Celebrating excellence at Seneca
The Excellence in Seneca Awards were held Wednesday at the Newnham Campus SeneCentre.
Presented annually, the awards recognize Seneca students, employees and board/committee volunteers that have made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of the College in the areas of service, leadership, collaboration and innovation. This year’s recipients are:
Student Leadership Award -
Daniel, pictured with Seneca President David Agnew and Seneca Senior Vice-President Cindy Hazell, has demonstrated innovative leadership improving the experience for his fellow students at Jane Campus through the creation of campus-specific social networking tools. He has ensured the sharing of campus-specific and College-wide news and information among students, staff and faculty with his creation of a Jane Campus website, blog, forums and use of Facebook and Twitter.
Distinguished Service Award: Support Staff -
Sue has been an outstanding contributor to the Seneca community for more than 38 years. For the past 11 years, she has been a member of the Counselling and Disability Services team at King Campus. As a front-line worker, Sue takes the time necessary to ensure that each student has his or her needs met and receives helpful information. Sue has also greatly impacted those with whom she works. As a resource and valuable team member, Sue has contributed to the smooth operation of her department, including going above and beyond the call of duty to provide training, support and knowledge during times of transition.
Distinguished Service Award: Administration - Carol Greenshields, Manager, Admissions and Registration
Working directly with students, faculty and administration, Carol is always willing to go the extra mile and find unique solutions to challenges. She guides students in their academic lives and advises faculty on how to interpret policy and requirements. Carol is more than willing to help in any way she can – whether it be through the suggestion of a bursary to a student in financial need or providing support to someone dealing with an emotional situation.
Collaboration Award - Steering Committee, DECA (Demonstrating Excellence, Celebrating Achievements) Competition
DECA is an innovative extra-curricular program for secondary school students in Ontario. On Oct. 29, 2009, more than 1,400 GTA high school students attended the regional DECA competition held at Newnham Campus. The DECA steering committee led by Chris Dudley, Chair of Business Management, developed a plan to host and facilitate the event, including co-ordinating more than 80 volunteer judges. Senecans from many areas of the College came together to make this a tremendous day for DECA students. In doing so, Seneca was highlighted in the best possible light, while prospective students and high school faculty learned about the outstanding education options that Seneca offers. The dedicated steering committee, consisted of Chris Dudley, Phil Pomeroy, Barry Naymark, Laura Mandell, Marianne Marando, Nadine Ellul, Swati Sood, Jane Forbes, Jane Haddad and Douglas Orr.
Distinguished Service Award: Faculty - Elise Sheridan, Co-ordinator, Academic Upgrading
Elise plays a pivotal role in expanding and strengthening the College's partnerships with service provider organizations, such as The Learning Centre for Georgina in Keswick and Progressive Moulded Products Action Centre. These partnerships help to provide seamless service delivery and respond to the needs of learners with supportive, flexible and individualized programming. Elise is committed to nurturing relationships and heightening the profile of Seneca in the community through her position as Co-ordinator of Academic Upgrading and through her volunteer activities.
Innovation Award - Carol Carruthers, Professor, School of Biological Sciences and Applied Chemistry
Carol was instrumental in securing a Technology for Teaching Grant in 2008. The $77,000 grant included HP Wireless Tablet PCs used to enhance learning in engineering, math, science, or computer science. Carol's commitment to student success through innovative uses of technology has continued since the initial grant. She helped students create videos showcasing the value of Tablet PCs and associated software for submission to video contests on YouTube. With Carol's help, the students won $3,000 in The Workshop on the Impact of Pen-based Technology on Education video contest and $7,000 in the DyKnow video contest. Carol has incorporated leading-edge technology into the daily operations of her classrooms and engaged students in a form of hands-on learning that keeps them engaged and on the path to success.
Special Excellence in Seneca Award - Seneca Student Federation
At a time when post-secondary financial aid funds were hit by the market downturn, Seneca's Student Federation (SSF) displayed extraordinary generosity to their fellow students. The SSF answered the call to an emergency appeal for financial aid funds, by contributing $100,000 to help support fellow students. This investment in the success of Seneca students supports more than 400 scholarships and bursaries. For their generosity of spirit and commitment to helping fellow students make a change in their lives, the SSF are in an Excellence in Seneca award category all to themselves.
