Niagara College has been awarded federal government funding to help improve healthcare access for homeless and vulnerable individuals struggling with diabetic foot problems.

Called ‘An Interprofessional Train-the-Trainer Solution to the Diabetic Foot-Care Crisis Within Community Shelters,’ the grant of $209,576 (over two years) is from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) College and Community Social Innovation Fund (CCSIF). It will allow NC and its academic and community partners to address and improve healthcare access for individuals needing essential diabetic foot care, as well as improve implementation by healthcare professionals at homeless shelters.

The CCSIF program, in collaboration with Canada’s Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), is designed to support college research projects in partnership with local community organizations to foster social innovation in areas such as education, integration of vulnerable populations, and community development.

Diabetes can cause serious changes to the body that often affect the feet and toes, and when left untreated, can result in a limb-threatening condition. According to Diabetes Action Canada, a lower-limb amputation occurs every four hours in Ontario. A significant number of these can be prevented with proper, daily foot care.

Niagara College, in collaboration with the Michener Institute of Education at the University Health Network and local community facilities and shelters, will use the Train-the-Trainer model to educate and provide awareness of diabetes and foot-care needs for at-risk individuals. The project will also enable capacity building among other health professions typically not responsible for foot care, yet essential for triaging and providing treatment.

The first grant of its kind for NC under this program, the funding will be administered by the College’s Research & Innovation division, while the project will be managed by the Centre for Health Wellness and Aging within NC’s Community and Health Studies division.

“While healthcare research is not new for the College’s Community and Health Studies division, this is an exciting and innovative collaboration between the Centre for Health Wellness and Aging, and our Research & Innovation division, which has been mainly focused in the areas of advanced manufacturing, agriculture and environmental technologies, and food and beverage,” said Marc Nantel, PhD, vice-president, Research, Innovation and Strategic Initiatives. “It’s a natural fit given the College’s integral role placed on offering applied research services to all industry and community partners, while involving students in these projects.”

Carolyn Triemstra, dean, Community and Health Studies, said the project is a tremendous opportunity for health students to engage in experiential learning while serving the community.

“The partners involved already support Niagara College health students in various capacities and this is an extension of the great partnerships we are fortunate to have,” said Triemstra. “Our students will gain tremendous knowledge and skills while working with clients in the community – skills that they will take with them into their careers.”

The vision for this project focuses on an enhanced awareness of diabetes and diabetic foot care. Specifically, this project will target pre-licensure interprofessional health students learning about diabetes and diabetic foot care, followed by piloting a new pre-screening model of care in community shelters.

Students from NC’s Personal Support Worker (PSW); Primary Care Paramedic (PCP); Advanced Care Paramedic (ACP); Occupational Therapist Assistant and Physiotherapist Assistant (OTA & PTA); and Practical Nursing (PN)  programs will be hired for the initial phase of the project this September. In the following phases of the project, students will have the opportunity to dedicate their placement hours to providing screening and addressing foot-care needs for those who are vulnerable and affiliated with community partner shelters.

The Michener Institute offers a three-year postgraduate chiropody program focused on the assessment and management of foot and lower-limb conditions. The Michener Institute will collaborate to co-develop the educational model and resources required to educate and train NC students.

“The timing couldn’t be better to pave the way for a preventative model of healthcare,” said Catharine Gray, academic chair and discipline head, the Michener Institute. “Collectively, the students can make a difference across the health disciplines. Sharing expertise and building capacity will change the outcomes for the better to those who need it most.”

Other local community facilities and shelters involved with the design and delivery of the project include those affiliated with REACH (Niagara), not limited to The Hope Centre, Southridge Shelter, Booth Street Salvation Army Shelter, and the YWCA Niagara Region. Learning outcomes will be shared through these community partners and their vast network of shelters and health practitioners, as well as to all 24 community college health programs in the province.

This is a unique project that will be beneficial to all involved partners, noted Alexandra Jackson, project manager for NC’s Train-the-Trainer program. “The outcomes of this project could change how we seek to improve healthcare education while keeping our vulnerable population’s best interests at heart,” Jackson said. “I am excited to see where this goes, and I hope we can provide both a positive healthcare and educational model that thrives for years to come.”

The Michener Institute is a leading academic partner for the healthcare system in Ontario and the only institution in Canada devoted exclusively to applied health sciences education. Their growing community of clinical and academic partners is a strength that continues to support student learning, and this project will not only benefit Michener students, but NC students alike.

NC’s award-winning Research & Innovation division provides real-world solutions for business, key industry sectors, and the community through applied research and knowledge transfer activities. Researchers conduct projects that provide innovative solutions, such as producing and testing prototypes, evaluating new technologies, and developing new or improved products or processes for small- and medium-sized businesses and community partners. With funding support from various regional, provincial and federal agencies, students and graduates are hired to work alongside faculty researchers to assist industry and community partners leap forward in the marketplace.

Niagara College offers more than 150 diploma, bachelor degree and advanced level programs; as well as more than 600 credit, vocational and general interest Part-Time Studies courses. Areas of specialization include food and wine sciences, advanced technology, media, applied health and community safety, supported by unique learning enterprises in food, wine, beer, distilling, horticulture and esthetics. For more information visit niagaracollege.ca.

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Photo above: Supplied by Michener Institute.

Media inquiries, please contact:

Julie Greco

Communications Consultant, Niagara College

Cell: 905 328 2532

[email protected]

Michael Wales

Manager, Corporate Communications

Cell: 905-328-4101

[email protected]

After more than a year in the making, Niagara College Teaching Distillery is rolling out its first rum – just in time for summer cocktail season.

School Spirits Small Batch Rum was created by the College’s inaugural Artisan Distilling Class of 2019, comprised of the first students to graduate from the program launched by the College in September 2018 as the first of its kind in Canada.

The rum follows the Teaching Distillery’s previous School Spirits releases including Eau-de-vie de Fruits (January 2019), Vodka (March 2019) and Small Batch Gin (May 1019).

“Our first rum has been highly anticipated following the release of three inaugural School Spirits products which sold out quickly upon release last year,” said Steve Gill, general manager of NC’s Learning Enterprises. “Our first student-crafted rum showcases the distillation and fermentation talents and skills of our students, and offers a taste of what our country’s future craft distilling leaders are producing.”

College distiller David Dickson noted that the release of School Spirits Rum is an achievement for the students that were responsible for its creation, as well as the College as its first rum spirit to be released.

“The rum production came at a time when the students had already honed their distilling and fermentation skills, and they were able to execute the production with a higher degree of independence,” said Dickson. “They have set the bar high for the quality of the aged spirits being produced by the Teaching Distillery.”

Golden in colour, School Spirits Small Batch Rum is described as having a clean and balanced aromatic profile with notes of vanilla, candied fruit. Compared to rums with added sweeteners, it comes across as dry and light in body. The fruity esters give notes of cherries, blackberries and some citrus fruit. The finish offers a texture of vanilla, caramel and a touch of bourbon spice.

The rum was made from a base material of dark brown sugar – a combination of refined sugar with molasses blended back in. It was fermented in a two-week process, which is slower than typical rum production, resulting in a more complete attenuation of sugar by the yeast. Using small copper pot stills, the rum was double distilled by students who focused on capturing only the best fraction of the spirit.

“One of the most important set of flavour components that are captured during rum distillation are the esters which give rum some of its distinctive aromas and flavours,” said Dickson.

The rum was aged for a full year in a 57L Bourbon cask before its recent release. Dickson noted that smaller barrels have a larger surface area proportionally, which leads to more rapid extraction and aging.

“Another interesting feature was that the cask had only been used for two years, whereas most bourbon casks have been used for at least four years,” he said. “This may have led to both the increase in colour and barrel character present in the spirit.”

School Spirits Small Batch Rum does not contain additives or added colours.

The 40 percent alcohol School Spirits Small Batch Rum is available in 375 mL bottles ($26) in limited quantities at the College’s Wine, Visitor + Education Centre, where proceeds from sales support student learning. The WVEC retail store is open at NC’s Daniel J. Patterson Campus (135 Taylor Rd., Niagara-on-the-Lake) and offers curbside pickup. Call 905-641-2252 ext. 4070.

Niagara College’s Teaching Distillery is a 2,500-square-foot facility equipped with five stills, four mash tuns and 10 fermenters. Home to the College’s Artisan Distilling program, students produce a variety of distilled products including vodka, gin, brandy, rum, whisky and other spirits. It opened in September 2018, completing the trifecta of beverage fermentation sciences at NC’s learning enterprises, following the footsteps of its Teaching Winery and Teaching Brewery which were also the first of their kind in Canada.

Niagara College offers more than 130 diploma, bachelor degree and advanced level programs; as well as more than 600 credit, vocational and general interest Part-Time Studies courses. Areas of specialization include food and wine sciences, advanced technology, media, applied health and community safety, supported by unique learning enterprises in food, wine, beer, distilling, horticulture and esthetics. For more information visit niagaracollege.ca.

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Media inquiries, please contact:

Julie Greco

Communications Consultant, Niagara College

Cell: 905 328 2532

[email protected]

Michael Wales

Manager, Corporate Communications

Cell: 905-328-4101

[email protected]

Niagara College’s Research & Innovation division will be deploying more than $1 million to expand essential applied research in the growing beverage sector over the next three years, thanks to federal government funding.

The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Innovation Enhancement Extend program will allow R&I’s Canadian Food & Wine Institute (CFWI) Innovation Centre to enhance its state-of-the-art commercialization services to assist more beverage companies in the Niagara region, and beyond, to innovate, grow and compete in the global marketplace.

The College and Community Innovation Program (CCIP) Extend Innovation Enhancement (IE) Grant, entitled ‘Increasing Economic Prosperity through Beverage Innovation & Commercialization,’ spans three years and includes $300,000 per year, to which $150,000 per year in industry cash contributions will be added for a total of $1.35 million.

The announcement is part of NSERC’s $76-million investment for 128 new applied research projects aimed at connecting Canadian colleges with local small- and medium-sized businesses to provide innovative solutions in the development of new products and technologies.

For the CFWI Innovation Centre, this grant means expanding resources to focus on feasibility studies (pre- and post-market services and risk assessments); beverage research and product development (innovative processes and incorporation of key market trends); consumer acceptance and quality assurance; and conducting research test-runs through a small-batch, scale-up beverage processing laboratory.

This funding responds to an incredible demand by regional beverage manufacturers, and more than six years of capacity building in food and beverage research and development at the CFWI Innovation Centre’s Technology Access Centre (TAC). The NSERC-funded TAC enables SMEs to advance their products, processes and services through access to specialized technology, equipment, and expertise.

“Beverage-sector companies have identified challenges that prevent them from innovating with new products, including a lack of affordable research expertise, equipment and facilities. Through this NSERC grant, we are able to better serve the needs of Ontario’s growing food and beverage industry,” said Marc Nantel, PhD, vice-president, Research, Innovation & Strategic Initiatives.

This initiative will establish the CFWI Innovation Centre as a Beverage Centre of Excellence, strengthening Niagara College’s track record of firsts in Canada as home of the first commercial Teaching Winery, Teaching Brewery, Teaching Distillery, and Commercial Cannabis Production academic program.

“Now we’re expanding this offering for our industry/training supports with a beverage and liquids R&D pilot processing lab that bridges the gap for companies looking to get consumable test-products in the market,” said Lyndon Ashton, centre manager, CFWI Innovation Centre.

When industry partner Royal Canadian Mead needed specialized expertise to develop a line of mead products, they looked to experts at the CFWI Innovation Centre. Together with NC’s Teaching Winery and Commercial Beekeeping program, College researchers crafted new styles of session brews, two of which are now on the shelves at the LCBO.

In a more recent innovative project with DistillX Beverages Inc., CFWI Innovation Centre researchers created Canada’s first distilled non-alcoholic gin, under the band label Sobrii Ø-Gin (zero gin), with zero calories, zero sugar and, as the marketing touts: zero hangovers.

“Their expertise was instrumental in terms of me being able to sell a product that was not only superior tasting but something I can commercially scale and replicate safely,” said Bob Huitema, founder of DistillX Beverages.

Since opening, the CFWI Innovation Centre has worked with companies of all sizes, including Bacardi Canada Inc., a subsidiary of Bacardi Ltd., the largest privately held spirits companies in the world. Consumer acceptance and sensory testing for Bacardi, involving students and staff experts, has informed the launch of new alcoholic beverage products.

Beyond project funding, this IE grant will allow the CFWI Innovation Centre to provide enhanced experiential learning opportunities for students, while meeting strong local industry demand for skilled talent. The Centre works with faculty experts and students from several NC programs – including Culinary Innovation and Food Technology (Co-op), Culinary Management (Co-op), Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management, Winery and Viticulture Technician, and Wine Business Management programs – to provide a wealth of knowledge to industry partners.

“Our focus is on combining economic and workforce development aspects of our programs. This grant lets us hire students as research assistants, who work alongside highly-qualified experts and industry partners,” said Ashton. “It gives talent access to highly motivated employers in their field and acts as a proving ground for companies to tap into prospective employees by innovating.”

Kyler Schwind (left), a research assistant with Research & Innovation and a graduate (2020) of NC’s Culinary Innovation and Food Technology program, and Stephanie Skotidas (right), a research laboratory technician with the Canadian Food & Wine Institute Innovation Centre, conduct beverage research at the CFWI Innovation Centre.

Quick Facts – CFWI Innovation Centre Beverage Centre of Excellence

• The  Canadian Food & Wine Institute Innovation Centre Beverage Centre of Excellence will be part of an entire research floor of the new 49,000-square-foot Marotta Family Innovation Complex (based at the Daniel J. Patterson campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake), that includes designated laboratories focused on beverage research; and equipment to facilitate beverage processing, treatment and analytical research, including cannabis research.
• As a Beverage Centre of Excellence, the CFWI Innovation Centre will serve as a one-stop shop for beverage innovation and commercialization that will help small- and medium-sized enterprises bring their products from concept to shelf. The focus area is the liquid portfolio of food and culinary innovation, which includes beverages (non-alcoholic and alcoholic); spoonables and pourables (such as condiments, marinades and dressings); and cannabis research, including extraction, infusion and product development, mainly for beverages.
• For industry partners, the NSERC IE Extend grant will provide project funding that will require a 1:1 match consisting of cash and in-kind services. The R&I business development team is available to hear potential project ideas and discuss ways the CFWI Innovation Centre can work to solve these challenges. Contact Elizabeth Best, business development coordinator: [email protected]
• The CFWI Innovation Centre team offers a full suite of services to support industry innovation and commercialization of new products and processes. From new recipe development to shelf-life testing and nutritional labelling, the CFWI Innovation Centre pairs industry partners with faculty, recent graduates and students with the right expertise and equipment to meet industry needs. In all cases, the intellectual property developed during the project belongs to the industry partner.

NC’s award-winning Research & Innovation division provides real-world solutions for business, key industry sectors, and the community through applied research and knowledge transfer activities. Researchers conduct projects that provide innovative solutions, such as producing and testing prototypes, evaluating new technologies, and developing new or improved products or processes for small- and medium-sized businesses.

Niagara College offers more than 130 diploma, bachelor degree and advanced level programs; as well as more than 600 credit, vocational and general interest Part-Time Studies courses. Areas of specialization include food and wine sciences, advanced technology, media, applied health and community safety, supported by unique learning enterprises in food, wine, beer, distilling, horticulture and esthetics. For more information visit niagaracollege.ca.

Top photo: Kelly Byer (left), a research laboratory technologist with the Canadian Food & Wine Institute Innovation Centre, and Samantha Stinellis (right), a research assistant with Research & Innovation and a graduate (2020) of NC’s Culinary Innovation and Food Technology program, conduct beverage research at the CFWI Innovation Centre.

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Media inquiries, please contact:

Julie Greco

Communications Consultant, Niagara College

Cell: 905 328 2532

[email protected]

Five thousand dreams came true at Niagara College this week in the face of unprecedented challenges – and they were celebrated like never before.

June 19 marked the final day of Spring Virtual Convocation for NC’s Class of 2020. The College celebrated more than 5,000 new graduates in five days through a series of ceremonies livestreamed from its Welland Campus and into the homes of its graduates, their families and friends, and viewers from around the world.

The interactive virtual events served to mark the important milestone for a class of graduating students like no other before they embark on the next chapter of their lives. Like students from across the province, they completed their studies remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic and have not been able to return to campus since mid-March.

The new graduates heard messages of inspiration from across the College community and beyond.

NC president Sean Kennedy and senior VP Academic and Learner Services Steve Hudson kick off the final day of Spring 2020 Virtual Convocation ceremonies.

“Pursue the opportunities that lie ahead, challenge yourself and live a life of integrity,” said College president Sean Kennedy to the Class of 2020. “Know that there are countless people who envy the blank canvass that’s staring back at you today – a canvass you will paint over time as you create your own future. Make it a masterpiece.”

Guest speaker Clara Hughes – six-time Olympian and mental health advocate – received an Honorary Diploma in Health Studies from the College and delivered a gripping convocation address to the new graduates.

“This is your special, unusual, and powerful time to be present, to be grounded, to celebrate and to connect,” she said.

Guest speaker Clara Hughes receives her Honorary Diploma in Health Studies at home in Canmore, Alberta.

Hughes shared words of wisdom, which she learned from a revered leader in the Squamish First Nation before she competed in the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games.

“He told me, ‘Clara, I know that you’re a competitor and I know that you’re in an individual sport and I know that this is the Olympic Games,’ but what he said was, ‘you cannot want this greatness for yourself unless you want it for every single person around you. You have to look at your competitors and want success for them and, only then, can you ask for it for you.’”

June 19 ceremonies

The final day of ceremonies celebrated 524 graduates from the School of Academic and Liberal Studies in the morning, and 298 from the School of Environment and Horticulture in the afternoon.

Lindy Brunarski

Horticultural Technician graduate Lindy Brunarski was announced as the Dean’s Award from the School of Environment and Horticulture Studies with a 97 percent GPA. As a working paramedic – and alumnae from NC’s Paramedic (2005) and Advanced Care Paramedic (2008) programs – Brunarski decided to return to the classroom to enhance her passion for gardening out of interest, rather than to pursue a new career.

The Welland resident has a 23-acre farm in Pelham with 19 flowerbeds, a forest to manage, and five acres of agricultural land she hopes to convert into a small nursery and market garden someday. She has already been applying her skills from the program to help her achieve her goals of transforming the property to create a public gathering space.

“I find that the mental reprieve that I need from my work as a paramedic is often found by being outside in nature or the garden beds,” she said. “I am now a proud ‘horticultural paramedic.’”

Faisal Alsafadi, 34, graduated from General Arts and Science during the morning ceremony with a 94 percent GPA, a Dean’s Award from the School of Academic and Liberal Studies, and his family and friends watching from Ontario and Saudi Arabia where he was born and raised.

Faisal Alsafadi

“I was looking forward to our formal graduation, as every student hopes, to share our accomplishment with family and friends,” he said. “But we are also part of a time in history that will make our virtual graduation a unique one that uses my passion in the IT field to its full advantage.”

Since immigrating to Canada in the fall of 2017, Alsafadi has been residing in St. Catharines and been as enhancing his education as well as being an active volunteer in the community. He enrolled in his current program with a Bachelor of Science (Computer Science) under his belt, and previously completed two Occupation-specific Language Training courses, and the General Arts and Science Enhanced Language Training for Employment program at NC.

“The General Arts and Science program gave me the opportunity to advance my English skills and explore computer studies in the College,” he said. “Following other immigrants’ success stories of their struggles and eventual achievements since landing in Canada, inspires and motivates me to work hard to accomplish my dreams.”

Virtual Convocation 2020

Niagara College’s first-ever Virtual Convocation ceremonies, held from June 15 to June 19, have been drawing thousands of viewers from around the world – with 17,515 viewers from 63 countries on July 15, 11,732 viewers from 44 countries on July 16,  9,589 views from 42 countries on July 17, and 11,135 views from 78 countries on July 18.

The interactive live ceremonies offered graduates the chance to hear their names called out and see them appear on screen. They had an opportunity to connect with their classmates via Zoom parties held alongside the formal ceremonies, and could be seen smiling, waving and cheering intermittently during the livestream – many of them with their families and pets, as they participated from their homes. Social media posts using the #NCGrad2020 hashtag were also incorporated into the ceremony.

College president Sean Kennedy and senior vice president, Academic and Learner Services, Steve Hudson hosted all 10 ceremonies for the week on campus. The events also acknowledged Hudson’s final NC convocation prior to his retirement, after 20 years as a senior leader at the College.

Virtual Convocation featured numerous video well-wishes from across the College community – including members of faculty, staff and administrators; the College’s Board of Governors chair John Scott; and College Student Administrative Council president Tom Price.

Several members of the alumni community welcomed the new graduates in a video message – including president of RW&Co. Lora Tisi (1979), and Tim Hansing, CEO and co-founder of Red Planet Hotels (1987), Niagara EMS chief Kevin Smith (1992), TV host and reporter Amy Audibert (2012) who also voiced the opening video for the ceremony.

In addition, video greetings were played from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Minister of Colleges and Universities Ross Romano, and Niagara regional chair Jim Bradley.

Each ceremony also included an Indigenous welcome from traditional knowledge keeper Karl Dockstader; music from piper Kelley Buckley; and a special video of the national anthem sung by College faculty Barbara Mantini, Giacomo Folinazzo and Paul Wintemute. Names were read by faculty members Franco Bieri and Carolyn Ambrose-Miller.

Two ceremonies took place each day, livestreamed from the College’s Welland Campus, thanks to faculty from the Broadcasting – Radio, Television and Film program, and College staff. The production was an applied learning experience for a group of 10 students from the program who assisted.

All Spring 2020 Virtual Convocation ceremonies may be viewed on the Virtual Convocation website at niagaracollege.ca/virtualconvocation/

Niagara College offers more than 130 diploma, bachelor degree and advanced level programs; as well as more than 600 credit, vocational and general interest Part-time Studies courses. Areas of specialization include food and wine sciences, advanced technology, media, applied health and community safety, supported by unique learning enterprises in food, wine, beer, distilling, horticulture and esthetics. For more information visit niagaracollege.ca.

Top photo: A group of new graduates from the Commercial Cannabis Production program cheer as after their names are called out during the livestream ceremony on the afternoon of June 19.

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Convocation 2020 media releases:

June 18: Critical skills for critical times: Niagara College celebrates 2020 Community and Health grads

June 17: Media, Trades and Technology graduates steal the spotlight on third day of Virtual Convocation

June 16: NC hosts second day of virtual convocation: Celebrating ‘lessons learned along the way’

June 15: Niagara College community unites to celebrate Class of 2020

June 12: Niagara College’s top graduate reaches for higher calling

June 10: Six-time Olympic medalist Clara Hughes to address Niagara College Class of 2020

Media inquiries, please contact:

Julie Greco

Communications Consultant, Niagara College

Cell: 905 328 2532

[email protected]

Michael Wales

Manager, Corporate Communications

Cell: 905-328-4101

[email protected]