The 2025 recipient of the Quebec Writers’ Federation College Writer’s Award is Zoë Vega, who wrote the winning piece while they were at Dawson College. Since graduating, they have gone on to Concordia University. Zoë, who is studying creative writing, took a few moments to participate in a Q & A with the Communications Office.
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Kim Webb (Faculty, Product Design) has completed a Master of Education in College Teaching (M.Ed.) through the Performa program at the University of Sherbrooke. She shared her project, how she developed as a teacher and more in a Q & A with the Communications Office.
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An inspiring story of friendship, determination, and accessibility is being brought to life in a new graphic novel entitled RUN. The project follows Bradley Heaven, a Dawson College graduate with Dyskinetic Cerebral Palsy, and Dan O’Connor, his integration aide and co-founder of their non-profit All Access Life, as they take on their first marathon together in October 2021.
The graphic novel captures the extraordinary challenge they faced: Dan pushing Brad (Social Science, Class of 2020) in an adaptive stroller for 40 kms before Brad switched to his adaptive walker to complete the final 2.2 kms solo. As English faculty member Andrew Katz, who is collaborating on the project, said: “Things did not go according to plan. It made for an eventful day—and a great story.”
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A new initiative called Cooking for Justice is connecting Dawson College students with their community—and with each other—one pot of soup at a time. Led by Diana Rice of the Office of Sustainability, the project blends hands-on cooking with lessons in social justice, sustainability, and mutual aid, transforming classroom time into meaningful action.
“It started last year during Indigenous Awareness Week,” explains Diana Rice. “The students of the Decolonization and Indigenization Studies certificate and the Office of Sustainability teamed up to make Three Sisters Soup to donate to Resilience Montreal as our contribution to the week. The students enjoyed the work so much that I decided it would be a great repeat activity, but this time with the intention of working directly with teachers and their classes.”
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Dawson College’s recently renovated room 2H.02 has been thoughtfully redesigned to better serve students with disabilities, with essential upgrades addressing a range of needs beyond mobility.
“Our vision was to create a purposeful space that genuinely meets students’ real needs. With the help of Inhwa Choi and Elias Azar of the Facilities Management team, that vision surpassed our expectations,” said Christine Lister, manager of Dawson’s Student AccessAbility Centre (SAAC).
Inhwa emphasized the design intent: “We wanted students to feel that this room is truly their space—a welcoming, intentional environment, not a storage area or an undefined corner, but a place where every student can relax, focus, and find comfort whenever they need a quiet moment.” Inhwa said the team felt that the College’s standard paint and flooring colours could use a fresh approach in this space. The team chose a soothing green paint palette “to foster warmth and relaxation.”
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Photo: from left to right: Dawson employees involved in renovating the 2H.02 room Maxwell Jones, Samuel Vallery Saint-Hilaire, Elias Azar, Inhwa Choi, Diane Gauvin, Geoff Kloos and Christine Lister.
The leadership of Dawson College is nearing the completion of a complex process to secure new rental space, customize it to meet the College’s needs, and prepare for an eventual move.
The Ministry of Higher Education has allocated funds for a 20-year lease, including renovations to address Dawson College’s significant space deficit. The lease must be signed by April 1, 2026, to move forward with this plan.
“The Ministry of Higher Education is supporting us in the pursuit of rental space,” said Director General Diane Gauvin. “They are invested in this new process for Dawson.”
Diane shared this update with the Dawson community during a Town Hall meeting on Nov. 12, where she highlighted the confidential nature of the ongoing process. Visit the link for more information in the homepage news story.
Political Science teachers Vanessa Gordon and Dónal Gill, both currently teaching at Dawson College, have co-authored the newly released 7th edition of Politics, Power, and the Common Good: An Introduction to Political Science, published by Pearson Canada. This comprehensive textbook is being used at universities across Canada, and may be available in French in the future.
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Dawson’s 4th annual Interprofessional Education (IPE) Symposium on Communication, conflict resolution, and collective care took place Friday, Oct. 17. This activity brought together all 216 students and 32 instructors/facilitators from the seven medical technology and social service disciplines. The day’s activities took place in a variety of venues in the Montreal Forum building, including a large cinema theatre.
Visit the link for a homepage report by Krista Bulow (Faculty, Physiotherapy Technology).
Two accomplished graduates of Dawson College’s Professional Theatre program are inviting you to see the downtown Montreal CEGEP in a self-guided tour. Catherine Bérubé and Lucy Segal are the narrators. In interviews with the Communications Office, they shared how Dawson shaped their own journeys. The tour departs from the metro level in the Lower Atrium, look for a framed sign with the QR code on the right wall as you enter the college.
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The Food Justice program at Dawson has been significantly expanded this year. Free food is being offered five days a week to the Dawson community, a vital part of the College’s commitment to well-being for all. Coordinated by the Office of Sustainability and funded by the Dawson Foundation and the Dawson Student Union, the program addresses food insecurity while advancing social justice and sustainability on campus.
Diana Rice of the Office of Sustainability explains that there is a broader understanding of sustainability that includes peace and social justice. “Food Justice programming is a critical piece,” she says, due to its role in tackling the harmful impacts of industrial agriculture on the environment and marginalized communities. The program prioritizes ethical purchasing by sourcing organic and local food to reduce pollution, protect biodiversity, and support economic stability for vulnerable groups.
There is a major impact on students and the entire Dawson community. “A student once confided that being able to eat lunch or breakfast four days a week meant that they could give their mom a break in terms of groceries, which were becoming more and more unaffordable,” Diana shared. “They said it was a relief because they already felt guilty about going to school and not working full time to help support the family. Knowing that they could help save money and keep food in the pantry at home longer made going to school more worthwhile and kept it accessible.”
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Last Modified: November 20, 2025
