Humber Continuous Professional Learning (CPL) recently took the time to celebrate a milestone in its short history, marking 19,000+ enrolments in the 2023-2024 academic year.

Formerly Humber Continuing Education (CE), CPL was established in 2021 to oversee and champion Humber’s professional learning, upskilling, micro-credentialing and industry accreditations, and has seen significant growth since it’s inception. Frank Cappadocia, Dean of CPL, attributes this year's 37 per cent increase in enrolments to the collaborative efforts of individuals and teams across various areas of the Polytechnic, including CPL Central, Community Outreach Workforce Development (COWD), Education Training Services (ETS) and each Academic Faculty. 

Supporters from across the institution gathered to mark the occasion, with remarks from the Dean and the 19,000th enrolled learner, mid-career learner Jason Mercier, VP Operations at Retirement Life Communities and current learner in the Condominium Management program. Jason admitted while his return to learning was born out of a need for formal accreditation, his experience with Humber has been a positive one, which has fueled his ambition to continue to pursue ongoing learning.

CPL has its sights set on continuing its upward trajectory as it rounds out the 2024-25 academic year, with many exciting projects and further milestones on the horizon.

For information about continuous professional learning options for you or your team, visit humber.ca/cpl.

We are thrilled to share the success of our 2025 Health Innovation Challenge. This year’s challenge brought together 40 talented students from 19 different programs from six faculties across Humber and Guelph-Humber as Humber Health Innovators, to create concepts for community-based, culturally sensitive, and family-focused programs to enhance the positive mental well-being of immigrant and refugee families in Peel Region. 

This year, our student teams gained real world experience by working with mentors from five different community organizations, and we extend a heartfelt thank you to our mentors from Peel Newcomer Strategy Group, COSTI Immigrant Services, Roots Community Services, Punjabi Community Health Services, and Family Services of Peel, for guiding the Humber Health Innovator teams through this project. Many thanks as well to Dr. Blanca Bolea-Almanac, Psychiatrist and Scientist, Women's College Hospital for providing her time and insights to the teams as they developed their program concepts.

We heard from our inspiring keynote speaker, Aamna Ashraf, Senior Manager of Health Equity at CAMH, whose insights set a motivating tone for the day, and our community partner Dr. Cilia Mejia-Lancheros, Institute for Better Health - Trillium Health Partners, whose expertise and guidance was instrumental in shaping the students' projects. Dr. Mejia-Lancheros shared the performance of a Colombian Cumbia Traditional Dance, adding a vibrant touch to the event and showcasing the rich diversity within our community and our connection to the land. 

The highlight of the day was the live pitches by the student teams, where they presented their program concepts to the audience. Their hard work and dedication were evident as their presentations generated strong engagement from the audience.

This year’s Health Innovation Challenge not only provided a platform for Humber students to showcase their innovative ideas but also emphasized the importance of cross faculty and inter- disciplinary work in solving complex problems such as accessibility of mental health supports for newcomers in an inclusive way. Through this innovative project and many such more, CIHW is creating a healthier tomorrow for all!

Do you have an innovative idea or know of an industry partner who wants ot engage in applied research in health and innovation? Connect and email us at vanita.varma@humber.ca.

Journal of Innovation in Polytechnic Education (JIPE) has issued Calls For Papers for two upcoming special issues: Measuring the Impact of Social Innovation and Empowering Futures.  

The deadline to submit an Expression of Interest is April 1.

JIPE welcomes contributions that include empirical research, theoretical analyses, comprehensive reviews, and case studies.

Learn more about JIPE and how to submit your Expression of Interest.

Questions regarding these calls for papers may be directed to the JIPE editorial desk at humberpress@humber.ca.

Emergency Response Training Exercise on the Finch West Light Rail Transit Line-  Call for Volunteers - Sunday, April 27, 2025

An exciting opportunity awaits you! 

An emergency response exercise will be conducted on the Finch West LRT. We are looking for student volunteers to participate in the exercise in various roles. 

The exercise will take place on Sunday, April 27 from approximately 7 a.m. to 12 p.m. 

Humber Polytechic, TTC, Toronto Police, Toronto Fire and Toronto Paramedic services will all participate in the joint emergency exercise. 

We are looking for volunteers to participate as passengers on the train. This is an exciting opportunity to be involved in an emergency exercise and see the LRT before it opens. 

PLAYERS/PASSENGERS

We are looking for approximately 60 volunteers to play the role of passengers on a Light Rail Train. Volunteers must be at least 18 years of age, able to give informed consent, and be able to walk unassisted when exiting the train for a short distance (approximately 200 metres). The exercise will take place in proximity to Humber Polytechnic. Some passengers may be asked to simulate the effects of minor injuries during the exercise. Injuries will be distributed randomly amongst players.

If you are staff or faculty at either Humber Polytechnic or the University of Guelph-Humber and are interested in participating in this exciting exercise, please complete the MS Forms using the link below. Please complete the form no later than Friday, April 4, 2025 at 4 p.m.. Once you are confirmed as a player, you will receive more information about the exercise. 

Call for Volunteers for TTC Exercise

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me, Kathy Branton, Manager, Business Continuity and Emergency Management at kathy.branton@humber.ca. 

Thank you, 

Kathy Branton
Manager, Business Continuity and Emergency Management
Humber Polytechnic