December 02, 2009, Toronto — Commander John Bennett Herrington, the first Native American tribal member to fly in outer space, is among the special guests speaking at an Aboriginal symposium at Centennial College on December 10.

The theme, “Looking into the Future – 2040,” will present an opportunity to engage First Nations people and other participants in dialogue about the future for Aboriginal people. Speakers will be invited to share their vision of the year 2040, when a 16-year-old in high school will have reached middle age.

The forward-looking symposium will examine:

• prophesies, predictions and re-generation;
• sustainable development and inter-generational equity;
• career trends and pathways;
• validating indigenous ways of thinking and knowing; and,
• the importance of oral culture and witnessing.

Keynote speaker and space shuttle veteran John Bennett Herrington of the Chickasaw Nation will discuss visioning and creating pathways for the future. Other workshops will feature Sal Ferreras from Aboriginal Music Studies at Vancouver Community College and the 2010 Aboriginal Pavilion at the Olympic Winter Games. Dan and Mary Lou Smoke will highlight their cultural counselling work, media and communications experience, and their university courses in indigenous spirituality.

Sponsorship of the event, which marks Human Rights Day, is through Centennial’s Institute for Global Citizenship and Equity, a leading-edge centre examining global citizenship and equity issues, as well as the college’s Culture and Heritage Institute.

When
Thursday, December 10, 9 am to 4:30 pm

Where
Centennial College Residence and Conference Centre,
940 Progress Avenue, Scarborough (Markham Rd. at Hwy 401)

There is a small participation fee for students and educators. For more symposium details, please visit www.centennialcollege.ca/aboriginal. Or Toronto education & their Degree Programs

Toronto, August, 2009 – Toronto City Council today endorsed the terms of a Letter of Intent with Centennial College, moving the college one step closer in its efforts to redevelop the historic Guild Inn property in Scarborough.

Centennial can now enter into binding lease negotiations with City of Toronto staff to finalize a 76-year sub-lease agreement for the 6.8-acre footprint of the original hotel site, situated within an 80-acre lakeside park that the City of Toronto leases from the Toronto Regional Conservation Authority.

“The Guild Inn project epitomizes Centennial’s commitment to Scarborough. As part of our vision to transform lives and communities through learning, it gives us another way to contribute to the economic, educational and cultural life of our community, while preserving and revitalizing a beloved landmark,” says Ann Buller, President and CEO, Centennial College. “If we have found a way to save it, everyone – the college, the city and the community – will enjoy the benefits.”

Centennial has proposed to redevelop the site as a new hotel and conference centre complex. As part of this project, the college intends to restore the historic Bickford Residence, a portion of which will house the research and learning resources of its Culture and Heritage Institute. It is expected to operate on a commercially viable basis while providing training opportunities for students from Centennial’s School of Hospitality, Tourism and Culture and related college degree programs.

City Council’s decision on August 5 marks the culmination of a long and intense negotiation process that balances the commercial interests of prospective hotel developers and operators against the long-term civic and ecological value of the surrounding park. The resulting agreement is strongly supported by the surrounding community, Councillor Paul Ainslie and colleagues.

Centennial College’s unique corporate status and position of trust in the community makes the college an ideal choice to build upon the heritage and cultural properties of the site in the spirit of its visionary owners, Rosa and Spencer Clark. Although Centennial is not self-financing the redevelopment, the college is able to create a special purpose corporation to contract with private-sector hotel developers and operators, while separately anchoring a land lease agreement with the City of Toronto to secure the site.

Address:
Centennial College,
P.O. Box 631, Station A
Toronto, Ontario
Canada M1K 5E9

Phone: 416-289-5000, ext. 7142
Email: [email protected]

Toronto, July 2009, – While the economic downturn has presented challenges for some post-secondary institutions, Centennial College has enriched its endowment fund by $2.3 million in the past year – an unprecedented growth rate of 42 per cent – for a total of $7,844,652.

Centennial’s endowment fund represents part of the sums of money the institution has raised from private donors, as well as matching funds from government sources. Interest earned from the fund is used to support scholarships distributed to deserving Centennial students each year.

Part of the $2.3 million included $868,890 in Ontario Trust for Student Support (OTSS) money received from the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities based on an approved ceiling for 2008-09. Unutilized “ceiling room” was redistributed to schools that exceeded their approved 08/09 limits. Consequently, Centennial received an additional $775,203 from the Ministry this year.

Thanks to a record year, Centennial ranks fourth among Ontario’s 24 public colleges and second among GTA colleges in fundraising activity. Centennial is relatively new to fundraising; in 2004, the college’s endowment fund was valued at approximately $550,000.

The welcome fund growth comes on the heels of the news that Centennial has emerged from fiscal year 2008-2009 with a budget surplus, and is planning faculty hires this year while other schools contemplate a hiring freeze.

Centennial College is Ontario’s first community college, established in 1966, primarily serving the eastern portion of the Greater Toronto Area through four campuses. It has earned a reputation for exemplary teaching, innovative programming and extensive partnership building.

For more information, visit centennialcollege.ca.