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GUEST SPEAKER: Don Lovisa, BA, MIM President, Durham College Topic: DC Today and What it will be like in The Future  Dave Andrews introduced Don Lovisa, President, Durham College. Don Lovisa will tell you he has the best job anywhere and that Durham College (DC) is the best in Canada. It’s hard not to get caught up in the passion Don brings to his job as president of Durham College, a position he’s held for the past ten years of his 30 plus years in post-secondary education.
Since 2008, leading an institution of more than 2,400 full-time and contract employees dedicated to a mission that the student experience comes first, Don focuses on the development of new strategies to support its students, people, business and, community, now and in the future. Employment at DC now stands at 4,178. Don has a Master’s degree in International Management from the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario, a diploma in Adult Education from St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, and has completed the course work for a PhD in Community College Leadership through the University of Toronto. Don arrived at Durham College in July, 2007 as vice-president, Academic. Prior to that, he served 20 years at Confederation College in his home town of Thunder Bay (Ontario, Canada) in progressively senior positions, including dean of the School of Business, Hospitality and Media Arts. Don has also worked internationally, consulting and providing training and teaching in the areas of globalization, market-driven economic transition, international trade, entrepreneurship and business development. Durham College has thrived under Don’s leadership, growing to more than 12,500 full-time, post-secondary and apprenticeship students and over 30,000 students in total. To support this student population growth, the college has seen more than $200 million invested in new buildings and renovations within the past nine years. Don has negotiated a new strategic mandate agreement with the provincial government; launched Durham College’s first-ever baccalaureate degree in 2018, as well as a research operation that has generated millions of dollars in funding to support local small- and medium-sized enterprises. One of the college’s most recent projects includes the AI Hub, which capitalizes on advances in machine intelligence, automated learning, decision support, optimization, robotics, language/meaning understanding, and advanced manufacturing practices. Beyond DC, Don is considered a leader in the college system and the broader provincial and national communities. He is currently the Chair of Colleges Ontario and is also driving a group of leaders called the Idea Summit for the establishment of an Innovation Hub in the Durham Region. His track record of success was instrumental in Don receiving the Business Person of the Year Award in 2017 from the Oshawa Chamber of Commerce and the Business Achievement Award in 2011 from the Whitby Chamber of Commerce, among other awards. Don believes that the success of DC is premised on its dedication to the goals of student success and providing high quality teaching and learning, from whatever role one has at Durham College. Don showed a brief video of “Durham College Today”. Here is just a small sample: https://youtu.be/cXvY7xx118w In 1967, Durham College started with 16 portables. Today it offers flexible, experimental , lifelong learning. Students are aged 7 to 70. Over 140 programs,9 academic schools, 8 Apprentice programs - all Red Seal plus programs offering certificates, diplomas, bachelor’s degrees and even Honors Bachelor Degrees - all from Durham College. There are 30,000 full and part time students, including 2,200 international students from 64 countries and even 900 university grads joined Durham College, in Sept 2019, to further their education. The cross degrees are becoming popular with 540 UOIT grads enrolled this year at DC and 430 DC grads enrolled in UOIT programs. Degrees are being offered with 2 yrs at DC plus 2 yrs at UOIT. 440 students use the Pathways to learning by leveraging their Durham College education to earn a degree in less time, through a number of partnerships and agreements with institutions across Ontario, Canada and abroad, Durham College has established opportunities for them to further their education and gain advanced standing toward a degree. Field placement even includes China. Don announced the Whitby Campus expansion in the fall of 2019, adding 60,000 sq ft costing $35 million for additional trades courses in boilermaker, crane operator and elevator mechanics (currently only offered at DC). For example, Ontario needs 600 boilermakers. 300 students will start in that program this fall. Thanks to OPG donations. This will allow for an expansion of 700 students. Don told us about the A I Hub for artificial intelligence and research , currently assisting small to medium sized companies. 100 students are currently being paid by companies to do A I research and find A I solutions. Voice activation is just one example. Robotics is also a part of this discipline. A I is now part of all businesses and industries. A huge growth opportunity. As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to rapidly transform the way organizations and their people work, a shortage of skilled professionals remains the single most significant challenge facing AI adoption by industry. With a focus on enterprise AI, including both off-the-shelf solutions and proprietary AI, this graduate certificate program – the first and only one of its kind in Canada – will prepare students to meet this demand for AI-literate practitioners. DC Library services are enormous. Resources include 103,000 books in print version plus 382,000 E books, and over 88,602 journals on line. The economic impact DC has on our community is $913 million annually. In 2011, this figures was $255 million. GTA has recognized Dc as on of the top employers , 8 years in a row. And Canada’s top green employer 3 years in a row. The new CFCE building has solar panels on top and a geothermal field right beside it. This is now part of the DC curriculum as well. The new E-game arena for students to use as fun, is also part of the curriculum. Aligning with its focus on innovation, applied research and artificial intelligence, has developed and constructed an eSports Gaming Arena for students, which will allow the college to take a leading role in one of the fastest-growing industries in the gaming market. The inclusive nature of online video games allows non-traditional athletes to compete in the team-based sport. Netting $1.5 billion dollars in 2017, according to SuperData, the eSports industry has noticed a sharp spike in investments after recording a net worth of nearly $900 million in 2016. The arena is part one of a four-phase eSports plan, which will also see an eSports club, varsity program and eventually, integration into current and future curriculum. It will provide space for students to participate in the sport – either recreationally or competitively, while also providing experiential learning opportunities for several programs. Students who are graduating are being scooped up by Ubersoft at the pay rate of $60,000 annually. Just google E sports and see how big it is. More people worldwide are watching ESports than the Super Bowl. DC recruiting programs are offered to students as early as grade 7and 8 to help them select their educational opportunities, in science, technology and trades. New trades now offer high salaries and job security, and Dc offers a wide variety of educational products. Don was thanked by our Director of Service, Kim Boatman. Be sure to keep up to date with everything that is happening at Durham College – past, present and future. Go to: https://durhamcollege.ca/ IF YOU CAN’T MAKE IT, MAKE UP: Go online at www.rotary.org go to the club locator and find a club or clubs near your destination. Or you can add the free App Rotary Club Locator to your phone for instant look up of any club in the world. Please mail or fax your make-ups to Secretary Robbie Larocque, or give your make-up card to the attendance/registration officer at the next club meeting.
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Incoming President Lennis
