Sheridan receives national recognition with two CICan awards

Sheridan has been recognized for its commitment to sustainable development and its Virtual Internship Program with Awards of Excellence from Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan). The organization presented the awards at a virtual ceremony yesterday.

SDG Excellence Award - Silver 

The SDG Excellence Award recognizes an institution that has shown leadership in the implementation and advancement of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals for the benefit of their learners and community and contributes to the peace and prosperity of the world, now and into the future. 

Sheridan’s commitment to the SDGs is enshrined in its strategic plan, Sheridan 2024: Galvanizing Education for a Complex World, which cites fiscal and environmental sustainability as a key enabler to achieving its vision. Having achieved some of its 2030 Mission Zero environmental sustainability goals ahead of schedule ahead of schedule, Sheridan has committed to set new standards on its campuses, while expanding its approach to incorporate health and wellness, and inclusion and equity objectives.   

Sheridan’s sustainability achievements have also been recognized with a STARS Silver rating from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) as well as inclusion in the Princeton Review’s list of the Top Green Colleges in North America in 2019 and 2020.

Program Excellence Award - Bronze 

The Program Excellence Award recognizes a program that is innovative, portable, sustainable and effective and involves several institutional constituents and at least one external industry or community partner.

Sheridan has a 30-year history of facilitating co-operative education experiences, and annually arranges more than 7,500 work-integrated learning (WIL) opportunities. WIL is an essential part of the Sheridan experience, so when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020 Sheridan’s Career-Integrated Learning department collaborated with internal colleagues and community and industry partners to support students looking for an alternative, remote option to complete internship requirements. 

The resulting collaboration was the launch of a new Virtual Internship Program (VIP), which included three possible streams for students to explore: Work, Innovation Accelerator and a COVID-19 Project. Each of these new offerings also included a 10-week Career-Ready Competency program, complementary learning modules and a guest speaker series with relevant webinars throughout the program.   

Nearly 350 students took part in the VIP and received financial compensation for their work. The VIP’s unique Innovation Accelerator option engaged students in a 10-week process where they applied human-centered design methodology to develop solutions for significant challenges faced by the community partners; one of which included re-imagining how the food rescue organization Food for Life delivers healthy food to approximately 24,000 people per week during the pandemic. 

“Receiving national recognition for two initiatives that are integral to the fabric of Sheridan is a point of tremendous pride,” says Dr. Janet Morrison, President and Vice Chancellor. “These awards are a testament to the tireless dedication of Sheridan people who continued to fuel and execute innovative work even in the face of a precarious year.” 

CICan represents publicly-supported colleges, institutes, Collège d'enseignement général et professionnel (cegeps) and polytechnics in Canada and internationally. The Awards of Excellence is an annual program recognizing outstanding administrative leadership, teaching, staff, programs and student leadership. Sheridan has won a total of 18 awards of excellence since 2000.