COLLEGES AND INSTITUTES CANADA
CICan Announces 2024 Awards of Excellence Recipients

Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan) proudly announces its 2024 Awards of Excellence recipients, spotlighting innovation and exceptional performance within our pan-Canadian community. 

CICan's highly anticipated Awards of Excellence celebrate a select group of member institutions and individuals each year for their exceptional achievements within Canada's largest post-secondary network. These awards honour those who exceed expectations in key areas vital to Canada's social, cultural, and economic prosperity, including skill development, Indigenous reconciliation, research, equity, diversity and inclusion, and environmental sustainability.

"CICan is thrilled by the remarkable calibre of nominations for this year's Awards of Excellence," says Pari Johnston, President and CEO. "With a laser focus on building a strong future for Canada and their communities, our members continue to raise the bar, showcasing their unwavering dedication to innovation, collaboration, and fostering purpose-driven change. Congratulations to all for their achievements!"

The awards were distributed in partnership with TD Insurance, the exclusive sponsor of CICan's Awards of Excellence, at CICan's Annual Connection Conference. With over 1000 post-secondary leaders and stakeholders from across Canada and around the world in attendance, the award ceremony underscored the sector's unwavering dedication to excellence. 

Congratulations to this year's awards recipients: 

Applied Research and Innovation Excellence Award 

Gold: Olds College of Agriculture & Technology 
Olds College is one of Canada's top 10 research colleges. It is known for innovative and industry-driven applied research across its 3,600-acre Smart Farm, laying the foundation for solving real-world problems in farming, food and land. Olds College Centre for Innovation (OCCI) applied research division has the expertise, assets and infrastructure to accelerate the progress and innovation needed to grow Canada's ag industry. It supports start-up development, validation, scaling and demonstration of intelligent ag technologies and practices for SMEs and community partners. It also provides students with real-world learning experiences, so the next generation of innovators and technology users is well positioned to succeed.   
Silver: Conestoga College 
Bronze: Collège La Cité 

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Award 

Gold: Lambton College 
Lambton College believes that every person should have the opportunity to live a full and authentic life. With its first-ever five-year Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Strategy, Lambton has developed a road map to its inclusive future - one that provides direction on everything from curricular and pedagogical practices to enhancing student support, research infrastructure, leadership development, and organizational culture. A community leader in EDI, Lambton College is committed to enacting meaningful change that impacts the lived experiences of its community members. 
Silver: Humber College 
Bronze: NorQuest College 

Global Engagement Award 

Gold: British Columbia Institute of Technology   
British Columbia Institute of Technology welcomes over 4,000 students from 110+ countries, enriching its programs and culture with immense diversity. Through mobility programs, hundreds of domestic students and faculty gain global competencies through outbound experiences. Collaborating with diverse partners, BCIT tackles complex economic, environmental, and social challenges through development projects and applied research. From studying climate in Antarctica to advising TVET education systems in Kenya, BCIT's offshore international programming demonstrates its steadfast commitment to addressing global needs in internationalization. 
Silver: Seneca Polytechnic 
Bronze: Centennial College

Leadership Excellence Award for Faculty 

Gold: Tara-Lyn Dinyer, Mohawk College 
Tara-Lyn (Tara) Dinyer is a remarkable educator and an inspiration to everyone she meets. As the program coordinator for Mohawk College's Health, Wellness and Fitness (HWF) program, Tara has been making a difference in lives of students since 2013. Her passion for learning and ability to innovate have inspired colleagues to follow her lead and create positive change across the college. She is the creator and organizer of experiential learning opportunity called Fit to Pitch, she has inspired students to start their own businesses and built strong connections with industry at the same time. Now entering it's 8th year, the competition has become a signature event at the college. 
Silver: Marcia Tanaka, Vancouver Community College 
Bronze: Laura Maybury, Durham College 

Indigenous Education Excellence Award 

Gold: Seneca Polytechnic 
Seneca Polytechnic signed the CICan Indigenous Education Protocol in 2015 and works with colleges and universities across Ontario and Canada to share learnings on incorporating Indigenous teachings into their programs. In 2023, Seneca introduced the three-year Curriculum Integration Project, a "train the trainer" initiative guided by First Peoples@Seneca, which instructs faculty on how to incorporate the lived experiences of Indigenous Peoples into every Seneca academic program. By the project's end, Seneca will have 200+ faculty champions, and every student will study some reconciliation education content within five years.   
Silver: Cégep John Abbott College 
Bronze: Camosun College 

Leadership Excellence Award for Managerial Staff 

Gold: Sustainability Office, Thompson Rivers University (TRU) 
A compelling vision led by TRU's Sustainability Office team is at the heart of why it is one of Canada's top sustainability-performing institutions. This is exemplified by TRU's achievements since 2011 in the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS). With over 350 institutions participating worldwide last year, STARS is one of the hallmark sustainability ratings in higher education. In 2018, TRU earned the coveted Platinum status - and the highest score ever - and in 2022, it attained Platinum twice, becoming one of only 12 institutions, and Canada's first, to do so. Over the last ten years, these managers have helped steer the Sustainability Office and have made it one of the defining departments at TRU. 
Silver: Michele O'Keefe, Niagara College 
Bronze: Mélanie Cwikla, Université de Saint-Boniface

Leadership Excellence Award for Non-Managerial Staff 

Gold: Greg Gagnon, Mohawk College 

One of Mohawk College's core values is ensuring a welcoming and supportive environment for all. Greg Gagnon personifies this value by going above and beyond to ensure students with accessibility needs have what they need to succeed. Greg has been with the college's Accessible Learning Services team since 2011. Throughout this time, he has strongly advocated accessibility at the college and across the broader postsecondary community. Greg has profoundly impacted the lives of the many students who rely on the services and support he provides to succeed and thrive in their postsecondary journey. 
Silver: Alicia Cafferata-Arnett, Red Deer Polytechnic 
Bronze: The Centre for Innovation & Teaching Excellence, Medicine Hat College 
 
Program Excellence Award 

Gold: CityLAB Hamilton, Mohawk College 
CityLAB is an innovative program between the City of Hamilton, Mohawk College, McMaster University, and Redeemer University. It matches students and faculty with municipal staff to develop solutions to city-identified projects that align with Hamilton's strategic priorities. Starting as a pilot project in 2017, the program has become a permanent program, with Mohawk College contributing 28,838 hours of civic engagement through 41 unique projects involving 1,348 students and 30 faculty members. Through this collaboration, CityLAB provides rich experiential learning and leadership opportunities for students and community engagement for city staff to co-create a better Hamilton for all. 
Silver: Early Childhood Education Program, College of the North Atlantic 
Bronze: Biomedical Engineering Technology Program, Northern Alberta Institute of Technology

Excellence in Sustainable Development Award 

Gold: Confederation College 
Confederation College is deeply committed to championing sustainability and has proudly aligned itself with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As one of the early adopters in Ontario, they have woven sustainability into the fabric of its institution, guiding their strategic plan and shaping campus initiatives. They've undertaken a comprehensive SDG audit to inform policies and have invested significantly in sustainable infrastructure and education. Their dedication is evident in their community outreach, hands-on learning environments, and strategic partnerships, all aimed at fostering a sustainable future.   
Silver: Kwantlen Polytechnic University 
Bronze: Durham College 

Leadership Excellence Award for Students 

Gold: Stephania Smith, Algonquin College 
Reconnecting with culture is a foundation for Stephania's advocacy, community and volunteer work at Algonquin College and organizations in Renfrew County. As a learner in the Social Services Worker program at the college's Pembroke Campus, Stephania has been a tireless advocate for enhancing support and spaces for Indigenous students. She founded the Indigenous Student Committee for Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, shared feedback on campus-wide protocols for Indigenous events through her work with the Pembroke IDEA Committee and led Indigenous cultural workshops at the Indigenous Culture Camp, all while opening a centre for children and youth and in Petawawa and maintaining a 3.9 GPA.   
Silver: Allie Lynch, College of the North Atlantic 
Bronze: Jesenia Alvarez, St. Lawrence College