Believe it or not, it’s been more than two years since the official launch of the Humber Learning Outcomes (HLOs). Since then, we’ve been busy navigating the impacts of the pandemic and working with departments across the college to ensure learners will be able to articulate the HLO mindsets and skills they have developed at Humber.

Why is this important? The HLOs are included in Humber’s 2018-23 Strategic Plan under the Career-Ready Citizens strategic pillar. They encompass strategic priority #1: Integrate core, 21st century global citizenship and employability skills into all program curricula. The HLO mindsets and skills are essential for graduate success in both work and life, identified by Humber staff, faculty, students, and industry and community partners.

We’ve also had some changes to the team and many successes we want to share with the Humber community.

Current HLO Team

Vera Beletzan, Associate Vice-President, Teaching and Learning, continues to serve as the HLO strategic initiative lead, while Lisa Salem-Wiseman and Sarah Nieman are leading the implementation of the HLOs across the Humber community.

Lisa Salem-Wiseman, Associate Dean and Special Advisor, Humber Learning Outcomes - Joining the HLO project in January 2022, Lisa has been meeting with Academic Division leaders to pilot an updated HLO implementation process with programs across all six Faculties. She will be actively involved in the ongoing strategic leadership of the HLOs.

Sarah Nieman, Project Manager, Humber Learning Outcomes - For more than four years, Sarah has been instrumental in all components of the research, development and launch of the HLO framework. She is currently focused on finalizing faculty toolkit resources and planning the next implementation phase for the HLOs. Along with Lisa, she also works closely with other strategic plan leads to maximize the impact of the HLOs with areas such as Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, Internationalization, Sustainability, and more.

Here are some key achievements and upcoming plans from the HLO team:

  • Faculty from more than 30 programs across all Academic Faculties have engaged with the HLOs, supporting the development of an intuitive implementation process that will be piloted in upcoming semesters.
  • The HLOs are an essential part of the International Graduate School’s Community and Industry Engagement course; more than 600 students have drawn connections and reflected on their skill and mindset development through this programming.
  • The HLO team is developing faculty toolkits for the HLO mindsets that will support faculty teaching practices. These toolkits will be available on the Innovative Learning website in Fall 2022 and will have opportunities for all faculty members to contribute to and improve these essential resources.
  • Tentatively scheduled for Fall 2022, communication outreach will increase towards all faculty members regarding the next implementation phase of the HLOs. By 2024, it is anticipated that courses in all 215 full-time programs will incorporate the HLOS into their curriculum.

Faculty members who are interested in deeper work with the HLOs are encouraged to speak with their program coordinator and/or Associate Dean.

Lisa and Sarah continue to provide presentations and workshops to showcase the importance of the HLOs for Humber, students and alumni as they enter the workforce. If you are interested in a presentation or workshop on how you can incorporate the HLOs into your area, please contact Sarah Nieman at sarah.nieman@humber.ca.

To all Humber faculty, staff and students who have participated in HLO development, thank you! This is truly a collaborative project, and the work is shaped by us all.

Sincerely,

Vera Beletzan
Associate Vice-President, Teaching and Learning
Strategic Initiative Lead, Humber Learning Outcomes