy focuses on education through his work in founding colleges and introducing equal funding for the Catholic school system.

On April 18th, the College will welcome Tricia Logan, Education and Outreach Coordinator for the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation. The NTR commission issued 94 calls to action in its landmark report which dealt with several sensitive issues including residential schools.

Residential School

Logan’s presentation will focus on the legacy of the residential schools, the inclusion and exclusion of the schools in Canadian history and what it means to approach a new version of Canada and revised Canadian histories.

Sean Conway is well known at Queen’s Park for his oratory skills. Now retired as an elected member of provincial parliament, Conway is a frequent lecturer at universities across the province.

He has put together a talk entitled, “The Character and Colour of the Ottawa Valley Political Tradition” that he will present at the Waterfront Campus on May 8th. Filled with stories about politicians at all levels who represented Ottawa Valley constituents, the lecture will be a wonderful history lesson on local politics.

Kingston PenitentiaryThe now closed Kingston Penitentiary was Canada’s oldest and most notorious prison. It was also the backdrop for author Merilyn Simonds’ best selling book, “The Convict Lover” which tells the story of a young Renfrew man who is imprisoned, but has a romance with a young woman while serving time for a series of misdeeds in the Ottawa Valley.

Simonds, who has authored 17 books, will participate in the Speaker Series on September 12th sharing many stories about what led to Canada’s first prison riot.

the deciding game of the 72 Summit Series with the Soviet Union.For Canadian hockey fans, September 28, 1972 is a date that will live on as one of the defining moments in Canadian sports history. It was the day that Paul Henderson of the Toronto Maple Leafs scored a late goal for Canada in the deciding game of the Summit Series with the Soviet Union.

2017 marks the 45th anniversary of that historic game, and author Roy MacSkimming will be in Pembroke on September 28th to talk about the series and his book entitled, “Cold War.” MacSkimming wrote the book for the 25th anniversary of Henderson’s goal, and will re-live the series which was about much more than hockey, but rather a battle between two political systems at a time when tensions between the west and the Soviet bloc were at their peak.

The 2017 series wraps up with Charlotte Gray on November 8th, as she speaks about her book entitled, The Promise of Canada. Gray will explore the great achievements in our country’s history, while acknowledging the darker shadows of our past.

More speaker series engagements may be added, but 2017 is shaping up to be a very special time for those interested in Canada’s history.

Posted by: Jamie Bramburger, Manager of Community and Student Affairs

Celebrating 50th Anniversary with New Programs at Waterfront Campus

As Algonquin College prepares to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2017, it will also launch several new programs at its Waterfront Campus.

Building on the success of its unique programs that attract students from across Canada, the campus is adding three programs to its line-up that are expected to draw students from both within Renfrew County and beyond the region’s geographical boundaries.

The most unique of these programs is the Action Sports and Park Development one year certificate program. As skateboard parks, BMX biking trails and snowboarding facilities become common place, this growing industry requires skilled workers who can build, design and maintain these extreme sport parks.

Algonquin College, Action Sports and Park Development

 

This is the first college program of its kind in Canada, and compliments the already very popular Outdoor Adventure program which was introduced at the campus more than 15 years ago, leading to a significant surge in the campus’s out-of-town population.

Urban Forestry-Arboriculture is also on the docket for the fall 2017 intake. This is also a one year certificate program, and while some other colleges also deliver this program, it will help the Waterfront Campus open up more opportunities for students who are looking for a career in the forestry sector. Over the past several years, the Forestry Technician program has had pent up demand, resulting in some students being placed on a wait list because all of the seats in the program were filled.

Urban Forestry - Arboriculture, Algonquin College

The third program being introduced is actually an expansion of the Radiation Safety program. The program will be renamed to Applied Nuclear Science and Radiation Safety and move from a one year certificate to a two-year diploma program, primarily to ensure the curriculum is meeting the expectations of the nuclear industry.

Bruce Power, Ontario’s largest private electricity generating company, has already endorsed the program by publicly choosing it as among a hand full of programs that it will endorse for its future workforce needs.

Applied Nuclear Science and Radiation Safety student experience

In addition to these new programs, others are changing. The Police Foundations program that has been traditionally offered as a two year diploma, will move to a compressed format allowing students to earn their college diploma in one calendar year.

The General Arts and Science Pre-Nursing and Pre-Health Sciences programs will also be getting a new name. There have also been some curriculum updates to these programs to allow them to offer enhanced pathways to college certificate and diploma programs and college and university degree programs. These changes are province wide and should be announced soon.

2017 will be a very special year of celebration for the college, and there is no way to better celebrate than by offering more programming.

 

Posted by Jamie Bramburger, Manager of Community and Student Affairs

 

 

Orientation Starts Early at the Waterfront Campus

In the world of post-secondary education, there really isn’t any as exciting as orientation week. Each fall, the start of the school year brings together a new group of students who are full of energy and enthusiasm, and eager to meet new people as they start their college journey.

Group of Applied Research students and staff in group photo outdoorsAt many colleges, orientation is the first time that students are meeting their new classmates, but at Algonquin College’s Waterfront Campus, in many cases, it’s an opportunity to connect with familiar faces. The reason is the campus has increasingly created more opportunities for students to get to know each other through pre-orientation activities such as Program Awareness Camps held each spring and Jump Start pre-academic preparation programs offered in August.

With about 50 percent of the campus student population having to re-locate to Pembroke, these early interventions have become critically important in helping students succeed. It’s the first step to ensure they are comfortable in their new surroundings.

In fact, many students and families have connected with the campus on several occasions before orientation week arrives. They have attended an Open House, taken a campus tour, or participated in a program awareness camp where students experience what their program is going to be like through interactive learning exercises led by their faculty.

A group of Ottawa RedBlacks cheerleaders lift a student in the airThrough these early connections, students have been able to stay in contact with other incoming students throughout the summer months via social media, phone calls, texting or even face-to-face meetings. When they arrive for orientation, the nervousness has subsided because they are greeted by another student who they have already gotten to know quite well.

Orientation week is packed with activities. There are free lunches, whitewater rafting trips, a pub, movie nights, yoga sessions, bubble soccer in the gymnasium, board games and a move in day BBQ for students living in residence. The social activities will continue over the next few weeks as the school year starts, and students gradually settle into their academic programs.

downtown Pembroke

The value of a robust orientation program can never be questioned, but for many of our students it’s just an extension of the relationships they started building with other students several months ago. For younger students, in particular, this approach goes a long way in helping them get off to a good start at college.

 

Posted by Jamie Bramburger, Manager of Community and Student Affairs

Summer Struggles-Deciding Whether to Apply to College

BewilderedIt’s true that most college bound students have their plans in place for this fall, but that doesn’t mean it’s too late to apply to a college program. In fact, every summer there is a small panic among hundreds of students who are frantically trying to get everything in place to enroll in college.

So, why do they leave it so late? In many cases it is circumstances, but more frequently they are dealing with a stomach pit of uncertainly of what lies ahead. Many applicants are simply worried they won’t be accepted into college or they won’t be successful.

Purple couch - 5 peopleOne of the great things about today’s college system is that there are plenty of supports to help students succeed, and that support starts before they actually begin their classroom studies. Through the admissions process there will be helping hands from staff who work in counselling, registration, student recruitment and financial aid.

Whether it’s taking a campus tour, having transcripts reviewed to determine whether an applicant has the necessary pre-requisites for a program, or learning about student loans and grants, a summer applicant can quickly get the answers they need to make an informed decision.

Geoff Mennie with eelWhile many college programs will now be closed or wait-listed because all of the seats have been filled, there are still dozens of programs that have availability. For example, programs like Business, Office Administration-Executive, Construction Techniques and Environmental Technician at Algonquin College’s Waterfront Campus remain open to applicants.

There’s no question that having a post-secondary credential has become paramount to a person’s ability to progress in the workplace. Increasingly, employers are asking for a minimum of a college certificate or diploma as a starting point to be considered for a job posting. That reality is the primary factor that drives a person’s decision to enroll in a college program.

Colleges have always been accessible to people of all ages and educational backgrounds. Whether it’s a student coming directly from high school, a university graduate who is enrolling in college to strengthen their practical skills within their field of study, or a laid off middle age worker who is training for a new career, there are plenty of options available to students.

Info Session Poster

So, if you’ve been procrastinating about applying to college, you’re not alone. Hundreds of would-be college students are struggling with the same decision this summer. The good news is, it’s not too late!

If you would like more information you can also register for our upcoming Discovery Evening on Thursday, August 4 @ 6:30 p.m.

Posted by Jamie Bramburger, Manager of Community and Student Affairs at Algonquin College’s Waterfront Campus.