Grad’s explosive career a chemical reaction to Algonquin College
For 50 years, Algonquin College’s classrooms have been home to cutting-edge technology – but alumnus Mike Gillissie remembers when that meant a computer “the size of a room.”
The 1969 Chemical Technology grad recalls filling in punch cards to use in the then “state-of-the-art” machine. “I fell in love with computers,” he says. “It probably had less power than I have in my cellphone… everyone had to take turns using it. It was a pretty amazing thing back then to go to a school that had one of these things.” Read more >
Cook Apprenticeship Program provides rising chef with all the right ingredients
Imrun Texeira can stand the heat, and he couldn’t wait to get into Algonquin College’s kitchens.
“I wanted to become more versatile with my skills in and outside of the kitchen,” says the 2014 Cook Apprenticeship Program grad. “(Algonquin) helped me become (the) well-rounded chef I am today.”
Algonquin’s state-of-the-art-kitchen labs, and industry-leading instructor chefs, helped prepare Texeira for work in Ottawa’s gourmet dining scene, British Michelin-starred restaurants, and even reality food TV.
The program’s dynamic menu includes classroom sessions, stints in the College’s Restaurant International, and course-credited experience in working kitchens. It moulds students into vital members of any culinary team – and potential future leaders of their own kitchens. Courses include Theory of Food, Kitchen Management, Nutrition and Food, and Plated Deserts. Read more >
Recreation Leadership grad finishes career where it began
Rick Baker took the long road back home to Algonquin College.
The 1972 grad gives whole new meaning to recreational pursuit. After a wide-ranging career, Baker returned to campus in 2014 as a professor and co-op officer. For the life-long learner, that also meant revisiting the site of his first of many post-secondary degrees.
“I have a great combination of professional and volunteer experience, but it all harkens back to the great work that happened here at Algonquin College where I took Recreation Leadership,” says Baker, who now works for the Bachelor of Hospitality and Tourism Management program [a forerunner to the current HTM program]. “That basically gave me the groundwork and framework for working with people, and its been part of my mantra and my business for some 40 plus years.”
Most importantly, Algonquin developed Baker’s interpersonal skills. Courses were “very relevant,” he adds, combining “work experience” with theory, and practical knowledge. Read more >