Community Support
Vernon student donates artwork in memory of instructor
December 2, 2020
An Okanagan College student has donated a beautiful piece of artwork which she hopes will inspire others as much as the instructor who inspired her. While it might not be uncommon to find a periodic table adorning the hallways of a post-secondary institution, Okanagan College’s Vernon campus is now home to one unlike any other in the world. The unique piece of artwork is in honour of former instructor Donna Leigh Goodman, who taught Adult Basic Education (also known as Adult Upgrading) programs including science and mathematics c...
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joins Vernon and Salmon Arm communities to hold vigil against violence against women
December 1, 2020
Many activities stopped as a result of the 2020 pandemic. Violence against women, however, is not one of them. This is why communities in the Okanagan and Shuswap are paying special attention to the 31st anniversary of the École Polytechnique Massacre, in addition to the ongoing cases of missing women from the region, with a Virtual Candlelight Vigil on Dec. 6 co-hosted by a network of organizations and volunteers. “The SAFE Society has been partnering with Okanagan College Students’ Union and Indigenous Services for over a decade...
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Thorpe and Friends Scholarship recognizes three South Okanagan students
November 25, 2020
Isaac Halverson was visiting a friend when he learned he was a recipient of this year’s Rick and Yasmin Thorpe and Friends Scholarship Fund, but this did not stop him from running around the house screaming in excitement after reading the news. “It was incredible. I’ve heard about the award before, and I know friends who’ve received it,” says Halverson, who previously attended Princess Margaret Secondary School in Penticton. Halverson is now in his first year at Okanagan College taking engineering. “It’s a lot of money, and it mea...
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Culinary Arts students help take a bite out of food insecurity, one apple at a time
November 24, 2020
As the Okanagan days start to get shorter and orchardists wrap up their harvest for the year, Culinary Arts students at the College’s Kelowna campus are busy transforming apples into healthy snacks for the community. Earlier in the fall semester, the Okanagan Fruit Tree Project (OFTP) approached the College’s Culinary Arts team with an idea: could culinary classes somehow help process apple donations into snacks, going into backpacks for local students in need? The answer was a resounding yes. With some creative thought on how to...
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College launches Applied Bachelor of Arts degree
November 23, 2020
New four-year degree focuses on community research and evaluation Who will be the future change-makers in our communities? Who will help organizations tackle the most pressing social issues we are faced with as a society? The answer might just be the graduates of a new program unlike any before it in the region. Okanagan College has received provincial approval for its first new degree program in more than 15 years – and its focus couldn’t be timelier. The Applied Bachelor of Arts: Community Research and Evaluation is a four-year...
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Foundation and Jane Hoffman Realty present Season’s Eatings, a virtual cooking class fundraiser
November 17, 2020
On Dec. 3, fire up your oven and your laptop to join a festive, virtual cooking class and wine tasting fundraiser. The Okanagan College Foundation and Coldwell Banker Jane Hoffman Realty are presenting Cooks: Season’s Eatings, with ticket sales benefitting the Our Students, Your Health campaign to complete a new Health Sciences Centre on the College’s Kelowna campus. “Season’s Eatings is an opportunity to come together virtually, enjoy good wine and cook alongside the College’s award-winning chefs,” says Okanagan College Founda...
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Jacobs support frontline health care education with a major gift
November 13, 2020
Touring Okanagan College’s new Health Sciences Centre and seeing the modern education spaces that will help attract and retain health care professionals compelled a well-known Kelowna family to give a major gift. Mike and Kim Jacobs are donating $80,000 to the Our Students, Your Health campaign to support the completion of the $18.9 million Health Sciences Centre. The state-of-the-art Centre will educate eight frontline health care professions. “It’s incredible to see such a modern facility with all the technology and great detail...
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College hosting region-wide virtual open house
October 16, 2020
Participants eligible for $5,000 tuition giveaway While the pandemic means prospective students can’t stop by to explore campuses physically this fall, Okanagan College is pulling out all the stops to host an interactive virtual open house to ensure students can still get questions answered. On Sunday, Nov. 8, from 11 a.m. – 2:30 p.m., future students, parents, high school counsellors and anyone looking to learn more about the College and its programs will have a chance to experience from the comfort of home. All those intere...
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TD invests in health care equipment for students
October 15, 2020
A gift from TD Bank will ensure students entering health care professions are practising on state-of-the-art equipment. TD is donating $15,000 to Okanagan College’s Our Students, Your Health campaign towards a new Health Sciences Centre on the Kelowna campus. The gift will support new equipment for the nursing lab, which will be used by future Practical Nurses, Registered Nurses and Health Care Assistants. “Part of creating better health outcomes for patients is to provide aspiring health care professionals with the right training...
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Students thankful for new laptops
October 9, 2020
A donation from Staples Kelowna is helping Okanagan College students succeed in an online learning environment. In September, Staples donated laptops to eight students who do not have access to the technology needed to successfully participate and complete their programs online. Bree Edler was one of the recipients to receive a new Asus computer. “I’m in shock. I’ve never received anything like this before so I feel very fortunate,” says Edler. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Edler was a travel agent. With international travel ...
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Co-op Q&A with Salmon Arm Economic Development Society’s Lana Fitt
October 5, 2020
Meet Lana Fitt, the Salmon Arm Economic Development Society’s Economic Development Manager. In partnership with the College’s Salmon Arm campus, SAEDS hired three students over the summer of 2020, aiding a new initiative called the Digital Transitions Program. Okanagan College sat down with Fitt to hear her perspective as Manager and having students take part in Co-op education with SAEDS as well as the launch of the Digital Transitions Program in Salmon Arm.. Okanagan...
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Geologist donates more than 100k to students
October 5, 2020
From the origins of the Okanagan Valley to the complexities of the Mount Boucherie volcano, a geologist has turned his passion for local geology into a major monetary deposit for students. Murray Roed is the author and co-author of five best-selling geology books on the Okanagan. For the last 25 years, he and the other book contributors have given 100 per cent of the proceeds to students at Okanagan College and the University of British Columbia Okanagan (UBCO). With the latest donation of $5,000, the authors have given more than ...
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Harvesting help needed: Enactus students invite community to join them in picking apples for a good cause
September 30, 2020
A group of Okanagan College business students are putting the call out for volunteers from and the community to help them harvest fruit that will be used to make healthy snacks for children and others in need. Started in the fall of 2018, FruitSnaps is a Vernon- and Penticton-based project, which sees Enactus students partnering with the North Okanagan Valley Gleaners Society facility, where unused apples from local orchards are dehydrated into snacks for local schools. The FruitSnaps team will be hosting small, physically-d...
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OC’s 12th Annual Youth Exhibition Powwow goes virtual this year
September 29, 2020
When the pandemic struck, organizers of the popular Youth Exhibition Powwow at Okanagan College in Kelowna knew they would have to adapt. Each year, for the past 11 years, the event has drawn crowds of hundreds – sometimes more than a thousand – to OC’s courtyard for a day of celebrating, learning about and engaging with Indigenous knowledge and culture. Over the course of a fun-filled day, dancers and accompanying drummers from across the B.C. interior perform in a variety of dance categories including grass, fancy, chicken, jing...
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New members of Board
September 28, 2020
Two new area residents have been appointed to Okanagan College’s Board of Governors. Andrea Alexander, a Councillor with the Westbank First Nation, and JoAnn Fowler, an Enderby resident who is a mentor for new social workers with the Ministry of Children and Family Development, have been appointed for one-year terms to the Board. “I’m looking forward to working with Andrea and JoAnn, who bring a tremendous depth of experience working with and serving communities in the region,” notes Gloria Morgan, the Chair of the Board of Govern...
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New business program creates more real-world learning for budding entrepreneurs
September 24, 2020
Okanagan College’s School of Business is launching a new program that will teach entrepreneurship and business in a way most business owners would say is key to learning – by doing. The Experiential Entrepreneurship program will offer an entrepreneurship specialty to the College’s Bachelor of Business Administration degree. Modelled after a long-running and highly successful program at the College’s partner school in Finland, JAMK University of Applied Sciences, the Experiential Entrepreneurship program will see business students ...
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