Northern College Receives Productivity and Innovation Funding

Date: Wednesday, 11 December 2013

TIMMINS, ON: Northern College has received $500,000 in funding for two new initiatives through the Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities’ recently launched Productivity and Innovation Fund (PIF). The funds will assist Northern College in further enhancing accessibility to post-secondary education and eliminating barriers to educational success.

The Productivity and Innovation Fund was established to support innovation, enable inter-institutional collaboration and differentiation, and improve the quality of learning outcomes while increasing the affordability of post-secondary education in Ontario. The $45-milion, one-time fund has allocated $23 million to single institution projects, with an additional $22 million available for multi-institution projects.

One of the Northern College initiatives to be approved for PIF funding will see Northern College faculty trained in universal instructional design (UID). UID teaches professors to adapt their lessons and course materials to a variety of student learning styles and abilities, and allows students to approach classroom material according to their preferred learning styles.

The second PIF supported initiative will see Northern College establish four online Pre-Health Science courses through OntarioLearn. The courses, Advanced Chemistry I & II and Advanced Biology I & II, are the only Pre-Health Science courses currently unavailable through online learning in Ontario. Once these courses are available, students in remote and rural areas throughout Ontario will be able to obtain a Pre-Health Science certificate entirely online. This will provide more students with the background and admission requirements for college-level health sciences programming including Practical Nursing, Paramedic and Medical Laboratory Technician programs.

“The goals of the Productivity and Innovation Fund are very much aligned with the Northern College’s strategic directions,” said Fred Gibbons, President of Northern College. “Increasing accessibility is one of our core objectives. By increasing online and distance programming options we are providing learners with more choice while removing barriers to post-secondary education. This funding will help us improve the experience that all learners have at Northern College, regardless of individual learning styles and abilities.”

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Media Contact:

Crystal Bresson
Manager, Marketing and Communications
705.235.3211 ext. 2253
bressonc@northern.on.ca