Alisa Cunnington thrives on puzzles and problem solving. It is in her nature to synthesize a mountain of broad information, spot the connections and store the knowledge for the time she needs to tap into her brain bank. The magic happens when she uses not only ingenuity and creativity to bring ideas to the table, but also the right mix of people to arrive at an innovative solution.
After 20 years in post-secondary education, mostly as an academic advisor/educator, Cunnington is now using her resourceful know-how to build creative bridges between Niagara College faculty and the Research & Innovation division, as course-based project coordinator. In her R&I role, she will act as the liaison between faculty, deans, students and business and industry, furthering projects and encouraging experiential education in its many facets.
The aim of course-based projects is to expand content from the classroom with real-life scenarios and typically involve students working with an industry partner to solve real-world challenges. Cunnington will also be assisting faculty to implement these specialized projects into their courses by providing support in teaching and learning plans, project evaluations and milestones. She will rely on her many years in the academic sector, most of those at Brock University, in faculty and student support services, analyzing postsecondary pathways, teaching, as well as curriculum.
“I’m passionate about teaching innovation and what it means to be a teacher and a learner in the 21st century,” she says, pointing out that it fits perfectly with the College’s continued commitment to providing experiential learning opportunities that combine academic programming, applied research and student experience.
It is a mission well suited for Cunnington’s natural ability to think both critically and creatively, with the help of a self-described “over-active” mind. “I’m a restless human being… I don’t sit still,” she laughs, explaining she is rarely without a challenging project on the go.
“I enjoy a good experience that leads to transformation and change,” she says. “I have skills in seeing how people fit into pathways, but mostly I like to think outside those boxes. I like making connections and I’m very collaborative in most of the things I do.”
An artist in her “spare” time, Cunnington holds an Honours BA in Visual Art and an MA in Popular Culture, both from Brock, and is currently working on her BEd in Adult Education.
A testament to her penchant for solving complex problems, she once created an art project that involved devising an installation piece of a map of Grimsby, measuring 23 feet by 12 feet and using 1,500 feet of rope. The creative challenge for Cunnington was figuring out how to weave all the rope together over such a large space. Since she was connecting in all the artists from the Grimsby Art Gallery, she then wrote poems about each individual, linked in a custom QR code and added them to the map.
The endeavour speaks to her synergistic nature, especially when it comes to building things, both literally and conceptually. “The only way to make things better is to work with people; collaboration is the key,” she insists. “I like the connectivity and how people work towards one goal even if it’s this broad over-arching goal.”
As a critical and creative thinker, adept at reconciling problems and people, her position sets the perfect stage for her to bridge the worlds of theory and practice. In the meanwhile she is gathering and depositing every bit of information and knowledge she can while learning about the wealth of creative connections to be made.
Cunnington lives with her eight-year-old son in St. Catharines, where she is currently working on a book-making and sculpting project, among other creative pursuits and puzzles.
For more information on incorporating course-based projects into curricula, please contact Alisa at [email protected]
