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SAIT was established in 1916 with 11 students and a donated automobile and motorcycle – this formed the foundation of the first program, motor mechanics. Over a 100 years later, SAIT has grown to be a global leader in applied education – and at its core is the trades education that started it all.
The Cadmus Trades Teaching Chair mirrors the teaching chair positions at other post-secondary institutions. Founded by John Aldred, a British immigrant who attended SAIT in the 1960s, the Cadmus Trades Teaching Chair is designed to foster faculty excellence in skilled trades teaching and provide instructors with the opportunity to develop a project, idea or concept to enhance trades education.
The award provides the recipient with:
- $2,500 for items such as tools, equipment and personal computers
- up to $17,500 to fund professional development activities,
- promote the trades, mentor other instructors and complete project work that will enhance program quality
- an off-load of up to four months to work on their project.
# of chairs
# of years in existence
Awarded
2019/20 Cadmus Chair
Rosalyn Ediger - School of Hospitality and Tourism
As the 2014 Outstanding Young Alumna, Rosalyn Ediger continues to find success in the culinary industry. As a graduate from SAIT’s Professional Cooking Diploma, Edigar found success in both national and international culinary competitions where she claimed gold medals and recognition for her culinary talents.
Ediger’s skills and culinary expertise has taken her around the world to but her love for Asian-inspired cuisine came from her family roots. Ediger became the Chef de Cuisine at the Official Canadian Embassy in China, where she worked alongside David Mulroney, the Canadian Ambassador to China, to achieve culinary diplomacy.
For her Cadmus Chair Award, Ediger will be focusing on developing a specialized course in culinary diplomacy and food anthropology. This course will be the first of its kind in North America – and possibly the world. Culinary diplomacy is an emerging discipline in the culinary industry. Ediger will pull from her experience cooking at the Canadian embassies in Beijing and Bangkok to create an innovative curriculum that will teach about the ways we can use food as a means to teach and to build cultural bridges.
Previous Winners
2018/19 Andrew Samek - School of Manufacturing and Automation
Andrew Samek took a look at the established trades of blacksmithing and bladesmithing. Samek looked at plans for a facility that would house the equipment and tools needed to translate creative ideas into metal. With increased interest in blacksmithing, with popular shows like Forged in Fire, Samek is showcasing the creativity behind the traditional trades.
2018/19 Jordan Persson - School of Manufacturing and Automation
Jordan Persson is bringing mentorship into the 21 st century. Persson piloted a web-based video mentorship program for millwrights and machinist apprentices and industry mentors. Persson saw an opportunity in technology to make mentorship more convenient – apprentices and industry mentors can meet online. Apprentices can receive impartial advice and encouragement that can help them excel in their careers.
2017/18 Robin Greig - School of Manufacturing and Automation
Robin Greig took his love for MakerSpace’s and launched it successfully at SAIT. The MakerSpace, located in Thomas Riley, provides campus-wide access to 3D printers, CNC routers, Raspberry Pi computers and Arduino. The space provides an environment for creativity and collaboration between students in different programs. Instructors and students from across campus and in many programs come together as a community to share their expertise, solve problems and create. MakerSpaces are not just for the mechanical and technical but for the artistic.
2016/17 Darcy Wallace - School of Transportation
Darcy Wallace wanted to bring technology into the classroom after observing how each student learns differently. While some students learn by listening, reading, seeing or doing, some need to be able to interact with their learning materials with technology. Wallace made sure that visual and experiential learning didn’t get left behind by creating a suite of augmented reality tools – animations, illustrations, video tutorials and three-dimensional exploded views – that students could launch with their smartphones.
- Mick McGowan set out to celebrate the passion and creativity of crafts people who work with wood and created Lignum Vitae- an event that showcases furniture, carvings and musical instruments made from woodworkers across North America.
- The events ends with a fundrasinging auction that highlights the high-end projects and raises money for a legacy scholarship that is awarded each year to a cabinetmaker apprentice who exhibits a flair for design and innovation.
- Adam Medrek saw a need in his welding classes. Students would crowd around a small welding booth and watch the instructor perform a demo – the problem was, students in the back of the crowd would miss the welding demonstration and only hear about the techniques. Medrek looked at many high-tech options, but due to the light produced during welding, needed a specific type of camera.
- He introduced a close-up camera that captures every detail of a live welding demonstration which is projected onto a large TV screen. Students can view the demonstration and instructors can walk through each step of the demonstration during a reply, allowing students to advance their skills more successfully.
- Increased first-year apprentice success rates by removing the barriers.
- Connect with high school shop teachers and students, promote the trades, promote SAIT, and provide a taste of apprenticeship training through the building of a 1:10 scale house model.
- Incorporate solar power into SAIT’s Curriculum.
- Build a battery-based solar photovoltaic system.
- Conceptualize and implement the term “Culinary Agroliteracy” in building a food sustainability framework for the School of Hospitality and Tourism.
- Create a recycling framework for schools across campus.
- Enhance apprenticed safety education in the construction trades, using a blended learning approach.
- Provide a blended learning environment (traditional lecture, hands-on and electronic resources) for apprentice learners in the School of Transportation.
- Identify culinary trends for incorporation into SAIT curriculum and create a coaching manual to prepare culinary instructors, as well as instructors in other trades, for skills competitions.
- Professional development through work experience with heavy equipment suppliers and through visiting other programs in the province to examine delivery methodologies.
- Build two electronic fuel injector cutaways.
- Problem-based learning to solve real world problems in industry and teaching by taking problematic jobs from industry and solving them for industry.
- Expand machining knowledge for incorporation into SAIT courses