The community college of choice in Newfoundland and Labrador
By Alexandra Stadnyk and Produced by Ian Ross
Jean Madill is sitting in a former United States Military cadet barracks building from 1964. It’s not an ideal location to be running 17 college campuses from and 1 campus in Qatar, but she says: “It’s not about the building, it’s about the people, and that’s the main focus.” Hardly what you would call a coveted ‘corner office’, Madill adds, people come first at College of the North Atlantic in Newfoundland and Labrador, everything else is secondary, but admits the college has a long way to go infrastructure wise.
Throughout her time as president of the college Madill has worked to enhance the selection of quality programs that support industry changes and growth opportunities in Newfoundland and Labrador. “The college is often the key industry in many of the smaller regions and communities. Working with the community and leaders in it, we literally run our programming based on the needs in the community and the local industries,” says Madill, who joined the College in October 2007 bringing with her over 30 years of experience in post-secondary education working in Ontario, Saskatchewan and Alberta.
There is nothing quite like working in Newfoundland and Labrador, says Madill, where she was welcomed with open arms. “People are truly helpful here, they are genuine and caring, and that’s how our college runs. You put a call out and people know you need something and they step up to the plate and say ‘I’ll help you with that’.”
The college, the only public college in Newfoundland and Labrador, was created in 1997, after the provincial legislator amalgamated 5 regional colleges to create College of the North Atlantic. Made up of 17 campuses, and one in Qatar, the college is one of the largest academic institutions in Atlantic Canada; the large-sized college is dispersed over a large land mass, just a bit smaller than the state of California. The college enrolls approximately 20,000 students each year in more than 100 full-time programs and more than 300 part-time programs. The college offers a broad base of programming ensuring that students can ladder into different types of programming later on. “The college strives to take a learner from any place they are entering and take them to any place they want to go,” says Madill. Students can earn certificates and diplomas and have opportunities to obtain a degree from over 100 partner, high-level institutions in Canada, the United States and Europe.
A Community Approach
Madill is focused on enhancing the college’s reputation for building strong community leaders. A large focus of instruction is based on a community service model of learning. Madill is aiming to make the college the service learning college of Canada. The concept is based on students learning to give back to the community in which they live. “This concept is alive and well throughout our campuses. Because we are so closely linked to the community our students are well rounded, global citizens who want to give back as a normal way to do business,” says Madill. For instance, recently, civil engineering and architectural students from the college travelled to New Orleans, Louisiana and partnered with architectural and engineering firms to help redesign and rebuild buildings and roads of a community in the heart of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina destroyed the city in 2005.
The college maintains a strong international presence in Qatar, where the college entered into a 10-year agreement with the State of Qatar in 2001 to develop a comprehensive college of technology for the country. College of the North Atlantic is currently negotiating a 15-year extension with Qatar. Initially operating from a temporary campus, the permanent state-of-the-art campus in Qatar, serving approximately 4,000 students, was recently constructed and enrollment has been increasing. College of the North Atlantic-Qatar offers a range of programs with a Canadian curriculum taught by 700 Canadian instructors – many from Newfoundland and Labrador.
Back at home, and since the global economic downturn, Madill says, the college is experiencing an upswing in enrollment. Many individuals have gone back to school to become re-educated and re-trained. Many adult learners have also returned to the college as a result of the closure of a number of industries in Newfoundland and Labrador. Industries like fishing, mining, and pulp and paper have declined sending many back to the classroom. Madill says many have become retrained in trades and business, which remain largely popular programs throughout the campuses.
Building relationships one rock at a time
Being a public college, the school had a long history of government involvement and top-down management, something Madill has been working to change as president. The culture of the college has changed significantly in the last two years, says Madill, who has worked to bring the 17 campuses together to feel like one. Madill has worked to build employee relationships and has used the Canadian symbol of the Innukshuk, which connotes collaboration and mutual support, to symbolize the collaborative environment of the college. “You can’t build an Innuksuk without each rock being equal. Similarly employees need to receive support and be supportive of each other. Each person, like the Innukshuk, needs support and needs to support others. This is a powerful symbol of the leadership and learning centre that we have established at College of the North Atlantic.”
Looking ahead, says Madill, as she continues to shift the college from good great, she hopes the college is recognized for the good work it has done over the years. “Moving this college from good to great is definitely a journey. We are currently two years into it and it’s never ending, but we have achieved significant steps,” says Madill. It starts with valuing the people and the skill set of the people in the college and having them feel valued, she adds. Those employees, in turn, do great things with the learners who go on to do great things in the world, she concludes.