More than 3800 graduating students will be recognized at the 43rd Convocation ceremonies of Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning to be held June 14 - 16 at the Doon campus in Kitchener. In conjunction with the ceremonies, President John Tibbits will present a number of College-wide achievement honours.
Faculty member Ignac Kolenko of the School of Engineering and Information Technology will be recognized as the 2011 recipient of the Aubrey Hagar Award for Teaching Excellence, Conestoga’s top faculty honour. Kolenko, from near Mount Pleasant in Brant County, holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Computer Engineering from the University of Waterloo as well as a Professional Engineering designation. He joined Conestoga as a full-time faculty member in 2003, and is described as “an innovator who is continually looking for new course materials and delivery approaches to excite students about learning.”
The award is named for Aubrey Hagar, a distinguished member of the Conestoga community for more than 20 years, and a member of the College’s founding Board of Governors. It will be presented at the Convocation ceremony held on Tuesday, June 14 at 3:00 pm.
Also at the Tuesday afternoon ceremony, Jason Hovius, a third-year student in the Woodworking Technology program, will receive the Conestoga College Mastercraft award. Established by former College President Kenneth E. Hunter, this award recognizes outstanding technical achievement by an individual or a student team in the creation of a program-related technical project.
Hovius, who grew up near Listowel, first became interested in furniture-making while in secondary school and spent a co-op term working at a small business specializing in solid wood, handcrafted furniture. For his project, he created a serpentine writing table made with a combination of cherry wood and veneer. Judges for the competition praised the superb craftsmanship and great attention to detail that went into the creation of the delicate, but very solid writing table.
The James W. Church Award will be presented to Vanessa Gale of Kitchener at the 10:00 am ceremony on Thursday, June 16. Established by Conestoga’s founding president, the award recognizes excellence in a combination of areas: achievement in learning, concern for the dignity of the individual and a personal contribution of benefit to society.
Gale graduated with high distinction from Conestoga’s Practical Nursing program in Fall 2010. As well as her outstanding academic performance, she made significant contributions to the College community, serving as a peer tutor, participating in orientation sessions, and mentoring new students to help them attain success. She is an active volunteer for a number of community-based organizations and participated in a medical mission to Peru. Gale is consistently praised by faculty, supervisors and employers for “her leadership, her compassion, her dedication to excellence and her positive attitude.”
For more information about Spring Convocation, including a detailed schedule, visit the convocation website.
For media inquiries, contact Brenda Cassidy, Corporate Communications Manager, 519-748-5220 ext 3336 or bcassidy@conestogac.on.ca