College employee receives national recognition at CICan awards

By College Relations | May 9, 2019
           

Okanagan College Media Release

Okanagan College’s Marilyn Alexis is being honoured by colleagues across Canada for her work helping to build connections between the College, the North Okanagan community and Indigenous people and their culture.

This week Alexis, an Aboriginal Transition Planner at the College’s Vernon campus, was named the gold medal winner for the Leadership Excellence Award for Non-Managerial Staff at the Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan) 2019 Awards of Excellence in Niagara Falls.

“Marilyn has brought incredible energy and vision to Okanagan College,” says Jane Lister, Regional Dean of Okanagan College Vernon campus. “She has been instrumental in recruiting Indigenous students, she’s dedicated hundreds of hours to create a beautiful indigenous garden on our campus, and she’s been a leader in hosting events in honour of women who have experienced abuse or trauma.”

The CICan Awards of Excellence recognize best practices from institutions across the country, as well as individual leadership and achievements. There are three levels of recognition: Gold, Silver and Bronze.

Alexis was grateful to be honoured at the awards.

“Thank you CICan, it is a great honour to accept this award,” says Alexis. “I’m still in complete disbelief…winning this award is my biggest accomplishment.”

Alexis has been an integral part in championing the College’s Indigenous initiatives and has made tremendous efforts to share the indigenous culture and build lasting relationships between OC and the community. One of Alexis’ greatest achievements is leading the creation of the Kalamalka Garden, located at the Vernon Campus. It contains indigenous food plants from the Okanagan territory, as well as other native species indigenous to this area, and it was developed to be a community teaching resource of the region’s indigenous plants used by the Okanagan Indian Band.

“Marilyn has created a warm welcoming place where Indigenous learning can occur in a hands-on interactive environment that is directly connected to the land her ancestors used to live on,” says Jim Hamilton, President of Okanagan College. “Her efforts have been truly admirable and we are proud that she has received this honour.”

Okanagan College believes in Working With, and Learning From, the Indigenous Community. The College values an authentic partnership that benefits all parties and enriches the education of learners.

“I have had many proud moments at Okanagan College,” adds Alexis. “When I see our Grassroots Knowledge Keepers sharing their gift with students, staff and community, that is what I call building authentic relationships and transforming lives.” 

For more information on CICan visit collegesinstitutes.ca.

 



Tags: Truth and Reconciliation

TOP STORIES

RELATED STORIES

Sign up for weekly stories




Trending

Communications student standing outside the Centre for Learning building at the Kelowna campus
Meet Ruth Gabriela Melo Flores

April 4, 2023

Q: What's your name? A: Ruth Gabriela Melo Flores Q: What's your hometown? A: Quito – Ecuador – South America Q: How did you end up at Okanagan College? A: Well, I studied for a bachelor's degree in Law in Ecuador. Then, I worked for a while and got my Master's degree in Government and Culture of Organizations at the University of Pamplona.  When I returned to my country, professional opportunities arose for me. I mean, a Master's degree improved my career. Spain helped ...

Read more...
Animation student
Artistic students design future careers in animation

June 7, 2022

Grads of Okanagan College’s Animation Diploma program are finding their skills have never been in higher demand. First- and second-year students showed samples of their artwork and demo reels to industry partners at OC’s annual Animation Industry Night on May 17. “Lots of the work was very professional,” says James Wood, Chair of Okanagan College’s Animation Department. “Our program is short, but intense. The instructors make sure the students have a realistic understanding of what they need do to succeed in a competitive and demanding...

Read more...
JAMK campus
OC Business students embrace international study again

May 30, 2022

Business students from Okanagan College are once again able to travel to Jyväskylä, Finland to experience an international summer school at the JAMK University of Applied Sciences.  Finland’s education system is widely regarded as one of the best in the world.  OC Business Professor Blair Baldwin, who has taught Services Design at JAMK for several summers, says working in Finland has helped him innovate and create new teaching methodologies. “JAMK employs experiential learning across its curriculum,” he says. “They stress cri...

Read more...
Enactus 2022
Enactus Okanagan College tops the field, sets sights on national championships

May 27, 2022

Okanagan College students will once again be competing for the Canadian title after qualifying for the Enactus National Exposition with a first-place finish in their league during the semi-final round. Enactus teams at post-secondary institutions across Canada competed virtually earlier this month, and Okanagan College scooped up top position in the TD Entrepreneurship Challenge, and runner-up in the Scotiabank Climate Action Challenge for the Unusually Good Food Co. project. It also included national runner-up in Shaw and RBC accelerator...

Read more...