College Council February Highlights

College Council had its second meeting of the winter semester on Thursday, February 6, 2014, at the North Campus. In the interest of keeping the Humber community informed about upcoming events, new initiatives, and important issues, I will be continuing to report the highlights of the monthly meetings.  For more information on any topic, or to give me feedback on the reports, please feel free to contact me directly at lisa.salem-wiseman@humber.ca. 

Opportunities for Students

The Humber RAPP Research Forum: Shifting Landscapes: Insights into New Research Technologies in Social and Market Research will be held at the Assembly Hall, Lakeshore Campus, on April 2, 2014, from 8:15- 4:00 pm. The event will be free for all members of the Humber community, and all Humber students are invited to submit proposals by February 28. For more information, and to view the Call for Proposals, please visit the website at www.humber.ca/liberalarts/rapp-research-forum

Opportunities for Faculty and Staff

Nancey Adamson, Manager, Employee Engagement, presented information about Uniterra’s Leave for Change, a program that pairs professionals with partners in developing countries.  Humber faculty and staff can volunteer to spend part of their vacation time (usually two to four weeks) working in one of twelve participating countries, contributing their skills and experience to specific development projects, with the goal of building capacity in local organizations.  The partnership is currently in its seventh year, and to date, twenty-nine Humber employees have volunteered in Botswana, Malawi, Nepal, Vietnam, Ghana, and Guatemala. Nancey was joined by three Humber employees who participated in the program in summer 2013.

Jennifer Leonard (School of Media Studies and Information Technology) volunteered as a Marketing and Communications Advisor with the Professional Development and Research Center (PDRC) in Kathmandu, Nepal, preparing communication plans, creating promotional materials, training staff on social media, and delivering media relations workshops to students.  Liana Acri (University of Guelph-Humber) volunteered as a Soft Skills for Effective Communication Trainer at Hanoi Community College in Hanoi, Vietnam, working with students, staff, and faculty in order to build capacity for future transfer of skills. KiBae Park (School of Media Studies and Information Technology) volunteered in Kathmandu, Nepal, building a communications strategy for an NGO. All three faculty members spoke about how valuable the experience was, allowing them to build connections, learn about other cultures, and share information about Canadian culture.

Humber will sponsor up to six volunteers this year, and the deadline is March 7th. Interviews will be held March 31 and April 1. For more information, please visit http://www.leaveforchange.ca.

Facilities Management: Overview of Humber’s Draft Sustainability Plan

Lindsay Walker, Manager, Sustainability, and Spencer Wood, Co-chair of Humber’s Sustainability Coordinating Committee, presented an overview of Humber’s draft sustainability plan, which has been developed over the past six months. Sustainability, which is commonly defined as “meeting contemporary needs without compromising the ability of future generations to satisfy their needs,” is one of Humber’s six core values as outlined in the 2013-2018 Strategic Plan. 

The objective of the sustainability team has been to develop a five-year sustainability plan for the college. The process began in the fall, with workshops, stakeholder events at all three campuses, and an online survey. One of the key findings of these sessions, which engaged over 5,000 members of the Humber community, was that over 84% of responses in each demographic (faculty, staff, and students) indicated that integrating sustainability into the curriculum is “important” or “necessary” to the future job market. Another key finding was that Humber has high support from its community with regards to sustainability, with an expectation of leadership. Although key sustainability priorities vary by demographic, Recycling and Waste was the top priority for all demographics. Other key priorities included: Transportation; Education and Research; and Energy Efficiency and Climate Change.

In 2012, Humber became a member of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE).   In Fall 2013, Humber became the first college in Ontario to receive a Silver STARS (Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System) rating from AASHE. The STARS rating system considers four main categories:  Education and Research; Operations; Planning, Administration & Engagement; and Innovation.

If you are interested in getting involved with Sustainability at Humber, please consider:

• learning about sustainability initiatives at www.humber.ca/sustainability and following the Office of Sustainability on twitter: @SustainHumber
• signing up for the Sustainability mailing list at lindsay.walker@humber.ca
• designating a Green Ambassador and Green Team in your School or Department - see the Green Team Guide: http://www.humber.ca/sustainability/green‐teams and contact lindsay.walker@humber.ca if you are interested
• starting your own initiatives within your School or Department and sharing with the Office of Sustainability – they can help with communication and promotion
• participating in the Sustainable Office Audit (coming soon)
• reviewing the draft Sustainability Plan (coming soon) and providing feedback

New Program

The School of Hospitality, Recreation, and Tourism will be offering a new twelve-course Certificate in Hotel and Restaurant Services. This innovative new program aligns with Humber’s strategic priority of strengthening our polytechnic identity by providing multiple pathways for students to gain credentials. The program will be accessible to overseas students, as well as those working in the hospitality industry, and provides a pathway into the second year of the Hospitality Management diploma. There is significant market demand for a program of this type in the hospitality industry.

The twelve courses have been designed to be very interactive, incorporating elements such as videos, journals, gaming, chats, and e-portfolios. The program also includes a mentorship program, which will connect students (via Skype) with a professional mentor from their chosen industry.

Internationalization Strategy

Diane Simpson, Dean, International, provided a brief history of Humber’s international activities and reviewed specific points of Humber’s internationalization strategy in the context of Humber’s strategic plan.
Humber is committed to creating a global-ready community of students, faculty and staff, by providing students with diverse perspectives, and opportunities to support the development of intercultural skills and global citizenship, thereby preparing them for the global workplace.  This will be accomplished by initiatives focused on recruiting and supporting international students, providing study- and work-abroad opportunities, and engaging faculty and staff in internationally focused professional development initiatives. 

Denise Gardner, Director, Professional Development, shared the initiatives, objectives, and goals for each stage of Humber’s internationalization plan with specific attention to ensuring that faculty and staff are equipped to support internationalization efforts across the campus.  Highlights include the Intercultural Training Certificate, the Internationally Inclusive Educator Competency Framework, an inventory of internationalized course curriculum, and course outline software designed to focus on international content.

In keeping with Council’s new mandate to report back to the President on key items, members of Council met in small working groups to discuss the evening’s presentations and to make notes that will be brought to the President. The next meeting will be held on Thursday, March 6, 2014, at the North Campus.