Our Strategic Objectives

Great Teaching And Learning

Building on our record of academic excellence, Seneca continues to expand cross-disciplinary learning in our programs; strengthen networks among students, faculty, staff and external partners; expand the core literacies that all students must master; reflect a diverse and international perspective in our programs; provide our students experiential learning opportunities and offer flexible delivery options in every program.

2017-18 Initiatives

Increase federal and provincial support for applied research

Fifteen research grants received approval from Ontario Centres of Excellence in support of current and new projects
An Industry Advisory Board was established to increase engagement in Applied Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (ARIE) activities at Seneca

Continue strategic approach to international recruitment and contract training initiatives

Recruitment strategies developed for expanding activities into Colombia, Philippines and Turkey; September 2017 and January 2018 registration numbers reflected an increased diversity of international student origin countries
A multi-year training program funded by Global Affairs Canada was established, and India’s National Institute of Financial Management was secured as a long-term partner for program delivery

2017-18 In Review: Celebrating The Many Accomplishments Within The Seneca Community

HELIX participants win pitch competition

Six HELIX entrepreneurs competed in a Dragon’s Den-style pitch competition at Markham Campus. The Indo-Canadian Innovative Project Competition was presented in partnership with the College of Engineering, Pune, a postsecondary institution in Pune, India.

The winning entrepreneurs were Paulo Meneghel, EMERGE; Travis Clements-Khan, NextGen Labs; Kevin Bache, Medistream and Chester Wu, Besify. They each received an all-expenses paid trip to India and $5,000 in seed funding.

Seneca Open Source researcher’s grant renewed

With funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Seneca Professor Chris Tyler will serve another term an Industrial Research Chair for Colleges. He will continue his research into open source software that can run on low-energy, high-performance computers. Chris will also focus on expanding into related areas of super-embedded computing and development practices.

Youth shelter renamed in professor’s honour

In June 2017, York Region’s Blue Door Shelters renamed its Newmarket youth shelter “Kevin’s Place” in honour of Social Service Worker Professor and alumnus Kevin Kennedy. For more than 25 years, Kevin has been an advocate for homeless individuals and families in the region.

Dr. Elliot Coleshill earns highest honour from Governor General

Dr. Elliot Coleshill, Professor, School of Information and Communications Technology, received the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers. He was recognized for his exceptional volunteer achievements in mentoring and inspiring young girls to pursue studies and careers in science, technology, engineering and math.

Early childhood educator wins Prime Minister’s Award

Tanya Farzaneh, an educator at Seneca’s Early Childhood Education Lab School, was awarded the Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence for her work at Seneca. Tanya has helped connect toddlers and preschoolers to nature by incorporating the environmental education into her lessons.

Seneca Business Dean named board chair of accreditation council

Mary Vaughan, Dean, Seneca Business, was appointed the 2017-18 board chair of the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs. This is the first time in the council’s history that a female board chair affiliated with an institution outside the United States has been appointed.

Three Senecans receive Canada 150 Citizenship Award

President David Agnew, Howard Doughty, Professor, School of English and Liberal Studies, and Linda Stapleton, Director, Sports and Recreation, were recipients of the Canada 150 Citizenship Award. The pins, recognizing outstanding constituents in MPs’ ridings, were minted from the old copper roof from Parliament Hill.

Professor named among top marketing professors on Twitter

OnlineEducation.com named Bhupesh Shah, Professor, School of Marketing, and Co-ordinator of the Social Media program, among the top 20 marketing professors on Twitter. This annual lists looks at professors of marketing who are actively engaged on Twitter and regularly share their expert perspectives and wisdom.

Seneca and industry partners win national event award

A 12-year relationship between Seneca and the Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research (CANFAR) has garnered national recognition.

In March 2018, Professor John MacBride accepted a Canadian Event Industry Award for Seneca’s collaborative work with CANFAR and Event Strategy Partners Inc. on Bloor Street Entertains—a fundraising event that involved the 2018 Event Management – Event and Exhibit Design class.

Faculty member co-writes unprecedented comic series

Jim Zubkavich, Professor and Co-ordinator for Seneca’s Animation program, co-wrote Avengers: No Surrender, a special 16-issue Marvel Comics story. No Surrender features one of Marvel’s biggest collaborations to date, and new books were released weekly beginning in January 2018.

Professor launches project to combat cyber fraud

Professor Samky Mak, along with the KnowledgeFlow Cybersafety Foundation, launched the first-ever Canadian Cyberfraud Community—an online ecosystem created by and for Canadians. It was developed following a Seneca-funded applied research project, focused on financial impact of malware and cybercrime.

Baseball historian to enter Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame

Bill Humber, Director of Eco-Seneca Initiatives, will be the first academic researcher to be inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame. As an educator and historian, Bill has written 12 books, including Home Team (1983); Let’s Play Ball: Inside the Perfect Game (1989), The Baseball Book and Trophy (1993) and Diamonds of the North: A Concise History of Baseball in Canada (1995).

Inspired events recognition

Professor John MacBride was recognized as the International Live Event Association (ILEA) Toronto Chapter Member of the Year. John was celebrated for organizing a number of educational sessions for Toronto chapter members and the production of Inspired Spaces, Seneca’s annual tabletop competition, in partnership with ILEA.