Monthly Archives: April 2011

Red River College Plugs In to Electric Vehicle Partnership

Posted on by Leave a reply

HETC_Premier_Announce220120425_0135 
Chris Stoddart, VP Engineering Services for New Flyer Industries, provides details of RRC's new electric vehicle partnership. 

Premier Greg Selinger today announced the province will invest $1 million for the development of an all-electric transit bus and charging system, and $100,000 for the creation of an electric-vehicle learning and demonstration centre at Red River College, two of several initiatives under Manitoba’s Electric Vehicle Road Map.

“This is exciting.  We are working together to develop an entirely electric bus to get families around in cities all over North America,” said Selinger.  “We’re also creating opportunities for young people right here in the province to become leaders in developing and building clean, electric vehicles and helping cut greenhouse-gas emissions.”

The $3-million, three-year project brings Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, New Flyer Industries, Manitoba Hydro, Red River College and the province together.  The bus development will be completed within one year and tested in Manitoba for two more years, the premier said.  Project development will be focused at Red River College and New Flyer Industries’ Winnipeg facilities.

The electric-bus development will benefit from New Flyer’s experience in building hybrid and hydrogen fuel-cell buses, Mitsubishi’s leading-edge lithium-ion battery technologies, Manitoba Hydro’s grid-management knowledge and Red River College’s instructors and students who can assist in solving the technological challenges coming from the project.

Continue reading →

Red River College Named One of Canada’s Greenest Employers

Posted on by Leave a reply

Sarah MacArthur
Sara MacArthur, RRC's Manager of Sustainability, inside one of the College's new greenhouses.

Red River College has been named one of Canada’s 50 Greenest Employers for 2011 by Mediacorp Canada Inc.

RRC received this prestigious honour thanks to its initiatives to reduce the environmental impact of College operations, incorporate sustainability into its research and academic programming, and engage staff and students in more eco-conscious behaviour.

"We’re proud that staff and students have embraced our commitment to adopt sustainable business practices and become a more socially responsible organization," said Stephanie Forsyth, President of Red River College. "This award recognizes the efforts of the many green leaders we have throughout the College."

Some of RRC’s recent environmental accomplishments include:

  • Increasing waste diversion rates by over 30% by implementing a new recycling system.
  • Conducting testing on new technologies for green construction and alternative energy vehicles through our applied research department.
  • Operating an on-site program at the Notre Dame Campus that turns organic kitchen waste into compost that’s used on College grounds.
  • Converting used cooking oil into biodiesel that can be used to power College vehicles.
  • Building new facilities, such as the Heavy Equipment transportation Centre and the Paterson GlobalFoods Institute, to meet LEED standards of energy efficiency.

RRC is one of only two Manitoba organizations to be named to this year’s Greenest Employer list (along with New Flyer Industries), and one of only five post-secondary institutions across Canada.

The award is the latest in a series of green honours for the College, including a 2009 Manitoba Excellence in Sustainability Award, a 2010 Spirit of Winnipeg Award, and top finishes in the last two Winnipeg Commuter Challenges.

"Red River College is dedicated to being a sustainability role model in our community," explained Sara MacArthur, Manager of Sustainability at RRC.  "Sustainability isn’t limited to one office or one area in the College. It’s in our daily operations, our building projects, our research endeavours, our student projects and more."

Launched in 2007, the Canada’s Greenest Employers competition recognizes organizations that lead the nation in creating a culture of environmental awareness in their workplaces.

Creative Arts Students Launch ePubs for iPads

Posted on by Leave a reply

IMG_0002 Creative Arts students from Red River College continue to blaze trails in the realm of online publication, having recently launched their own "ePubs": interactive magazines designed specifically for the iPad's Adobe Viewer app.

The consortium of RRC-ers — comprised of second-year Graphic Design students and Advertising majors from the Creative Communications program — spent the better part of their academic year writing, designing, programming and publishing the ePubs, which are now available for free download (link to downloading instructions below).

The ePubs — which include motion graphics and video, and feature ads for both Red River College and Berns & Black Salon & Spa (this semester's advertising client) — were created with college-aged students in mind, says CreComm instructor Kenton Larsen.

“An advertising professional does a lot more today than just write copy,” says Larsen. “This project is a great opportunity to show that RRC, Creative Communications, and Graphic Design aren't spinning their wheels in the bygone days of the communications biz, but continue to keep moving forward at the forefront of the industry.”

The ePub project was funded by an award from RRC's Program Innovation Fund, which was established to support technological innovation and continuous improvements in academic programming at the College.

See Larsen's blog for links to examples of the students' ePubs, and for detailed instructions on how to download the entries to your iPad.

CreComm Grads Pay Tribute to Departing Instructor

Posted on by Leave a reply

Steve_V_1758_medium_res

Now here's a mafia you wouldn't mind messing with.

Several decades' worth of Creative Communications students (known in local media circles as the "CreComm Mafia") gathered yesterday to pay tribute to a colleague, mentor and friend: departing Red River College instructor Steve Vogelsang, who'll be moving to British Columbia at the end of the school year.

The combined send-off and reunion, held at The Roblin Centre downtown, drew upwards of 250 people — many of them current CreComm students who were taping their final "Live At Five" newscast of the year. The majority, however, were recent graduates and media colleagues who'd returned to thank Vogelsang for the impact he's had on their careers.

"It was in second year that Steve said to me, 'Martin — you should try anchoring,'" recalled recent CreComm grad Shannon Martin, who entered the program intending to study print journalism, but now works as Global Winnipeg's late-night anchor.  

"I didn't want to do it, but I did — and I loved it. Steve was the turning point in my broadcasting career."

Vogelsang joined the RRC team in 2002, following a long and distinguished career with CKY-TV (aka CTV Winnipeg). In the ensuing years, CreComm students have benefited greatly from his knowledge and experience, and from the countless curriculum-related initiatives (among them, the aforementioned "Live At Five" newscasts) he's had a hand in implementing.

"Being able to share that experience with enthusiasm and humour has made him a favourite here on campus," said RRC President Stephanie Forsyth.

Vogelsang, for his part, seemed genuinely touched by the tributes. While addressing those gathered, he referenced common qualities among the so-called mafia, including "a certain hunger, a certain desire, and certain self-destructive tendencies that cause you — against your better judgment — to put up with instructors like me."

"When you survive something like that, you're bound together with all those people who survived it right along with you," he said. "That characteristic is what brings us together as alumni. It's what makes it easier for me to go, because I'll be taking that with me."

Click here for more information on RRC's Creative Communications program.

CreComm Students Show Off Self-Published Magazines

Posted on by Leave a reply

IMG_2057crop
(Left to right): CreComm students Andrew Parker, Dylan Hughes and Michelle Choy show off Upper Cruster, a magazine celebrating — what else? — Winnipeg's upper crust.

They've still got a year to go before graduating, but students in Red River College's Creative Communications program can already call themselves published writers.

The students — who've spent the last few months working on a term-long magazine project — showed off the fruits of their labours yesterday at the annual Creative Communications Magazine Fair.

Working in groups of three to four, students guide their magazines from inception stage to finished product — responsible for everything from articles and photographs to advertisements and marketing strategies.

"One of the reasons we have this project is that it brings together skills from a lot of different courses," says CreComm instructor Karen Press. "(Students) get to use their writing skills and their layout skills, and of course they're matching content to their audience — magazines are an especially good vehicle for targeting audiences."

This year's batch of entries included magazines devoted to Winnipeg's historic architecture, the transgendered community, coffee and tea beverages, and moving out on your own for the first time (among many others).

A panel of industry judges — among them, recent CreComm grad Jeffrey Vallis, whose SANDBOX Magazine (a co-creation with fellow CreComm-er Braden Alexander) has been making waves in local fashion circles — also weighed in on the students' work, awarding cash prizes to those deemed especially impressive.

The prizes, sponsored by the Manitoba Magazine Publishers Association, went to the teams responsible for Thingamajig (Best Overall — Ashley Wiebe, Pamela Wankling, Michael Badejo, Brian Bulos), Lomo (Best Design  — Garrick Kozier, Ryan McBride, Alex Rohne, Jordan Thompson), and Burlap (Best Content — Albertine Watson, Veronica Neufeld, Kevan Hannah, Jaremy Ediger).

Click here for more information about RRC's Creative Communications program.