Okanagan College students weren’t alone in earning national awards at the 2014 Enactus National Competition, which was held in Calgary last week.

Business professor Devin Rubadeau was recognized with a national award as Rookie Faculty Advisor of the Year by Enactus Canada. Rubadeau joined the College this fall as a term professor of marketing and management. He immediately became involved with Enactus Okanagan College and served as faculty advisor for two of the organization’s largest projects, the Young Entrepreneur competition and InStill Life.

“Working with Enactus has been the highlight of my experience at Okanagan College,” said Rubadeau. “The students I had the opportunity to work with have inspired me to work harder. I’m overwhelmed by their abilities and their talents.”

The College’s Enactus team earned a berth to the final round of the national competition and finished among the top four in the country. The team of Ben Heggie, Karen Vandergaag, Minami Endo, Kyle Abbot and Suzanne Newton earned a bronze in Financial Literacy. And collectively, the team finished third in the Campbells Help Hunger Disappear Challenge.

College president Jim Hamilton says the results from the national competition are important but even more important are the results from the projects and community work done by the Enactus students with great support from their professors.

“Each year I am more and more impressed by the efforts of our Enactus students,” said Hamilton. “They may be one of the smaller post-secondary institutions in the competition but you would never know it based on their results. They find creative ways to solve real-world issues in our communities, whether they be related to literacy in youth, hunger in our communities or environmental solutions for businesses. I am extremely proud of our team and the impact they continue to have.”

Rubadeau echoes Hamilton’s praise for the College students.

“It is hard to describe just how polished and professional our students are and the way in which they represent our College on the national stage,” said Rubadeau. “I feel lucky to have been a part of this experience and I have developed relationships with our students that are more like peer relationships.

“This has been the best employment experience of my life and to receive an award for being a part of it is extra special. Especially because the nomination came from my students and my colleagues. It’s really been an honour to be a part of the Okanagan College School of Business.”

News from © iNFOnews, 2014