Congratulations Michelle and Lucas

Canadore College will wrap up the largest portion of their graduation celebrations this Saturday with the final 2009 class graduation taking place at the end of August.

Among the list of this week’s graduates were two of BayToday’s contributing reporters Michelle Baril and Lucas Punkari (pictured).

College President Barbra Taylor says all the hard work throughout the year pays off celebrating the milestone with students and rejuvenates her to continue in her role.

“It makes it all worth while ... there are a lot of challenges being president of the college, and I think all of us at Canadore rise to the occasion.”

She admits there are many days that make her question what it is that she is doing but it all comes into context when she sees the graduates

“They are young graduates and mature graduates and you see the diversity of culture and genders and age, it just makes me so proud of the work that the whole team at Canadore does.”

“And it makes me energised in terms of making sure that I advocate on behalf of the college that we continue to get our programs and services and continue to grow them and expand them because one of the things that is really special,” she adds.

Taylor says this year was particularly special watching the first Crime Scene Investigation class graduate.

“I asked a number of them did the program meet your expectations every single one of them said the program exceeded their expectation, they loved it, and it goes back to the team we have here. Our faculty they’re amazing all of our employees are really dedicated and it’s about the students and the grads.”

For Dan Lessard, Host for CBC Radio’s ‘Points North’ and former Canadore student, addressing the School of Communication Arts and the School of Law and Justice grades came with a strong message – don’t paint yourself into a corner. Lessard who is currently feeling the pinch of the CBC’s restructuring machine says while he spoke primarily about the communications industry the idea carries across all professions.

“Part of what you have to do in the communication arts today is not pigeon hole yourself ... I’m a radio reporter, I’m a television reporter, I’m a news paper reporter print, essentially you are a professional communicator and there are different platforms to do that,” he explains.

“So I think for anyone who is in communication arts now, an industry that is shrinking, has to think about what skill set do I have and let me apply that to several different scenarios as opposed to saying I guess I have a pretty voice I’m in radio I guess that is all I can do ... no, you can have writing skills you have communication skills you have research skills, and there are lots of other sectors that need that. The corporate sector needs that, the public sector needs that, the media sector still needs that, so redefine what it is to be in communication arts. You’re not so much filling a job as you are bringing a skill set to a particular situation which I think is important."

He says the graduates also need to think from an entrepreneurial angle when looking at their careers.

“When I started in this business there was a job you went you applied and you got it, now there’s a lot more opportunity for freelancing there is a lot more opportunity for what I call contract work, and there’s a lot more opportunity to work for several different employers at the same time ... you could be working part time for let’s say the CBC, also writing articles for magazines (periodicals) also providing companies with content for their internet site ... writing news releases, helping write their annual report because people need the skill of communication and not a lot of people have that and they look to those in communication arts for that kind of specialty.”

“So I think the thing that these modern graduates have to think about is being more entrepreneurial and not expecting one full time job but actually taking your skills to several different areas and just redefining what it means to be a professional communicator and how you could make that happen.”

He says the one thing he really wanted the graduates to know is that they have to take initiative.

“You really can’t expect a job to come up and fall at your feet you have to go out there and hustle. You have to take that risk, maybe call on someone cold and say hey I would just like to take you out for coffee and tell you who I am and are you interested and what are you looking for I would really like to work for you ... following up, just don’t rely on one contact and then leave you have to follow up.”

“Adaptability, the communication arts has changed so much so whether you are in communication arts or law and justice or anything you have to be able to adapt to whatever you work throws at you even the human element that’s probably the biggest thing because you could have a great boss one month and a complete jerk the next and you are going to have to adjust. And as I said in my address the big thing for me is public service I think if you are going to be a well rounded human being that should be part of your equation because if work becomes all encompassing eventually your work is going to suffer, your family is going to suffer, your own personal well being is going to suffer, and when those things are effected you do bring that back into the work place, so I think public service community service and volunteerism is a way of broadening out your interests and giving you a lager perspective on life is so vital. “

Canadore officials say the school’s priority is to provide relevant programming for students to excel in their chosen careers. The most recent Key Performance Indicators shows Canadore with an 86.3% Graduate Satisfaction rate and 95.5% Employer Satisfaction rate. There have been over 34,000 Canadore graduates since the College's inception.