Ontario College Quality Assurance Service l Who We Are

Who we are

In 2002, new government of Ontario legistation granted Ontario colleges the opportunity for autonomous and responsible program approval and development with the intention that quality assurance be in place to ensure that consistent standards are met by colleges in Ontario.

Following this new legislation, the Ontario College Quality Assurance Service was established to provide efficient mechanisms that ensure specific quality and consistency standards are met by the Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology in Ontario. We are unique in our industry as we are independent of educational institutions and government, so we are able to offer arms-length, unbiased academic audits.

Today, we celebrate Ontario’s colleges for their great milestones: all of Ontario’s Colleges are fully engaged and compliant in world-class standards practises. By working in unison with this organization, government and industry, they demonstrate a continuous commitment to quality, provide top tier education in Ontario and meet international standards for excellence. This cooperative relationship provides countless advantages to Ontario’s colleges and to students and their families, here and abroad.

Leadership

Joy Warkentin, Chair, Management Board

Joy Warkentin, educated as a registered nurse and with a Master of Education in Curriculum, was appointed Chair of the Management Board Chair in September 2009. Following a 40-year career in education, Joy retired from Fanshawe College in late 2008 after serving as Senior Vice-President Academic Services since 2000. She was the 2009 recipient of the Minister's Lifetime Achievement Award from the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities for her contributions to Ontario's college system.

In addition to chairing the Management Board of the OCQAS, Joy has served

on a number of Boards including the Aids Committee of London, Southwest CCAC, Children’s Aid Society of London, Middlesex, Northwest CHC, and Northwest LHIN.

Tim Klassen, Manager

As Manager of the OCQAS, Tim oversees this self-regulatory mechanism for the public colleges in Ontario and is responsible for the operation of the Credentials Validation Service and the Program Quality Assurance Process Audit.

Prior to joining the OCQAS, Tim spent 5 years as a Senior Policy Advisor with the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities with the Ontario provincial government, and more than 20 years in a number of academic and training roles at George Brown College.

Bernadette LeMay, French Language Consultant

Bernadette has been working as a consultant with the OCQAS since 2005, with a main focus on providing the services of the OCQAS to the French colleges. As a retired high-school principal and former member and vice-president of the Board of Governors at La Cité Collégiale for six years, she has been working on program validation since her retirement.

André Diez de Aux – Quality Assurance Associate

André joins our organization as a Quality Assurance Associate and will provide valuable services to the Colleges through the CVS and the PQAPA. His experience as Research Policy Analyst at the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, where he was part of the team that develops provincial program standards, provides him with a solid background in program standards and college programming.

Before joining the Ministry, André worked in a variety of roles in the higher education and private sectors.

Ontario College Quality Assurance Service Service de l’assuranc

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Upholding the quality and excellence of Ontario’s colleges globally

Mission

We deliver credential validation and quality assurance processes for the public college system in Ontario to assure students, graduates, employers, and the public of the quality of the system’s comprehensive programs and services.

Vision

To be the leading post-secondary education quality assurance agency in Canada and to provide guidance and direction to improve the overall state of quality post-secondary education as we move Ontario’s colleges to a standard of accreditation recognized on the global stage.

Management Board

Bob Carley

Executive Dean,

Academic Administration, Conestoga College

Lorraine Carter

Vice-President,

St. Lawrence College

Mark Davies

President,

KJA Consultants, Inc.

Sonia Del Messier

Vice-President, Academic,

Cambrian College

Daniel Giroux

Vice-President, Academic Collège Boréal

Tony Hanlon

President,

Lambton College

Tim Klassen

Ex-Officio

Bernadette LeMay

Ex-Officio

Linda Love

Vice-President, Academic,

Georgian College

James Robeson

Director of Advocacy, College Student Alliance

Anne-Chantal Soucie

Curriculum Specialist,

La Cité Collégiale

Vacant Position

Joy Warkentin

Chair