Conestoga College

Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning
Motto	Connect life and learning
Established	1967
Type	public college Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning
President	John Tibbits, B.Sc., Dipl.Ed., M.Ed., CAGS, Ed.D.
Students	9,000 full-time and 35,000 part-time
Location	299 Doon Valley Drive Kitchener, ON, Canada N2G 4M4
Campus	Urban
Sports Team	Conestoga Condors
Colours	Navy      & Red
Mascot	Condor
Affiliations	CCAA, ACCC, AUCC, OCAA, ACAATO, CBIE, Polytechnics Canada
Website	www.conestogac.on.ca

Doon Campus Sign.

The Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning is a public college based in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, with an enrolment of 9,000 full-time, 4,000 apprenticeship, and 35,000 part-time students.

Stats

Full-time Students: 9,300 (2012)

Apprenticeship Students: 4,000 (2012)

Part-time Students: 35,000 (2012)

Alumni: 84,000 (2012)

Interesting Facts

• Almost half of the Waterloo Region population (47%) have participated in training and education activities at Conestoga.

• Approximately 87% of graduates are employed within six months of graduation. Conestoga graduates contribute more than $1 billion to the local economy each year. 53% of all healthcare professionals (excluding physicians) in Waterloo Region have been trained by Conestoga.

• Conestoga offers more than 120 full-time diploma programs, 26 apprenticeship programs, 9 four-year bachelor degree programs as well as 2 collaborative degrees, 23 graduate certificate programs and more than 130 part-time programs.

• Conestoga has campuses in Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph, Stratford, Cambridge, Brantford and Ingersoll. The Student Loan default rate of Conestoga’s students is the lowest in the province at 8.4%. We attribute this, at least partially, to the fact so many of our students get excellent jobs after graduation.

• 9,300 full-time students, 35,000 part-time students, 4,000 apprenticeship students and 80,000 alumni.

• Conestoga has grown 42 percent since 2005/2006 making it the fastest growing College in Ontario.

• Dr. John Tibbits, who joined Conestoga in 1987, is the longest serving President in the Ontario college

system.

History

The College was founded in 1967 as the Conestoga College of Applied Arts and Technology, one of many such institutions established in that time by the Ontario government to grant diplomas and certificates in career-related, skills-oriented programs. It was renamed in 2002 when the government extended the school's reach, namely to grant degrees in technology-based fields.

Over the years, it has added additional programs such as the Master of Business Administration program, in cooperation with the University of Windsor. In addition, the College offers a new nursing curriculum leading to a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (B.Sc.N.) degree. Students accepted to Conestoga’s Nursing Program will take all four years of study at the Doon Campus in Kitchener. Graduates of the program will receive a degree from McMaster University.

Beginning in August 2003 two new programs began which would be the first to award a degree to students entirely through the college. The two programs are the B.Eng. Mechanical Systems Engineering program, a fully accredited engineering program by Engineers Canada and the B.A.Tech Architecture - Project and Facility Management. In 2007 a third B.A. Tech in Integrated Telecommunication and Computer Technology, degree program was added targeting embedded system hardware and software design and manufacture. All three programs award graduates a Bachelor of Applied Technology degree. Beginning of 2005 a new Bachelor of Applied Health Sciences Degree in Health Informatics Management; was started in the School of Health Sciences, Community Services and Biotechnology.

In 2006, the college purchased the former University Heights Secondary School in Waterloo for nearly $6,000,000, into which its Waterloo campus relocated later that year. The property is significantly larger than its former Waterloo campus, which the college will sell to cover the cost of the purchase.

Academic Program

See Conestoga College organizational structure

Conestoga has a one, two, three or four-year programs; as well as apprenticeship training programs. There are also many options available to students including four-year degrees in Integrated Telecommunications and Computer Technology, Architecture, Health Informatics or the International Business Management degree which started in the fall of 2006. Conestoga also has several agreements with Ontario universities including Wilfrid Laurier, Windsor and McMaster, as well as several other Canadian and international institutions.

Campuses

Doon Campus Library and Pond.

Doon Campus Sidewalk.

Cambridge Campus.

Cambridge Campus Bike Rack.

Cambridge Campus.

Doon Campus is the main campus for Conestoga College. It is located at the south end of Kitchener and houses the central administration offices as well as the majority of courses offered by the college. Regional campuses have select programs.

Doon Campus - Main Campus, 299 Doon Valley Drive, Kitchener, Ontario, N2G 4M4

Waterloo Campus, 108 University Avenue East, Waterloo, Ontario N2J 2W2

Cambridge Campus, 850 Fountain Street South, Cambridge, Ontario N3H 0A8

Guelph Campus, 460 Speedvale Avenue West, Guelph, Ontario N1H 6N6

Stratford Campus, 130 Youngs Street, Stratford, Ontario N5A 1J7

Cambridge Downtown - Academic Upgrading, Suite 402, 150 Main Street, Cambridge, Ontario N1R 6P9

Ingersoll Skills Training Centre, 420 Thomas Street, Ingersoll, Ontario N5C 3J7

Other buildings

• Recreation Centre
• ATS Centre
• Woodworking Centre of Ontario

Doon Campus from Homer Watson Blvd.

Future

The School of Engineering and Information Technology was relocated, in 2011, to a new expansion of the Doon campus opposite the current facility across Highway 401. This City of Cambridge site will eventually hold 1,000,000 square feet (93,000 m²) of space.^{[citation needed]}

Phase one of the new Cambridge Campus was finished and open for the start of the fall 2011 semester. This first 260,000 square-foot building is home to the School of Engineering and Information Technology, as well as to the Institute for Food Processing Technology. The Engineering facility has programs with a focus on advanced manufacturing, robotics, renewable energy, telecommunications and information technology. The food processing industry is continuing to grow and this expansion will help fill a need for current and future skilled workers in this sector. The expansion has increased capacity by 2,350 additional full-time spaces and allowed for an additional 800 new spaces for apprentices.

Student Life Centre

The Student Life Centre, a joint venture between Conestoga College and Conestoga Students Inc. (CSI), launched in 2006 to house various student-focused services including Counselling Services, Disability Services, Health Services, Learning Commons, Student Life Office, Student Life Programmers Office, Student Services Administration Offices, CSI Board of Directors and Staff Offices, Off Campus Housing (through CSI), CSI Self Serve Area, Shooters Photo Studio, CSI's Massage Therapist, Lounge/Atrium, CSI Sanctuary and Bar Bistro, Spiritual Room, Group Work Rooms, Meeting/Workshop Rooms, and the Student Life Centre Info Desk.

Student Housing

Conestoga Student Housing

Conestoga’s residence has over 520 beds, available in shared two-bedroom or open concept units. While the rooms are equipped with everything students need to live and learn, it’s the Residence Life team that makes the on-campus living experience so rewarding for students. The team organizes a variety of events from movie nights to sporting events, as well as awareness sessions and charity events, to encourage all students to be active in their college experience.

On Campus

On Campus Housing is available near the main Doon Campus at the Conestoga Residence & Conference Centre. It provides rooms of various sizes to over 500 students. This residence is currently under renovation due to its deteriorating structure.

Off-Campus Housing

Conestoga Student Association (CSI) provides off-campus housing through www.Places4Students.com. This site enables you to find the place that's right for you. You can also post listings, post a profile, and find potential roommates.

Conestoga Student Services

Conestoga has recently constructed a brand new Student Life Centre to house their wide array of services, as well as a new Learning Commons and a bar / bistro for all students. A sample of Conestoga's services includes:

Counselling, Health and Disability Services Aboriginal Services Learning Commons Career Services & Advising Co-op and eLearning

Student media

• 88.3 CJIQ - the college's campus radio station. It is used as part of Broadcasting: Radio course and Journalism program offered at the college.
• Spoke On-line - the web version of the official newspaper of Conestoga College. Student reporters in the Journalism programs of the college contribute the news and editorial content of the paper and are responsible for production of the weekly publication.
• 519 Online News- an online newsroom in Waterloo Region staffed by students in the Videography-Broadcast Journalism/Documentary graduate program in the School of Media and Design at Conestoga College
• "Conestoga Connected" is a weekly half-hour newsmagazine all about Conestoga College student programs, news, events, innovations, sports, life off-campus and alumni. It's created and produced by second-year Broadcast Television students at Conestoga College.

Student Sports

Conestoga College student sports teams are named 'Condor'. They compete against Varsity level teams. There are also Intramural and Extramural programs. Conestoga's large, varied intramural program is a great way to meet new friends, share experiences and get the most from college life. All participants must be full-time Conestoga College students.

The Men's and Women's Ice Hockey extramural teams play four, one day tournaments a year and practice once a week. Extramural tryouts are open to full-time Doon Campus students. Students from other campuses may be eligible to play. Extramural are for the more competitive athletes. Tryouts will determine selection for the teams.

They also have Student Athletic Committee. The purpose of the Student Athletic Committee (S.A.C.) is to assist the Athletic Staff with a variety of functions, such as promotions and advertising, organizing and running the leagues, officiating and encouraging the participation of students in athletic activities, within the operations of the Intramural and Varsity Sports Programs. This is an opportunity for individuals to expand their organizational skills within an athletic setting. The S.A.C. office is located in the Recreation Centre.

Notable alumni

• Barry Greenwald, whose 1975 student film Metamorphosis at Conestoga College won the won the Short Film Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
• Brenda Irving, CBC television sports journalist
• Jonny Staub, radio and television personality
• William A. Ferguson, Ontario politician and Cabinet member
• Ross Delane BA, Service Manager Woodstock Ford
• Brenda Halloran, RN and Mayor of Waterloo

See also

• Higher education in Ontario
• List of colleges in Ontario

References

Aggerholm, Barbara (January 10, 2006). "University Heights getting new educational role: Conestoga College buys school to expand apprenticeship courses". The Record, Kitchener, Ontario: A1,A2. 

External links

• Conestoga College Official Website