It is with great sadness that we share the passing of our beloved faculty member, Mike Planche. Mike is survived by his loving wife Janice and his two sons, Ryan and Patrick. 

Mike served the Humber community for over 20 years and did so with an unfettered enthusiasm and positivity that touched hundreds of lives, across students, faculty and staff.  Ask anyone who knew Mike and you will immediately see a smile and hear a story about how Mike helped make them better at what they do. 

Much of Mike’s time was spent in The Business School, where Mike had a long history. Mike served as both Program Coordinator (PC) of Financial Services and later as the PC of Business Administration. Mike’s tenure as PC eventually made him the go-to person at Geneva Park for leading new PCs through the initial challenge of navigating practices and procedures. The College is grateful to Mike for setting so many PCs down the right path. 

And Mike’s love of coaching didn’t end there. Mike’s passion for guiding, advising and encouraging others knew no bounds. Mike was the faculty lead for the Toastmasters Club at Humber, and Mike spoke with such passion about the magic of witnessing a student who started the club being nervous to say even a few words, but who left the club with the confidence to take on an elevator pitch. Mike was also instrumental in co-running our practical entrepreneurship course, Ristics, where Mike and his colleagues were able so support students as they ran a real company and sold real products. Mike got great joy from making students feel better about the chaos of the “real world”. 

Mike was also a leader in terms of innovation in teaching and learning. Mike was instrumental in supporting the design of the first collaborative classroom, and won the Innovation of the Year Award for the design of the collaborative classroom and interactive teaching. Mike also travelled to numerous international conferences, presenting on his love of teaching and learning. Mike made international news when he traveled with his son to Moshi, Tanzania participating in curriculum development and delivery in micro finance management and entrepreneurship.

Mike was also a true mentor to faculty. He was the first one to come to mind when choosing a mentor for new faculty, and one to whom the more seasoned faculty turned for advice and support. He engaged in team teaching experiences, and was always ready to devote the extra time required for collaboration with his colleagues. Mike's practicality and even-handed approach was put to full use, when he took on a more permanent role in the Centre for Teaching and Learning. Ever positive and optimistic, he welcomed the opportunity to share his expertise and enthusiasm with others, including the development of the PC Community of Practice. These endeavours allowed Mike to expand his reach even further, to share that trademark Mike Planche demeanour that many of us carry until this day.

Mike will be remembered most for his energy, his enthusiasm, his creativity and his supportive nature. Mike always had a smile and an encouraging word. And he will be sorely missed by so many.