Johnson Controls offering grants to Electromechanical Engineering students in Oshawa and Whitby

Durham College is partnering with Johnson Controls to help meet the growing need for skilled technology workers in Ontario with annual bursaries valued at $2,000 each to five students in financial need.

The bursaries, which also come with mentorship opportunities, will be awarded to incoming Electromechanical Engineering Technology students and will include:

• Opportunities for students to be mentored and connect on and off campus with Johnson Controls employees to gain additional insight into their future careers.
• New equipment that will support theprogram’s curriculum and the establishment of a new building automation lab.
• Opportunities to share the benefits of this program with new prospective students.

The college will receive $95,000 this year, plus $5,000 in equipment, with the total $100,000 commitment renewable for three more years.

“We are grateful for this partnership with Johnson Controls and its generous support to further strengthen our Electromechancial Engineering Technology program and its students,” said Durham College President Don Lovisa. “With this gift, we will continue to lead the way by developing knowledgeable and experienced graduates who are able to step into rewarding technical careers that can make a difference in our communities.”

Local Johnson Controls employees – many of whom are graduates from the Electromechanical Engineering Technology program at Durham College – will work with the college to mentor students in this automation program. Through relationship building with industry professionals, students will gain insight into their future career paths.

The three-year Electromechanical engineering program at Durham College combines electronics design, mechanical technologies and industrial automation. Students receive access to the Integrated Manufacturing Centre, where they can engage with real-world situations like controllers and robotics. This first-hand experience prepares them for careers in the industry as they gain the skills needed to design and troubleshoot automated systems used in various technical industries.

“Not only are we investing in the next generation of workforce leaders, but the mentoring associated with this initiative reminds our employees why we do what we do,” said Johnson Controls Building Solutions North America President Julie Brandt. “We’re looking at our future and through partnership with these colleges we’re all contributing to a better-supported trades industry.”

Through this program and others, the company – which still has a small presence in Durham (though it once employed 200 people at a GM feeder plant in Whitby until shutting it down in 2016) – grants schools the funding needed to create a pipeline of future buildings experts, ultimately spurring economic development on a local and national level.

This is the third year of the grant program and all 20 schools from the first two cohorts will receive a renewal grant this year.

Durham College is the only Canadian institution to receive funding this year and just the second in the program’s history.

Since 2021, the Johnson Controls Community College Partnership Program has distributed $1 million annually across 10 community colleges in North America, focusing on vocational programs to inspire the next generation of workers. Each college has the option to receive the grants in full monetary value or to receive partial monetary funds along with technical equipment donated by Johnson Controls.

First-year students starting in September 2023 can apply for the Johnson Controls entrance bursary online.