2012 in review
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest in 2012. This blog got about 9,900 views in 2012. If every person who reached the top of Mt. Everest viewed this blog, it would have taken 17 years to get that many views.
Study Abroad: Expand Your Horizons and Build an International Network
Holland College has more than 150 articulation agreements with universities, colleges and other post-secondary institutions around the world. These agreements enable graduates of the college to continue their education and earn further credentials quickly and economically. For example, students complete a Holland College diploma program in two years, and then study at a university for as little as two more years to earn a degree. Information about these agreements can be found on the Holland College website under Degree Pathways.
If you’re a student at Holland College, you don’t have to wait until you graduate before you travel. Many of the college’s two-year diploma programs include study tours as part of the curriculum. In the past year, students from the Professional Golf Management program travelled to Spain for two weeks, students from Sport and Leisure Management went to Costa Rica and Belize, and Tourism and Travel Management students went on a European cruise to Italy and France.
The college has also entered into an agreement with Hanze University in the Netherlands so that students from International Hospitality Management and some of the college’s business management programs such as Business Administration and Accounting Technology may participate in a Summer Institute called Doing Business in Europe. This will give students the opportunity to expand their horizons, their knowledge, and their networks, giving them skills that will greatly enhance their employability when they graduate.
Find out more about these travel opportunities and many more at www.hollandcollege.com.
Culinary Competition Club gives students a chance to hone their chops!
Culinary Arts and Pastry Arts students have formed a new club at The Culinary Institute of Canada to help them prepare for competitive culinary events, the Culinary Competition Club.
Culinary Institute of Canada chefs, students, and graduates have amassed countless awards all over the world for their culinary endeavours over the years, this new club will help the latest fledgling chefs be more prepared than ever.
Club members participate in a variety of competitions, preparing all manner of dishes. Professional chefs are invited to the CIC to judge their work, giving students a chance to get to know local potential employers in a setting that showcases both their culinary abilities and their personalities.
Marketing and Advertising Management program incorporates digital media into curriculum
Development of content for digital media is becoming increasingly important to companies already juggling the demands of preparing creative content for traditional media channels such as newspapers, magazines, household mail-outs, radio and television. Marketers are now charged with the task of creating and disseminating digitalized content online for websites, social media channels such as Twitter and Facebook, audio and video for live streaming, and 
blogging. The list is long, and all indications suggest that it is only going to get longer. The availability of digital media has prompted a change in consumers’ expectations. A car manufacturer without a website, for example, would be unimaginable.
As a result of the exponential growth of the influence of digital media, marketing professionals are engaging in training and skills development themselves, and seeking new employees who are adept in this area. For colleges, ensuring that students are learning skills that are relevant in the job market is an imperative.
For more than 40 years, Holland College has been consulting with experts to develop the curriculum of its programs – an approach which ensures that the training students receive prepares them to enter their chosen field with confidence and that they are able to contribute to the team immediately.
To address the increasing demands of consumers for more digital media, the college’s Marketing and Advertising Management program has modified its curriculum to ensure that students are knowledgeable and skilled in the development of digital marketing campaigns and management.
“Our advisory panel includes experts from the marketing and advertising industry,” explained Tim McRoberts, Manager of Business Programs at Holland College. “In consultation with them, we were able to determine what skills would be of most benefit to employers when they hire graduates from our program, including skills related to digital media.”
Graduates from the program are finding themselves assigned to digital media projects. Colin Malone graduated in the spring, and within a week he started his new job, Digital Specialist for The Guardian, part of the Transcontinental Atlantic Media Group.
Malone is responsible for selling online advertising, executing online promotions and contests, overseeing the Reader Panel surveys, setting up events and increasing the paper’s Facebook following, and preparing e-mail blasts.
“The Guardian is much more than a newspaper now,” he said. “There are so many different avenues for advertising.”
His boss recently sent him to Newfoundland to learn more about how The St. John’s Telegram’s digital sales team functions.
“My position at The Guardian is relatively new, and the company believes in investing in employees to make sure they have the tools to do the job as best they can. The St. John’s Telegram already has a digital media team, so I was able to learn a lot from them, and now have a network I can turn to when I have questions.”
Malone sees his role expanding over time as new digital media emerge and are incorporated into the company’s marketing plans.
Will Beckett graduated from the Marketing and Advertising Management program this spring, too. He went straight to work as Marketing Manager for Lawmark Group, which owns Charlottetown-based Cruise Holidays, Discount Car and Truck Rentals, Fleet First Auto Sales and Absolutely Fabulous Salon
Boutique. His responsibilities include traditional activities such as writing radio copy, designing and booking ads, and creating posters; but he figures that about 80% of his day is spent on digital media.
“My boss, Ken Lawrence, is very media savvy. He’s pushing us into the market of social media,” Beckett said. Rather than viewing digital and traditional media as separate tools, Beckett sees them as complimentary.
“Social media and marketing principles go hand in hand, [Digital and traditional media] each have their strengths, and each augments and supports the other.”
Program Manager Tim McRoberts agrees.
“Our Marketing and Advertising Management program will continue to have the right blend of training in both digital and traditional media, all underpinned with the fundamentals – strong writing skills and sound business practices,” he said. “In addition, I commend our faculty for continuing to take steps aimed at ensuring they remain current in their field.”
You can join Holland College’s Marketing and Advertising Management Facebook page here.
Eric Young’s Irish Adventure
For Eric Young, spending the summer between his first and second year of the Golf Management program on the job was more than a matter of course, it was a chance to travel and, as it turned out, to meet celebrities!
Eric is working at Old Head Golf Links, in Kinsale, Ireland, ranked The Most Spectacular Golf Course by Links magazine.
“I have wanted to visit Europe ever since I can remember,” he said. “On the first day of class, Paul Murnaghan [manager of Golf programs at Holland College] showed us pictures of past students on their internships all over the world. Old Head was one of the locations.
“Golf is a sport that is played pretty much all over the world, and I love to travel. Since I want to get as much experience out of this program as possible, I figured that starting my career in golf at such a world class course would open up great opportunities after I graduate.”
Sometimes, it’s not traveling that’s daunting; it’s making all of the necessary arrangements. Eric said Holland College helped with that.
“If it weren’t for the efforts of Susan Shaw, our college’s internship officer, I don’t think any of this could have happened for me,” he said.
The director of golf at Old Head, Danny Brassil, arranged Eric’s accommodations for him prior to his arrival. He’s staying in the home of the golf course’s accountant.
As a staff member in the Golf Services department, Eric’s duties vary from day to day. He could be working as a starter, a marshal, on range set up, greeting and checking golfers in as they arrive, assisting the director of golf tournaments, or on a variety of other tasks.
“On my days off, I also caddie, which is a great experience and an opportunity to meet people. I am glad Danny Brassil has me moving around all the various departments of the course, as it gives me a chance to learn about all the work that goes into running a golf club from day to day.
“The skills I learned from the Golf Management Program helped me a lot working here at Old Head. Having this internship program between the first and second year gives me a great opportunity to build on the skills I learned this past year in school. Learning the different methods they use to operate golf courses in Europe is knowledge I’ll be able to apply wherever I work.
“The game of golf over here in Ireland is much more difficult. With wind basically every day, and rain and fog most days of the week, there’s not much forgiveness on the golf course! Our caddies tell our North American customers, ‘You’ll add 5 or 6 strokes to your handicap when you play the Old Head’.”
Speaking of North American visitors, Eric met a couple of them recently: former president Bill Clinton and Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback “Big Ben” Roethlisberger.
“The day Bill Clinton played Old Head I was assigned to drive around in a cart in front of the Clinton group with the head of Mr. Clinton’s secret service and his head of staff. When Mr. Clinton finished 18 and was heading back to his vehicle, they gave me the opportunity to meet with the former president before he left. I owe all of this to Jim O’Brien our course’s general manager. If he hadn’t assigned me to accompany Mr. Clinton’s staff, I don’t think this could have been possible.
“As for ‘Big Ben’, I was on the opening shift the following morning, and saw the last name ‘Roethlisberger’ on the tee time sheet. I thought it would be something if it really was the Steelers quarterback. Then the rain started, and I forgot all about it. About an hour before the tee time I was standing off to the side at the desk in the pro-shop and in walks the 6’5”, 240-lb Roethlisberger. I don’t think it hit me about who I met until I got home from work, because I was still shell-shocked from meeting Bill Clinton the day before!
“I would easily give my experience here at Old Head 10 out of 10. Having such great co-workers and friends to work with everyday makes going to work a great experience.”
Eric’s still got several weeks left of his internship before he returns to Prince Edward Island to complete the second year of his course. There’s no doubt that by the time he gets back, he’ll have some great stories to tell his classmates.
Holland College grads and interns hone their skills at Big Sky
Imagine enrolling in a golf program in Prince Edward Island and three years later finding yourself standing on top of the world…or at least, standing on top of Mount Currie (alt. 8,000 ft.) teeing up to hit the longest drive of your life at Big Sky Golf and Country Club’s breathtakingly beautiful 19th Hole.
For almost a dozen students and graduates of Holland College’s Golf Club Management and Professional Golf Management programs, it’s no fantasy; it’s just the way they roll. They think it’s the ideal place to start their golfing careers and hone the skills and theory they learned at Holland College.
Woody Bishop, Golf Operations Manager and Golf Professional at Big Sky, graduated from Holland College in 2008. He says that his training prepared him well for the golf business.
“I would have to say that over 90 per cent of my daily duties would be related to the Golf curriculum at Holland College. Things such as inventory ordering, open to buy plan, merchandising, controlling inventory levels, financial statements, creating flow plans and budgets, sales projections, record keeping, staff training, customer service training, Jencess training, lesson plans, junior programs and the daily operations of the golf course are all part of my job description that would be definitely all related to courses I took at Holland College.”
Corry Butler, Woody Bishop’s classmate, agrees.
“The three years in the golf program really prepared me to be a well-rounded employee and a jack of all trades when it comes to day to day golf operations.”
Located in Pemberton, British Columbia, Big Sky is the kind of golf course that golf writers love to review. It’s been named One of Canada’s prestigious top twenty golf courses and Top 10 Places to Play in Canada by Golf Digest Magazine and one of the Top 100 Courses In Canada by Score Magazine. Last year alone, Big Sky received ranking in Rolex’s Top 1000 Golf Courses in the World and in the Top 36 Courses in Canada. For Patrick Boles, an intern who will be returning to Holland College to complete the second year of the Golf Club Management program, this is the kind of OJT students dream about.
“To be the best, you need to learn from the best,” he explains. “Holland College and Big Sky gave me that opportunity. Working at Big Sky is the opportunity of a lifetime.”
Only a few women enrol for the college’s golf programs, although Program Coordinator Paul Murnaghan hopes that more will in the future. For women considering a career in the golf business, Murnaghan points to Professional Golf Management 2010 graduate Jess Norris, as an example. Norris, who also works at Big Sky, is thrilled with the training she received.
“I never imagined being so successful in the golf business,” she says. “I have Holland College and Big Sky to thank for that. Holland College laid the foundation and gave me the tools to be successful while Big Sky taught me to implement them and is helping me build my career in the golf industry.”
One wonders why so many of Holland College’s golf programs end up at the same place, so far from Prince Edward Island. The answer’s simple, according to Chris Wallace, General Manager of Big Sky.
“Holland College students have helped set our standards above and beyond in the golf business in western Canada. The students arrive well prepared to handle all the challenges that the golf business presents,” he says.
For more information about Holland College’s golf programs, contact Paul Murnaghan, Golf Program Coordinator, by e-mail at Holland College grads and interns hone their skills at Big Sky or by calling (902) 894-6823, or visit hollandcollege.com. For more information about Big Sky, visit bigskygolf.com.
Culinary Institute of Canada grad competes on Hell’s Kitchen
Fans of Chef Gordon Ramsey’s reality TV series Hell’s Kitchen tuned in on FOX for the first episode of Season 10 with great anticipation this week. I’d never seen it before, but wanted to watch this time because Roshni Mansukhani-Gurnani, a graduate of The Culinary Institute of Canada, is competing.
Although unfamiliar with the series, I thought I had a vague notion of what it was about: Chef Gordon Ramsey swears at a group of stressed and sweaty chefs, who in turn swear at each other while storm drum music pounds in the background.
Although devotees would probably scoff at my interpretation, I can’t say I saw much to contradict it when I tuned in on Monday night.
Why, I wondered, would a sweet young woman like Rosh want to put herself into that situation? She’s already an executive chef at a private country club in Houston, Texas. She’s even done a television competition before, appearing Food Network’s cooking competition series Chopped a couple of years ago.
“I wanted to challenge myself and my skills,” she explained in a recent telephone interview. And whereas Chopped was taped in a day, Hell’s Kitchen took six weeks to complete.
“The show is actually about 18 chefs competing for the head chef position at Steak, Gordon Ramsey’s restaurant in Las Vegas and $250,000 salary. Along with the competition comes drama yes, however, it is up to one’s self to go along with the harsh behaviour or stay true to what is important to any chef…being a loyal chef, good food and respecting our industry.”
The competitors were sequestered for the entire taping last July. During those six weeks, only their closest family knew where they were. What on earth do you tell your friends and employer?
“I told my close friends that I was traveling with work. I told my work I need six weeks of personal time,” Rosh explained.
So on top of the stress of competing against 17 other chefs and trying to dodge the wrath of Chef Gordon Ramsey, she had to spend 24/7 in the company of strangers for six weeks, incommunicado with the outside world.
“There was an emotional and mental aspect to the competition,” she said. “Living under one roof with the others 24 hours a day gave me insight into their strengths and weaknesses.”
Was that knowledge something she could use against them in the kitchen? That’s not the point in the first part of the competition, she explained.
“The first part is all team work. Knowing each other’s strengths and weaknesses enabled us to find a way to work together.”
It seemed to me that the set up in Hell’s Kitchen, where things could grind to a halt at any given moment at the behest of Chef Ramsey, wouldn’t work in a real restaurant kitchen. Rosh agreed.
“I don’t run a kitchen like that, and I wouldn’t work in one like that,” she said emphatically. But when you’re there, in front of the cameras, it all seems very real.
“As a chef, I wasn’t going into character for the camera,” she said. “It wasn’t about being a rock star; it was about my love of cooking. If I wanted to be an actress, I’d go to Hollywood.”
She can’t reveal how she fared on the show because everything’s wrapped in secrecy, of course. In fact, the competitors, some of whom became friends over the course of the taping, were not allowed to contact each other until a couple of weeks ago, and although they are now permitted to discuss the experience in general, they can’t reveal information that would give away the final outcome.
Episode 3 airs on FOX at 9 p.m. tonight, followed the next episode tomorrow night. Tune in to see how things go for Rosh!
