Loyalist College 2020 milestones – a year in review

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Belleville, Ontario, December 18, 2020 – Loyalist College’s continued growth and success is based on the deep relationships it has built with students, faculty, staff, and the people and organizations in the Bay of Quinte region and beyond. The holiday season is a time for Loyalist to reflect with gratitude, to acknowledge the collective achievements of its community, and look forward to the future.

“When the pandemic emerged, it instantly reshaped the postsecondary landscape and within weeks, our faculty and staff had swiftly modified academic programming and student success services online and in-person to meet students’ needs,” said Dr. Ann Marie Vaughan, Loyalist College President & CEO. “We’re a team who embraces change and adapts to facilitate transformative learning experiences that will prepare our graduates and employers to succeed in a changed world of work. When you think of Loyalist in 2021, we want you to think of us as part of the bedrock in our community.”

Loyalist continues to accept applications for more than 30 diploma and certificate programs starting this January. Rather than waiting until September, January intakes offer students the opportunity to build on their credentials immediately to change or advance their careers.

2020 Milestones

Applied Research & Innovation

  • Loyalist College reached an institutional milestone on December 15 when it was recognized as one of Canada’s top 50 research colleges. This is the first time Loyalist has ranked on Research Infosource Inc.’s annual list, placing first in the country for industry research income as a percentage of total research income and eighth for college research income growth.
  • Loyalist’s Applied Research Centre for Natural Products and Medical Cannabis is using its expertise in green technology and cannabis to identify and test different sustainable liner options to match the quality of Kingston Aluminum Technology Inc.’s (KAT) recyclable aluminum bottles. Funding from GreenCentre Canada’s CONNECT program to advance this initiative will move KAT, a privately-held Canadian company, closer to commercial success in the Cannabis 2.0 market.
  • The Applied Research Centre for Natural Products and Medical Cannabis received a five-year renewal of its federal Health Canada license to conduct research under the Cannabis Act and Cannabis Regulations, and a three-year renewal of its license to conduct analytical testing.
  • The Applied Research Centre for Natural Products and Medical Cannabis and Bioenterprise: Canada’s Food & Agri-Tech Engine have signed a Memorandum of Understanding solidifying their commitment to supporting small and medium-sized enterprises across Canada. Bioenterprise and the Applied Research Centre for Natural Products and Medical Cannabis will work together to drive economic growth within the food and beverage, natural health products, cannabis, and hemp industries.
  • Loyalist announced in May that it was awarded a $359,793 grant through the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada’s (NSERC) College and Community Innovation (CCI) Program and College and Community Social Innovation Fund (CCSIF) for its ‘Intergenerational Home Sharing Program: College Students Co-living with Older Adults’ project proposal. The three-year pilot project will develop an alternative housing model that promotes intergenerational living for Loyalist students and adults 55 years of age and older in Hastings and Prince Edward Counties.

Funding Announcements

  • Hon. Todd Smith, MPP for Bay of Quinte, announced on December 12 that the Ontario government is investing $2,166,200 in capital funding to help Loyalist College address its deferred maintenance backlog, undertake critical repairs and upgrades, and provide a modern and safe learning environment for students, faculty, and staff. As part of the Facilities Renewal Program (FRP), the province is providing $1,756,100 in capital funding to help Loyalist address the ongoing need for maintenance, repair, renovation, and modernization of its existing facilities. The 2020-21 FRP funding represents an increase of more than $1.3 million over and above last year. As part of the College Equipment and Renewal Fund (CERF), the government is also providing $410,100 in capital funding to help Loyalist purchase and renew instructional equipment and learning resources.
  • Ontario’s $757,143-investment in the Career Ready Fund’s Auto Stream was announced on September 25. It empowers the College to collaborate with Ontario Tech University and Durham College to form a steering committee to oversee the development of a network that will bring together students and industry partners. Our students, recent graduates, and apprentices will benefit from more work-integrated learning opportunities, and automotive sector employers who host them will benefit from skilled labour.
  • In the Spring, Loyalist made an $80,000 investment to cover the cost of tuition for current and former youth in extended care of a Children’s Aid Society. Since the announcement, the College helped 20 individuals who qualified for the financial assistance waiver, and it is expected more will start in January.
  • In January, Loyalist opened the third floor of its renovated Northumberland Wing, an initiative made possible through a $2.4M government investment in 2016, of which $1.6M came from the Federal Government and $0.8M came from the Government of Ontario. Loyalist contributed an additional $0.8M for a total investment of $3.2M.

Indigenous & Cross-Cultural Understanding

  • On September 30, National Orange Shirt Day, Loyalist acknowledged the completed construction of the A’nó:wara Learning Circle, an outdoor space on campus dedicated to the promotion of Indigenous culture, tradition, and ceremony. During a small smudging ceremony, which the College shared in a video through social media, the Circle was cleansed with sacred smoke to ensure a safe, positive learning environment. On that day, Loyalist launched a digital mural on its homepage with close to 100 submitted photos of students and employees wearing orange.
  • On September 10, Loyalist held a special Standing Together Against Racism Web Forum, with more than 200 registrants. This virtual panel started the conversation about racism and if, how, where, and why it persists in the Bay of Quinte region. Georgina Thompson, a Loyalist Nursing graduate, moderated the panel which included Dr. Aruna Alexander, Founding President of the United Nations Association; Orlando Ferro, Executive Director of Quinte Immigration Services and Sydney Jarvis, a recent Social Service Worker graduate.

New Student Success Supports

  • Loyalist allocated $1M to provide students with needs-based financial assistance, required as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. A $700,000 fund helped qualified returning domestic and international students pay for their Loyalist education with a one-time bursary of up to $1,000 toward the cost of tuition. Loyalist Student Government, on behalf of its student members, donated $300,000 to the fund.
  • The College’s Student Success team reconfigured its services online to provide easy access to academic, social, and personal student supports. In addition to offering telephone counselling, they connect students with community supports – wherever they are.
  • The Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning created a Student Remote Learning Kit with best practices for online learning.
  • With in-person appointments and drop-in counselling sessions limited by COVID-19 restrictions, Loyalist College counsellors Cassie Richardson and Julie Millar teamed up with 91X FM CJLX to create a weekly radio spot called ‘Loyalist Counsellors during COVID,’ which tackles common mental health problems among Loyalist students, and suggests helpful coping strategies for those in need.
  • The College launched an online store for the Loyalist Student Food Cupboard. Students are using it to place orders for healthy, non-perishable food, school supplies and personal hygiene items, free of charge, which they pick up on campus during designated times. Vegetables and fruits from the College’s garden, maintained by Willowlee Sod Farms, have been made available in the food boxes. Loyalist’s Culinary program also provides meals to the Food Cupboard.
  • In April, the College received support from United Way Hastings & Prince Edward,  Gleaners Food Bank, and Willowlee Sod Farms for its food security initiatives, which included the creation of a large vegetable and fruit garden at the College’s Belleville campus.
  • The College’s first-ever Virtual Orientation, which ran each day from August 30 until September 11, had 1,075 student visits. The College hosted more than 70 fun and interactive online sessions where students got to know one another, their faculty and service teams. These online activities, led by Student Government and Student Success, continue throughout the academic year.
  • North American Business College and Loyalist established campuses in Chandigarh, Punjab and Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India, from which first-year students started the hands-on in-person requirements of their Biotechnology, Chemical Engineering Technician/Technology, Environmental Technician/Technology diploma programs until they can travel to Canada.

#COVID-19 Kindness Contributions

  • In March, Loyalist College faculty and staff at the Belleville and Bancroft campuses donated more than 58,000 personal protective equipment items to Quinte Health Care to keep frontline workers safe.
  • In collaboration with Quinte Health Care, a group of 14 students from Loyalist’s Carpentry and Renovation Techniques and Technician programs constructed a small insulated shelter at the Belleville COVID-19 assessment centre to give frontline workers a place to get out of the cold.
  • More than 20 Loyalist Paramedic students in their final semester had the opportunity to put their skills to work by immediately joining emergency health services teams as “student paramedics.”
  • Enrolment in the College’s Personal Support Worker program, offered through Loyalist’s Bancroft campus, increased by 53 percent since Spring 2019, driven in part by a desire to help people through the pandemic.
  • Loyalist delivered a free webinar series in June and July to help unemployed and underemployed individuals build resiliency and transferable skills for entrepreneurship, self-employment, and remote work. Led by Loyalist Training and Knowledge Centre (LTKC), in partnership with Trenval Business Development Corporation, the series had 668 participants, including 300 individual participants. In addition, LTKC offered a free six-week series for small businesses – who have been among the hardest hit by the pandemic. A total of 335 small business owners and employees participated, which exceeded expectations.
  • Loyalist faculty Jeremy and Suzanne Braithwaite combined their manufacturing and nursing skills to develop a face shield prototype that could be made locally to protect health care professionals. With support from volunteers and community partners, they made more than 13,000 face shields for Quinte Health Care and were recognized as community heroes by the City of Belleville, City of Quinte West, and the Belleville General Hospital Foundation.
  • In February and March, faculty Nicki Armstrong (Bachelor of Science in Nursing) and Patricia Munroe (Practical Nursing) were called upon to assist those in quarantine and become part of a multi-disciplined team of health care professionals under the authority of the Public Health Agency of Canada at the NAV Centre in Cornwall and CFB Trenton.
  • For Valentine’s Day, students and faculty in Loyalist’s Culinary programs made 500 cupcakes for Canadians under observation at Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Trenton.
  • Chef Albert Ponzo and two Culinary students teamed up with Food to Share to ensure people in Prince Edward County have access to nutritional food during the pandemic.

Bike Path

  • In July, Loyalist announced the construction of a pedestrian/cyclist path and bridge across Potter’s Creek to connect the College to Avonlough Road and the City of Belleville’s proposed extension to its Cycling Network. In partnership with the City of Belleville and in consultation with Quinte Conservation, Loyalist’s path will provide access to and from the College through a section of its 200-acre campus to Avonlough Road on the property’s east side.

Awards

Outstanding Varsity Athletes & Teams

  • In a new tradition, three local first responder units received 63 Starboard Cares Bears on behalf of the Lancer community in November. The bears were to be presented to first responder representatives at the annual Athletic Banquet in March which was cancelled due to the pandemic.
  • The Loyalist Lancers announced their award winners from the 2019-20 season in an online format due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
    • Female Athlete of the Year – Brittany Mason, Basketball
    • Male Athlete of the Year – Josh Roberts, Volleyball
    • Female Rookie of the Year – Alyssa Prinzen, Soccer
    • Male Rookie of the Year – Ebenezer Teklezgi, Basketball
  • In January, Loyalist honoured 28 of its best and brightest varsity athletes at the annual Athletic Scholarship award luncheon, with awards totaling over $29,000. Fourteen of the recipients have an 80+ percent average, while the group holds an impressive 79 percent collective GPA from 18 different programs.

Quinte Skyhawks

  • In September, Loyalist partnered with the Quinte Skyhawks to offer players a chance to continue their postsecondary studies while they play.

Appointments

  • On October 1, Pam Jolliffe was appointed as the new Chair of the Board of Governors. Ms. Jolliffe joined the Board in 2018 and served as a member of the Finance, Corporate Services and Governance Committee as well as the Audit Committee during the 2018–2019 term.
  • Loyalist announced on December 11 that Elizabeth Lancaster has been appointed Vice-President, People and Culture, effective January 11, 2021. In this newly created position, Ms. Lancaster will provide strategic leadership to all College organizational development, human resources, and employee relations services and functions, including organizational design, employee engagement, and occupational health and safety.
  • Ron Byrne was appointed Senior Vice-President Academic in July. Mr. Byrne was Vice-President, International & Student Affairs at Mount Allison University and Associate Vice-President of Student Affairs at the University of Regina.
  • Jeremy Laurin was appointed Senior Vice-President, External Relations & Business Development, effective in May. Mr. Laurin is responsible for a range of College services, including Marketing, Communications & Recruitment; Career Services; Alumni Services; Continuing Education; Loyalist Training & Knowledge Centre; and Loyalist Exam Services.
  • Mark Kirkpatrick was appointed Senior Vice-President, Corporate Services & CFO. He has been Acting Senior Vice-President, Corporate Services & CFO since December 2019 and has worked at Loyalist for nearly 15 years, previously as Senior Director, Infrastructure and Director, Information Technology.

Pathway Agreements

  • In January, Loyalist College signed a transfer agreement with Seneca to offer successful students and graduates of Loyalist’s two-year Business Ontario college diploma program the opportunity to enter third year (fifth semester) of Seneca’s Honours Bachelor of Commerce – Business Management program and complete their degree on campus in Belleville.

New Programs

During the pandemic, Loyalist launched and developed more than 20 new programs – a few of which are approved and included in the list of Loyalist’s new programs in 2020:

Belleville Campus

Loyalist College in Toronto

Loyalist Training & Knowledge Centre

2021 Upcoming Events

About Loyalist College
Loyalist is Ontario’s Destination College, empowering students, faculty, staff, and partners through experiential, industry cluster-based education, training and applied research programs. The College provides job-ready graduates for, and knowledge transfer to, industry and the community. Of 2017-18 Loyalist graduates, 88.5 percent were employed within six months after graduation. Located on more than 200 acres in the beautiful Bay of Quinte region, the College is perfectly positioned between Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal. Loyalist offers more than 70 full-time diploma, certificate and apprenticeship programs in biosciences, building sciences, business, community service, health and wellness, media studies, public safety, and skilled trades. Continuing education options are available through LoyalistFocus.com, including hundreds of online, distance and in-class courses, and through the College’s 100+ university transfer agreements. Loyalist is a key driver of social and economic health in eastern Ontario. It contributes 3.7 percent of the Gross Regional Product, representing $382 million annually to the regional economy – based on a March 2020 report by Emsi. For more information on Loyalist’s Belleville, Bancroft and Toronto campuses and Port Hope satellite location, visit YoureGoingPlaces.com.

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Contact: Kerry Lorimer, Director, Marketing, Communications and Recruitment
Loyalist College, klorimer@loyalistcollege.com, 613-969-1913, ext. 2536

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