The Knowledge Review The 20 Most Innovative STEM College and Universiti | Page 31

A Staunch Technologist
Giving Back to the College
Amit Maraj works as both a full-time Professor in the
School of Business, IT & Management at DC and is a
principal investigator with the college’s Office of Research
Services, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (ORSIE). His
primary area of research focuses on the various spaces of
modern day Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine
Learning (ML) and his specific interest includes Natural
Language Processing using deep learning. He is currently
involved with several of DC's AI research projects including
studying speech recognition for closed captioning using AI
and exploring the abilities of modern AI-based techniques to
predict student success.
Amit holds a Computer Systems Technician Diploma from
Durham College, a Bachelor of IT in Networking and
Information Technology Security from the University of
Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT), and is currently
working on a Master of Computer Science at UOIT. “DC has
a unique approach to education,” says Maraj. “The professors
that choose to teach certain subjects and the small classroom
sizes are really beneficial and conducive to a great learning
environment.” T R
• Alongside DC’s School of
Science, Engineering &
Technology, the School of
Business, IT & Management
also offers a number of
STEM-related courses,
especially in IT. The college
has completed a number of
IT-related applied research
projects and is increasing its
focus on Artificial
Intelligence applied research
in collaboration with
industry partners.
• Students in STEM-
focused programs are
given the opportunity to
work with technical
equipment within their
classes, while also
completing field
placements so they can
use the skills they are
learning in class, in
real-world situations.
Cele ated Alumni of
Durham Co ege
Wi m e an 81,000 alumni, DC
hears numerous st ies of professional
success and e positive impact eir
alumni are making on e lives of o ers.
One of ose alumni is Brent Lessard.
After graduating at e top of his class
from Durham Co ege's Mechanical
Engin ring Technology program in 2014,
Brent co-founded rLoop Inc., a non-profit
online ink tank and talent resource
company at focuses on developing and
launching w ld-changing technology.
rLoop w ked on e Hyperloop, which is
e ainchild of Elon Musk at SpaceX.
Brent, along wi his co ab at s, made
a name f
emselves wi SpaceX by
winning e Hyperloop Pod Innovation and
Best Non-Student Hyperloop Design
Awards.
Philip P itchard, Durham Co ege
graduate of e Sp t Administration
program, travels e globe to promote e
game of hockey, e Hockey Ha of Fame
(HHOF) and museum as we as exhibits
its co ection. In addition to his
responsibilities wi HHOF, Pritchard has
served f many years on e board of
direct s f International Sp ts Heritage
Association (ISHA) as we as e
Canadian Association of Sp t Heritage.
In 2009, he received e Schroeder
Award, e ISHA's highest hon .
• Through applied
research, under the
supervision of faculty
researchers and in
collaboration with
industry partners, students
develop their skills in
problem-solving,
teamwork,
communication – while
refining their technical
STEM skills.
• The college sponsors
and hosts several STEM-
related events throughout
the year. These include:
FIRST® LEGO League
and FIRST® Robotics
competitions. Also, they
encourage participating
in the Durham District
School Board’s (DDSB)
Girls in STEM Day,
which focuses on
promoting STEM-related
studies to female
students.
October | 2017
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N O W L E D Education.
G E R Innovation.
E V I Success
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