NIC Honours Innovator In Accessible Learning

Retired North Island College faculty member and department chair, Sheila Doncaster, has been honoured with an Emeritus designation, recognizing her work in supporting accessible learning and inclusion at NIC.

“As a first-generation high school, university, and grad school graduate I sometimes felt like an imposter at a post-secondary school,” said Doncaster.

“Over time, I realized I had a part to play that could make a difference in the lives of students who similarly may not have dreamed of being at post-secondary.”

Doncaster joined the college in 1989 in the Comox Valley. With a background in physical education and educational psychology, she was only planning on staying at NIC for six months, but instead found a calling that would impact thousands of students over her 28 years of full-time service.

Together with her team, Doncaster built what is now the Department of Accessible Learning Services and Accessible Learning Programs.

Doncaster’s work included building collaborative relationships with her NIC colleagues, working to create a culture which honoured multiple ways of learning, diversity and inclusion, creating student-driven programs and individualized services to meet the needs of NIC students.

To be eligible for an Emeritus designation, recipients must have worked at NIC for at least 10 years, demonstrated teaching, service or research excellence and contributed significantly to student success or the educational community.

NIC says her work also influenced organizations across BC and the country, and helped create the Orientation Manual for New Disability Services Providers in BC (2007) – which was presented nationally and shared with other provinces as a model to follow.