Testimonials - OCASA/APACO - Ontario College Administrative Staff Association

As a new college administrator, I was excited about the opportunities to make a difference but knew that I had a lot to learn about managing a complex portfolio at a challenging time for postsecondary institutions. The OCASA certificate program offered the perfect solution for my needs. The courses are highly relevant with direct application to the duties of an administrator and are taught by experienced professionals. I particularly appreciate the flexibility of the program which allows me to take courses and complete the work when it fits in my hectic schedule. Through the program, I expanded my network of colleagues across the system and I gained many new insights and skills that have helped me become a more effective administrator. I highly recommend this certificate program!
Robin Hicks, Associate Dean, St. Lawrence College
Robin has completed 7 courses to date!

Previously run courses in OCASA’s original course line-up

(watch for some of these to be repeated as “special topics”):

Organizational Communications – Steve Robinson, M.A.
Innovation in administration – Cate Walker Hammond, M.Ed.
Introduction to Strategic and Business Planning – Dr. Dominique Giguère, B.Sc., B.Ed., M.ED., Ph.D.
Strategic Planning Fundamentals – Dr. Dominique Giguère, B.Sc., B.Ed., M.ED., Ph.D.
Conflict Resolution for Managers Holly Catalfamo, H.B.A., B. Ed., M.A., Ed.D.
Performance management – Dr. Terry Hickey, CPIM, B.A., E.M.B.A., Ed.D. & Dr. Vern Belos, LLM, CHRP, CMC
Finance for the non-financial manager – Joe Peterson, C.G.A., President, Peterson & Associates, Inc.
Developing leadership capacity – Holly Catalfamo, H.B.A., B. Ed., M.A., Ed.D.

Testimonials:

Organizational Communications:

“I intend to implement the communications plan to my business plan on a day-to-day basis, the awareness I’ve gained will be practical and useful.”
“I have already started to make changes in the way I communicate…”
“The material provided in this course will/has helped me to view my daily communications differently and with more seriousness than before.”

Performance Management:

“This is one of the most useful PD opportunities I have undertaken as a manager because it so directly relates to my day-to-day responsibilities of managing staff. The concepts learned in this course will help me implement a performance management cycle that will be beneficial for me and the staff I work with.”

Conflict Resolution:

“I will be keeping my binder accessible as a reference for sticky situations at work; Immediate use – will assist in reducing stress; the discussions and assignments helped to reinforce some of the strategies used to deal with conflict resolution in the college environment.”

Innovation in Administration:

“The course was quite inspiring and I found I was generating ideas for ways to apply the concepts directly in my day-to-day work; Great new tools in my kit!”

Strategic Planning Fundamentals:

“This course has been beneficial as it has been a concurrent learning process with practical application in real time…I now have a much better understanding of the theory that a strategic plan is built around and the impact that a plan may, or may not have within an organization. I have a new passion to help my colleagues understand the importance of core values…”