Camosun students win at Skills Canada BC
Several Camosun College Pipe Trades students recently took home awards at the Skills Canada BC competition. Sprinkler fitter Ty Lindquist got bronze; refrigeration and AC mechanic Rachel Anderson took home silver; gold-medalists Parm Singh, plumber, and Matt Stewart, steamfitter/pipefitter, are now going on to represent Camosun on Team BC at the national competition in Toronto, being held from May 26 to 30. The Skills Canada BC competition, which was held on Wednesday, April 15 in Abbotsford, are held “Olympic-style” for secondary and post-secondary students in the trades.
Women in trades champions honoured by Camosun
The Camosun College Board of Governors has awarded The Gwen Morgan and Patricia Trottier Foundation with the Award for Innovative College Partnerships. The partnership between Camosun and the Foundation began in 2017 with a program Trottier named Empowering Women in Trades (EWiT). The Foundation has donated $2.91 million to support trades at Camosun, including $2.285 million for EwiT. The award was presented at the Interurban campus on Monday, April 27.
Programs paused at mainland colleges
The first-year Nursing intake at Vancouver Community College and the Journalism Diploma program at Langara College, also based in Vancouver, have both been paused; this is part of a larger pattern of cuts across post-secondary institutions across BC.
W̱SÁNEĆ College and Camosun sign agreement
A new collaborative education and mutual recognition agreement (CEMRA) between W̱SÁNEĆ College and Camosun College with the aim of expanding opportunities for First Nations-led post-secondary education was recently announced. The agreement supports accredited programming rooted in SENĆOŦEN language, W̱SÁNEĆ knowledge systems, and community priorities while ensuring credentials are recognized through Camosun College. The partnership reinforces W̱SÁNEĆ educational leadership within W̱SÁNEĆ territory; the W̱SÁNEĆ School Board and Camosun have worked together for decades. Both institutions say the agreement reflects a shared commitment to cultural integrity, community connection, and student success.
Camosun Innovates helps with sustainable manufacturing
Camosun Innovates, the applied research division of Camosun College, is collaborating with Saanichton-based company Nature Bee to help scale up production of its concentrated cleaning tablets. The project focuses on developing semi-automated manufacturing equipment that would allow the company to move from small-batch production to a larger operation. Nature Bee’s products are designed to reduce reliance on single-use plastic bottles by replacing traditional liquid cleaners with dissolvable tablets. According to the company, full-scale production made possible through the partnership could keep as many as 2,000,000 plastic bottles per year out of the waste stream while also lowering greenhouse gas emissions.
Clean energy funding supports Camosun collaboration
The provincial government is investing nearly $6 million through the Innovative Clean Energy Fund to support six clean technology initiatives across British Columbia. Among the funded projects is one led by Blueforce Electrification Technologies, which is working to develop electric solutions for medium- and heavy-duty vehicle fleets where commercial alternatives are currently limited. Blueforce is partnering with several organizations on the project, including Camosun College, BCIT SMART and Transportation Departments, the City of Victoria, Universal Coachline, DP World, and Wei Wai Kum First Nation. The initiative aims to advance the use of clean electricity in the province’s transportation sector.
Auditor appointed in student association investigation
An auditor has been selected as part of the provincial investigation into the Kwantlen Student Association (KSA), which began in March under the Societies Act. Minister of Finance Brenda Bailey announced that PricewaterhouseCoopers will conduct the investigation.The review will examine whether funds were misused or whether other improper conduct occurred within the organization. The student union, which represents students across Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s five Metro Vancouver campuses, has said it will fully cooperate.