Celebrate national Co-operative Education Week
It started with a pot of coffee and a box of Dad’s™ cookies on the receptionist’s desk, and has evolved into a welcome to everyone interested in co-operative education. The Institute for Co-operative Education first celebrated national Co-operative Education Week with a Co-op Coffee Break about 10 years ago. Back then, its offices were in the CB Building at 1425 René-Lévesque Blvd. Three moves and a decade later, things have grown.
The 2013 edition of the Co-op Coffee Break will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday, March 21. Co-op staff and faculty welcome their students and the Concordia community to the Co-op classroom in GM-440 (Guy-Metro Building, 1550 De Maisonneuve Blvd. W.). Co-op Student Showcase posters will be on display, and co-op student mentors will be available to share their experiences. And of course, there will be coffee.
National co-op week is promoted each year by the Canadian Association for Co-operative Education (CAFCE). Member universities and colleges, including Concordia, are encouraged to use co-op week to launch new initiatives. This year, Concordia’s co-op program will launch its revamped social media presence on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Sarah Cundiff, Co-op’s marketing and business development advisor, has been instrumental in assembling the pieces.
“National co-op week gave us a focus to finalize our social media launch,” she says. “Our plan is to make it easier to connect with our students, employers and everyone who is interested in co-operative education. This is just the beginning of our online Concordia co-op community, and our social media presence is going to continue to grow.”
Between March 18 and 22, CAFCE will host a social media contest for co-op students across Canada. CAFCE volunteers will post trivia questions across several social media platforms, and co-op students from more than 38 university and college programs will compete for one of five grand prizes. Concordia’s co-op students will have a chance at a special daily prize and an additional grand prize just for them.
Gerry Hughes, director of the Institute for Co-operative Education, couldn’t be happier. “I’m always kidding that I don’t even know how to spell “tweet”, but the launch of our social media during national co-op week is something I’ve been looking forward to for some time. This will be a value-added for all our current and potential co-op partners.”
Some might even say it’s the icing on the cake.
What: Co-op Coffee Break
When: Thursday, March 21, 2013, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Where: Room GM-440, Guy-Metro Building (1550 De Maisonneuve Blvd. W.), SIr George Williams Campus
Related links:
• Concordia’s Institute for Co-operative Education
• Canadian Association for Co-operative Education
• Concordia co-op on Facebook
• Concordia co-op on Twitter
• Concordia Co-op Group on LinkedIn