Kara C. Woods of Durham is recipient of CMU-OCASA Research Award

For the second consecutive year a Durham College administrator has been named recipient of a prestigious provincial award for advanced studies.

Kara C. Woods of Durham will receive the fourth annual CMU-OCASA Research Award for her Masterís degree capstone research paper on the study of faculty perceptions of group work in the classroom.

The award is given jointly by Central Michigan University and the Ontario College Administrative Staff Association.

At Durham, Woods is human resources assistant to the vice-president of human resources and works on academic labour relations, organizational and human resources related projects. She is also a contract professor in the school of business, information technology and management.

Woods will receive the award for her capstone paper entitled Faculty Perceptions Of Major Group Work Assignments. She completed the paper as part of her studies for at Central Michigan University. She was a member of a cohort from Durham and Loyalist, and received her Master of Education degree specializing in Community Colleges in 2011.

Last yearís winner was Michelle Cole,  executive assistant to the vice-president, student affairs at Durham.

The award will be presented at the seventh annual OCASA Leaders and Innovators Conference June 25 at Blue Mountain Resort, Collingwood. Woods will also present a workshop at the conference and has been invited to present a general article on her studies in the Fall 2012 edition of College Administrator.

The award is sponsored jointly by Central Michigan University (CMU) and Ontario College Administrative Staff Association (OCASA) to recognize the high quality of research being conducted in Ontario by CMU graduate students that impact the development of the colleges. This outstanding Research Award is presented annually to Ontario students in CMUís Master of Arts degree in Education, with a Community College concentration, for conducting outstanding research related to Community Colleges in Ontario. Nominees are first selected by CMU faculty with the OCASA review panel selecting the final recipients.

Previous winners include:  Michelle Cole of Durham College, 2011; Linda Croall of George Brown College, 2010; and Martha MacEachern of Georgian College, 2009.