December 23rd, 2021

Next chapter: Welcoming 2022 

Masked MPP Jill Dunlop bends over a large, FESTO-branded machine with students and officials in the background, all masked
Ontario’s Minister of Colleges and Universities Jill Dunlop announced micro-credential funding at Humber College's Lakeshore campus earlier this month.

This year, the Humber community continued to show its flexibility, resiliency and perseverance. As we adapted to a changing environment, Humber students, faculty and staff overcame challenges, found new ways to engage and innovate, and produced work that inspires. Our collective creativity and innovation continue to show how we provide the best in polytechnic education and training. I hope you all feel proud of your work and accomplishments. I know I do. 

In my last blog of 2021, I have some campus updates to share.  

Mental health micro-credentials 

Last week at Lakeshore Campus, Humber hosted The Hon. Jill Dunlop, Minister of Colleges and Universities, as she announced a provincial investment of $15 million into rapid training programs to create micro-credentials at colleges, universities, Indigenous Institutes and private career colleges. 

Micro-credentials help people upskill and reskill quickly in an ever-changing workforce. 

The funding will help the college expand its offerings to address the mental health challenges of frontline workers in 2022 by offering two new courses: The Excellence in Mental Health Leadership micro-credential, offered in partnership with Sick Kids Learning Institute, and the Mental Wellness for Front-Line Health-Care Professionals in partnership with the TEMA Foundation. 

Offering health care professionals opportunities to develop the skills they need to identify and support their patients' mental health along with their own is more important than ever. 

Five years of the Lakeshore Grounds Interpretive Centre 

One of our strongest connections to the community at our beautiful Lakeshore campus is through the Lakeshore Grounds Interpretive Centre. This month marks its fifth anniversary. 

Since its inception, the Interpretive Centre has served as a unique cultural resource. It first opened in 2017 inside the Student Welcome and Resource Centre. 

Established with the mission to research, preserve, and share the natural and built heritage of the Lakeshore Grounds, the Interpretive Centre has been a unique hub for both students and the Etobicoke-Lakeshore community to engage with artefacts and artwork that offer a diverse perspective of the region's compelling history.  

The Centre has hosted 20 exhibitions on campus, centring on Indigenous heritage, mental health, education and environmental sustainability. 

In March 2020, the Interpretive Centre team went fully remote but flourished online with virtual programming, including a series of digital exhibits, tours and interactive arts-based workshops. 

In celebration of the Interpretive Centre's fifth birthday, the team is putting together a new exhibition highlighting the Centre's values and dynamic history. The exhibition will invite community members to reflect on the unique stories shared by the Interpretive Centre and preview its future programming. 

Visit www.LakeshoreGrounds.ca to access the Interpretive Centre's ongoing digital programming. You can also find them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at @LakeshoreGrnds. 

The next few months will be eventful and very special for me. I am looking forward to my final semester as President and CEO of Humber College before I retire at the completion of my term in June. Humber has established a Presidential Search Advisory Committee to find the college's fifth president and has begun the process. 

You can learn more about the search at www.humber.ca/presidentialsearch.  

For all the latest Humber information visit www.humber.ca/updates.  

I wish you happy holidays and all the best for 2022.