Community Support
Generous gift will advance OC health-care education
January 19, 2022
A local family foundation is investing in the future of health-care education with a generous gift to Okanagan College. The Merrifield Family Foundation is donating $100,000 to the Our ɫɫɫƬ, Your Health campaign for a modern Health Sciences Centre on the College’s Kelowna campus. The gift will support technology upgrades and new equipment for eight professions ranging from Pharmacy Technician Assistants and nurses to Therapist Assistants. Lane Merrifield, a well-known entrepreneur, says he values the College's focus on applied learni...
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The Okanagan Sikh Temple and Cultural Society gives boost to health care students
December 22, 2021
A $25,000 gift from the Okanagan Sikh Temple and Cultural Society will empower health care students as they pursue their education at Okanagan College. The Sikh Community began collecting donations from their congregation to support the College's $5-million Our ɫɫɫƬ, Your Health campaign and was able to raise the funds in six months. Amarjit Singh Lalli, President of the Okanagan Gurduara, says their community believes in the importance of acquiring knowledge and passing it on to future generations, which made it easy to get behind th...
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Dec. 6 Candlelight Vigils return to OC’s Vernon and Salmon Arm campuses
December 2, 2021
Candlelight is returning to Okanagan College’s campuses, as a symbolic commitment to end violence against women. Communities in the Okanagan and Shuswap are marking the 32nd anniversary of the École Polytechnique Massacre, in addition to the ongoing cases of missing women from the region, with a Candlelight Vigil on Dec. 6 co-hosted by a network of organizations and volunteers. “The SAFE Society has been partnering with Okanagan College and students for over a decade to offer the Dec. 6 event, as an important way to remember and honour wo...
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New Chair, Vice Chair for College Board
November 30, 2021
Okanagan College’s Board of Governors has a new Chair and Vice Chair. Juliette Cunningham, who has served as Vice Chair since November 2019, has been elected Chair. She succeeds Gloria Morgan whose two-year term has now completed. “It has been very inspiring working alongside Gloria and I am deeply honoured to be succeeding her in the role,” said Cunningham. “Gloria is an incredible champion for her community and for the College. I’m proud of the work we’ve accomplished at Okanagan College, and with a new strategic plan to be finalized e...
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TOTA award remembers George Hanson, supports OC viticulture student
November 8, 2021
Winemaker George Hanson, who passed away in February, was widely acknowledged for his efforts to grow the B.C. wine scene. A new award funded by the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association (TOTA) will commemorate his legacy, while helping a viticulture student at Okanagan College to cultivate their future in the industry Hanson so dearly loved. TOTA has donated $1,500 to create the George Hanson Memorial Bursary, which will be open to students in the College’s Viticulture Certificate program starting in January. “We are very pleased to be ...
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RBC invests in Okanagan College's future
October 27, 2021
A $75,000 gift from the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) will support the growth of Okanagan College now and into the future. RBC in British Columbia is contributing $35,000 to the Our ɫɫɫƬ, Your Health campaign for the new Health Sciences Centre on the Kelowna campus while $40,000 will support future investment in the campus. According to Courtney Hesse, RBC’s Regional Vice President for the Okanagan and Kootenays, supporting the College aligns strongly with RBC's focus on empowering youth for the jobs of tomorrow. “Okanagan College plays...
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Okanagan College professors pen in-depth book on history of Canadian corrections
October 22, 2021
Discourse about the lived experiences of those behind bars is about to break free across the country, with a special virtual book launch event next week. Okanagan College Sociology Professor Melissa Munn and History Professor Chris Clarkson joined forces to co-author Disruptive Prisoners: Resistance, Reform and the New Deal, published this fall by University of Toronto Press. The book is a collective biography that reconstitutes the histories of Canada’s federal prison system in the mid-20th century – constructed after years of extensive...
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OC Culinary Arts students serve Thanksgiving meals to students in need
October 8, 2021
Okanagan College Culinary students and instructors helped to spread Thanksgiving gratitude to students on Friday with a holiday inspired meal. ɫɫɫƬ pulled out all the stops to prepare a Thanksgiving meal with all the trimmings for students in need as part of the innovative OC Serves Up program. The program was launched in the middle of the pandemic last year to combat food insecurity and has just relaunched this past week for the new academic year. “OC Culinary Arts students serve 50 meals a day to students in need as part of the OC...
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kinSHIFT: a powerful—and local—way to learn about Truth and Reconciliation
September 27, 2021
Kelly Terbasket of IndigenEYEZ has created a new sister organization for allies—kinSHIFT. Launched this spring, kinSHIFT is a tailored set of workshops for non-Indigenous allies who want to take the next step. Designed in response to increasing requests from people who want to be genuine allies, kinSHIFT is a safer space to do the work. &nbs...
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FortisBC powers up support for women and Indigenous students
September 24, 2021
New awards and opportunities for mentorship with FortisBC are making it easier for female and female Indigenous students to be successful with their trades education. FortisBC recently set up three scholarships for women in trades with a focus on supporting female students who are at the mid-point in their education. The scholarship comes with the potential for the student to meet with FortisBC representatives and connect with someone working in a role they may be interested in pursuing in the future. "We wanted to support students in pay...
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On-campus vaccination clinics on Sept. 7
August 26, 2021
Interior Health (IH) will be offering drop-in COVID-19 vaccination clinics for OC students and employees on Tuesday, Sept. 7 at the times and locations below: Kelowna 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. L100, Centre for Learning (E building) Penticton 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. PC113 Vernon 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. E103 Salmon Arm 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. SA - 133 See the IH booth at Orientation for more details IH is strongly encouraging everyone to be vaccinated as soon as possible, so please see their COVID-19 Immunization Clinics page for more information and dates, t...
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Jillian Harris sets up award fund to support underrepresented students
August 20, 2021
A much-coveted subscription box from Canadian influencer and Kelowna local Jillian Harris will open up more than just surprises for recipients, but opportunities to support a generation of historically excluded students at Okanagan College with every subscription sold. Jillian Harris, through her fall Jilly Box, is raising $50,000 to create awards for Indigenous students, Black students and students of Colour at Okanagan College. The Jilly Box is seeding the fund with $15,000 and subsequently, will match donations up to $10,00...
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A perfect pairing: Sandhill invites OC Culinary Arts students into the kitchen
August 6, 2021
As a student, you never know when opportunities will pop up – and Okanagan College Culinary Arts students are bubbling over with new experiences thanks to Sandhill Wines. As a result of a unique collaboration with the Kelowna-based winery, Culinary Arts students will cook a three-course plated dinner as part of a pop-up dinner series Aug. 10 to 13. “We are thrilled to welcome the students of Okanagan College into our kitchen. They have concepted a mouth-watering menu which truly represents their creativity and skill. We are very excited f...
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Skogie’s 50th anniversary adds shine to student experience
July 28, 2021
Skogie’s car washes are celebrating 50 years of business by making the ride for Okanagan College students a little easier. For every year the family-run business has been in operation, Skogie’s is donating $1,000 to Okanagan College — for a total of $50,000 in honour of their half-century anniversary. “We've hired a lot of Okanagan College students over the years,” says David Skoglund, who founded the company in 1971. “We want to support young people and help them get ahead and we also wanted to give back to our community.” The gift wil...
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Alumnus gives dose of support to Pharmacy Technician students
July 16, 2021
The CEO of Catalyst Healthcare is giving Pharmacy Technician students a dose of support with a gift to the Our ɫɫɫƬ, Your Health campaign. Shane Bishop, founder and CEO of Catalyst Healthcare, is donating $30,000 in support of Okanagan College’s Health Sciences Centre on the Kelowna campus. Bishop spent his first two years of post-secondary at the College, and the gift is his way of paying it forward to the organization and its students. “Okanagan College provides access to future careers and I wanted to be part of supporting studen...
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Statement on missing children and all those impacted by residential schools
July 8, 2021
This statement contains content about residential schools that we recognize may be triggering. If you need immediate emotional assistance or crisis support, please see the supports (bolded) below. Okanagan College respectfully acknowledges that our Penticton, Kelowna and Vernon campuses are located on the traditional and unceded territory of the Syilx Okanagan people and our Salmon Arm campus is located on the traditional and unceded territory of the Secwepemc. On behalf of Okanagan College and the Board of Governors, we offer our ...
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