The COVID-19 Pandemic certainly had a significant impact on the ways in which the Community Relations team worked over the last year. We, like the rest of the university, shifted to a virtual work environment as of March 2020 and have remained that way throughout the remainder of the year. We were faced with the challenge of thinking about new ways of connecting while remaining apart. The four goals of the Community Relations team have remained the same, though within those goals, our focus has been on the ways in which York University can support our community partners during this extremely difficult time. Here are some of the highlights from over the past year.
Mayor Scarpitti’s Lunar New Year Celebration
For a second year in a row, York University was a proud sponsor of Mayor Scarpitti’s 2020 Lunar New Year Celebration to ring in the year of the rat. This is one of the largest lunar new year celebrations in Markham and a fantastic way to interact with a wide variety of local community members.
Community Skate Day
In February 2020, York University organized a community skate day at the Markham Civic Centre ice rink. There was lots of hot chocolate and games and prizes for local skaters to enjoy. Community members also had a chance to take their picture with Yeo the lion and spend time speaking directly with President Lenton. This event attracted over 200 skaters and the local MPP, Billy Pang.
Carnegie Classification for Community Engagement
In 2019, York University joined a small group of Canadian post-secondary institutions to participate in a Canadian Pilot of the Carnegie Community Engagement Classification system. Carnegie is considered the leading framework for recognizing and describing community engagement in U.S. higher education. Throughout 2020 and 2021, members of York’s Carnegie Steering Committee completed the Carnegie Classification Framework document and are continuing to reflect on that experience with other members of the pilot to decide if the framework is an appropriate tool for Higher Education Institutions to use in Canada
Community Engagement Community of Practice
2020 changed the way we did so many things, and community engagement was no exception. The Community Engagement Community of Practice convened four meetings to provide any staff or faculty that practice community engagement to come together to explore new ways of engaging safely while staying apart. Beyond providing practical tips and best practices for remote forms of engagement, the group also served as a touchpoint for colleagues to reconnect and support one another during these challenging times.
Markham Centre Campus Virtual Town Halls
With the Markham Campus is now under construction, Community Relations organized a virtual town hall in November 2020 and March 2021 for the Markham Community to receive an overview about the campus. President Lenton was joined by Mayor Scarpitti and Councillor Reid McAlpine and the excitement and enthusiasm for the new campus was fantastic! If you missed the town hall but are interested in learning more about the Markham Centre Campus, you can visit www.yorku.ca/markham to learn more.
Partnership with the Newmarket Chamber of Commerce to support local business
Sector Roundtables
As the pandemic unfolded, it became clear that small businesses were going to need to significant support to be able to survive. In response, community relations actively reached out to our partners across Toronto and York Region to see where we could provide support. One initiative that was born from some early conversations was a partnership between the Newmarket Chamber of Commerce and the Schulich School of Business to provide practical expert advice for businesses within specific sectors. These sector roundtables provided these businesses with access to subject matter experts at a time where many had to pivot their business model if they were going to be able to remain open.
Business Thrives Conference
Building on the success of the sector roundtables carried out in 2020, the Schulich Executive Education Centre extended the partnership between York and the Newmarket Chamber of Commerce by collaborating to deliver the Business Thrives Conference in January 2021. This two day conference saw subject matter experts from Schulich provide topical, practical advice to participating businesses on a wide range of themes.