Aurora College’s new Centre for Learning and Teaching Innovation (CLTI) started in 2020 to promote the strategic goal of academic excellence and contribute to Aurora College’s transition to a polytechnic university. The CLTI supports the professional development of faculty and staff in the areas of pedagogy, instructional design, educational technology and applied research.
Nora Houlahan
Director
Nora (she/her) started with Aurora College in March of 2022 as the Inaugural Director of the Centre for Teaching and Learning and brings over 20 years of experience in educational development and educational leadership. She holds an EdD in Educational Leadership and Policy (UBC), an MSc in Botany (UBC), and a BSc in Molecular Biology and Genetics (Guelph). Prior to coming to Aurora, Nora was at the Justice Institute of British Columbia where she led a transformational change to a competency-based model for municipal police new recruit training. Nora gets excited about trauma-informed practice, cultural safety, transformative learning, educational innovation, and (apparently) file management.
867.767.8208
Bridget Boss
Administrative Assistant for the CTL
Bridget has been with Aurora College, Thebacha Campus since 2005. She has worked casually/term within the College Library, Headquarters, Finance, and Office Administration. She was previously the Divisional Administrative Assistant for Trades, Apprenticeship & Industrial Training before transferring over to the CLTI. Bridget completed both the Office Administration (1999) and Management Studies (2005) Programs at Aurora College in Fort Smith, NT.
867.872.7589
Mike McPherson
Adult Learning Specialist – Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
Mike has been in adult education for thirty-one years as a community educator, instructor, program head, and department chair. He also worked for eight years in workforce training and safety codes training. He has an MA (Regis ‘95) and Ed.D. (Columbia ‘02) in adult education, focusing on transformative learning, critical self-reflection, and cognitive development. He is a member of the Canadian Association for the Study of Adult Education.
MMacPherson@auroacollege.nt.ca
867.872.7519
Tammy Soanes-White
Adult Learning Specialist – Instructional Design
Tammy is an Adult Learning Specialist – Instructional Design in her current role with the CLTI. Prior to her current role, Tammy has worked in several capacities as Manager of Training and Development, Senior Researcher, Senior Instructor and Instructor and has worked in industry as a cost controller. Tammy has a Master in Education in Distance Education (AU ‘12) and a Master in Business (U of A ‘14) and is currently completing her doctoral studies in student success in remote postsecondary education. Tammy is passionate about creating connections between student learning, teaching practices and supportive institutional settings. She is a member of the Canadian Association for the Study of Adult Education.
TSoanes-White@auroracollege.nt.ca
867.920.3035
Jim Stauffer
Adult Learning Specialist – Educational Technology
Jim (he/him) is a 30+-year resident of Whatì and has 12 years of experience as the Community Adult Educator at the Whatì Community Learning Centre. He graduated from Royal Roads University in 2018 with a Master of Arts in Learning and Technology. Jim is hopefully optimistic that educational technology can be employed to enhance students’ learning experiences and make engagement welcoming more often than it gets used to exercise control over the environment and to constrain activities.
Larry White
Adult Learning Specialist- Instructional Design
Larry joined the CLTI team in 2022 as Adult Learning Specialist – Instructional Design. While his career began spanning several sectors, Larry served in a variety of administrative/leadership roles in colleges and universities across Canada over the past 25 years. Larry holds a Bachelor of Environmental Studies (Waterloo, 1996), a Master of Distance Education (Athabasca, 2006), and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Education degree (Unicaf, 2023?). Larry’s research interests at the intersection of curricular and pedagogical design and development and supporting students’ mental health combine to foster his passion for helping others achieve their dreams. Larry is a member of the Canadian Association for Studies in Adult Education (CASAE), the Canadian Association for Curriculum Studies (CACS), and the Education Developers Caucus. As a member of the Global Mental Health Peer Network (GMHPN), Larry is an advocate for valuing the expertise gained through lived experience.
867.767.8207
