January 2018 Newsletter (5:3)

What's Inside?

Student Experience Survey

ONCAT is always working to better understand transfer students and the barriers they may face within our system. As part of that effort, we’re looking for your help in reaching out to students to take part in our Student Experience Survey, administered by CCI Resources.

The survey launches Feb 5, 2018 via this link: https://cci-survey.ca/ONCAT (currently inactive). Qualifying students completing the survey will receive a $5 incentive.

Transfer Advisors Group

The second meeting of our new Transfer Advisor Group (TAG) will be held on March 15, 2018 in Toronto. This event will bring together colleagues who work directly with transfer students to have on-going dialogue on student mobility with a focus on best practices. It is open to one representative from the institution that has a role in advising, particularly with respect to pathways.

The initial meeting was held in Toronto on October 30, 2017 and included discussions on how to maintain a student focus at a busy institution, a review of the ONTransfer.ca institutional profiles, and the initial development of a terms of reference for the group. For more information or any questions, please contact Carolyn Poplak, our Project Lead: Collaborations and Community Programs, at cpoplak@oncat.ca.

Message from the Executive Director

Dear Friends of ONCAT,

As the new Executive Director, I am honoured and thrilled to be joining a really great organization that is focused on making a difference for students through education, access, and collaboration. As a sector, we are continuing to develop a better understanding of who our students are, why they may be interested in transfer and what they hope to gain. Our current and prospective students are diverse, including first generation students, newcomers, mature learners, students from Indigenous, Francophone and/or remote communities and I am passionate about supporting all students and working with our sector partners. 

Over the years, I have had the pleasure of working with many diverse communities through my roles in government, not-for-profit organizations, and then almost a decade at York University. I have also learned a great deal from students directly through various contract teaching positions at Sheridan College, Humber College, Ryerson University and York University. Each of these roles gave me a unique perspective into what we can do within institutions and across the province. 

In my most recent role, I was the Director of Academic Partnerships and Planning within the Office of the Vice Provost Academic at York University. In that role, I was responsible for pan-institutional planning, project management, and government relations in the areas of credit transfer, student mobility, community engagement and access to postsecondary education.

It is the culmination of these experiences that make me so excited to lead ONCAT. It’s about making real change for students, building upon the change that has already happened in the short time that the organization has been in existence.

I would first like to thank the ONCAT board of directors, and in particular, our two co-chairs, Cheryl Jensen, President and CEO of Algonquin College, and Rhonda Lenton, President and Vice-Chancellor of York University, for their support and guidance as I transition into my new role. I would like to thank the team at ONCAT for their warm welcome, and for making my first few weeks so seamless. And finally, I would like to take this opportunity to recognize and thank my predecessor, Lia Quickert, who has so graciously served as the interim Executive Director over the last two years. Her vision, dedication and leadership has provided stability to the organization and has been instrumental in advancing ONCAT’s agenda in collaboration with all the colleges and universities across the province.  

Over the next few months, I am looking forward to visiting our many partners and stakeholders across Ontario, in order to better understand the credit transfer landscape, so that ONCAT can continue to have a positive influence on Ontario’s higher education system.

Sincerely,

Yvette Munro
Executive Director