Welcome to North Island College .

North Island College (NIC) is a comprehensive community college located on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada that focuses on student success and serves the people and communities across approximately 80,000km2 covering the middle of northern Vancouver Island and parts of the BC Central Coast from Bamfield to Bella Coola. We proudly serve more than 9,000 students annually at our four campuses, a learning centre and through online and in-community learning. The College is honoured to acknowledge operations within the traditional territories of 35 First Nations inclusive of the Nuu-chah-nulth, Kwakwaka’wakw and Coast Salish traditions.

NIC’s story is one of innovation, change, challenge, and success. Established in 1975 as a distance education institution, the College originally served residents in remote logging camps and coastal communities through 24 learning centres. In the 1990s, as population in resource-dependent communities declined, NIC moved to a campus-based model at four sites in Campbell River, Comox Valley (main campus plus NIC@St. Joe’s at the former St. Joseph’s General Hospital), Port Alberni and Port Hardy as well as a learning centre in Ucluelet.

Through diverse course and program offerings our students develop knowledge and skills required to strengthen our communities and to foster leadership and growth. NIC creates opportunities for rewarding careers for our students, fulfill dreams, and facilitate positive change.

Campus Locations

North Island College has four campuses and one centre all located in the mid to northern areas of Vancouver Island. The College serves a regional area of 80,000 km2.

Campbell River Campus

^{Ǧəlakasla NIC respectfully acknowledges we operate within the unceded traditional territory of the Wei Wai Kum, We Wai Kai and Kwiakah First Nations. The Campbell River campus shares its location with Timberline Secondary School. The shared location helps to ease the transition for students as they move from high school into post-secondary. It also provides opportunities for high school students to begin their trades careers while still in high school through the Youth Train in Trades program. The Campbell River campus is also home to the Third Course Bistro and the Centre for Applied Research, Technology, and Innovation (CARTI). More info}

^{Comox Valley Campus}

^{čɛčɛhaθɛč Gilakas’la NIC respectfully acknowledges we operate within the unceded territory of the K’ómoks First Nation. The Comox Valley campus on Ryan Road first opened its doors in 1992. Since that time, the campus grew as demand for programming rose. The campus is home to the Shadbolt Studios, a modern Trades Training Centre, the Stan Hagen Theatre and is located next to the Comox Valley Aquatic Centre and the Comox Valley Hospital. In 2019, NIC opened a new learning space at the former St. Joseph’s Hospital in Comox. NIC is leasing the former Surgical Day Centre space on the first floor of the building. More info}

^{Port Alberni Campus}

^{ƛ̓uum̓aaʔateʔicuu NIC respectfully acknowledges we operate within the unceded traditional territory of the Hupacasath and Tseshaht First Nations. Located on Roger Street, the Port Alberni campus provides classrooms for programming including nursing, early childhood care and education, university studies classes and more, along with the bookstore and library. The campus is also home to the Culinary Arts Building, the location of the Roger Street Bistro. Along with the Roger Street campus, NIC’s Tebo Vocational Centre on Tebo Avenue provides shops and equipment for Trades training students. More info}

NIC Strategic Initiatives

In 2021, the institution developed a strategic plan, BUILD 2026, which includes a mission and vision statement to provide a pathway for the next five years. The Engage with NIC website hosts all the strategic plans along with updated and related strategic projects.

NIC will be building its first on-campus housing project which is being constructed on the Comox Valley Campus.

The Student Housing Commons will be a multi-generational, inclusive, accessible, Indigenized, welcoming space for students. Also on campus is an expansion to the existing Beaufort Childcare Centre. A new Centre of Excellence in Early Learning will provide more child care spaces and additional classroom space for NIC’s Early Childhood Care and Education programs.

NIC has an active Indigenous Education Council (IEC) which includes representatives from the 35 Nations, Métis Chartered Communities, and Indigenous organizations. The IEC provides guidance in the delivery of education and support services relevant to the needs of Indigenous people and to ensure that the College works with Indigenous people in culturally appropriate ways.

Under the leadership of the IEC, NIC and representatives of the First Nations signed the Colleges and Institutes Canada’s (CICan) Indigenous Education Protocol in 2015, affirming our collective commitment to Indigenous learners and communities in the region.

NIC marked National Indigenous Peoples Day June 21, 2021, with the launch of Working Together, the first Indigenization Plan in the College’s history. Working Together confirms NIC’s commitment to reconciliation with goals and actions that integrate and honour local Indigenous cultures, histories, languages, and ways of knowing and being in NIC curriculum, teaching, planning and operations. More details: NIC Reconciliation, Indigenization and Decolonization website

At NIC we have come to realize that the evolution of Indigenization and international education is integrally tied to the concept of what it means to be Indigenous-serving. In 2023, NIC released an institutional plan called, Journeying Together which is built on the foundation of the Working Together plan.

NIC has several guiding strategic initiatives that foster and direct the growth and evolution of institutional operations. As a new employee, familiarizing yourself with these initiatives will help to align your vision of teaching and learning with the vision and direction the College is taking in the coming years.

You can find all strategic initiatives listed on the Employee Resources page. You can learn more about these initiatives and join the conversation on the Engage with NIC site.

Below are the key strategic initiatives and plans to review that will provide breadth of understanding of what our goals as an institution are.

BUILD 2026

In June 2021 NIC launched the BUILD 2026 strategic plan in response to the rapid expansion of digital learning and evolving needs of students post COVID-19. This plan is NIC’s commitment to keep listening and responding with educational programs, services and delivery methods that meet students and communities where they are now and where they want to be in the future.

Explore the BUILD 2026 report HERE

WIDENING OUR DOORWAYS

Widening Our Doorways (WOD) 2026 reframes the original 10-point framework published in the fall of 2020 by NIC’s former Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer and now President, Dr. Lisa Domae. This renewed eight-point academic plan incorporates many of the themes of the original plan and incorporates BUILD 2026’s architecture, with a focus on achieving measurable goals and outcomes in the next five years. The eight-point framework centres on “forward-thinking, collaborative and consultative programs that are centred on widening NIC’s approaches to relevant, responsive and accessible learning.”

Explore the Widening Our Doorways Plan HERE

WORKING TOGETHER NIC’S INDIGENIZATAION PLAN

From November 2019 to February 202, Indigenous Education hosted a series of brainstorming sessions across our four regional campuses. These sessions were a reflection of our ongoing commitment to listen, hear, and respond to the collective voice of those we serve. The engagement sessions were attended by over 150 participants form Indigenous communities, the Indigenous Education Counsil, NIC Elders in Residence, students, staff, faculty, administration, and leadership. During the sessions, we sought guidance, input, and recommendations from participants to inform this document.

The plan is an amalgamation of the collective voices of our participants.

Explore the Working Together Indigenization Plan HERE

JOURNEYING TOGETHER

A transformative approach to Indigenization and internationalization at NIC

This, our first Indigenous-serving Internationalization plan, places Indigenous students, employees and their communities at its heart and will shape and guide our work for many years to come. It also provides a place to reflect and reshape the learning and experiences of visiting international students, both Indigenous and non-Indigenous, many of whom come from colonial systems with different histories and responses to those histories.

Explore the Journeying Together Plan HERE

THE CARE2 PLAN

Student Mental Health and Well-Being at NIC

NIC recognizes that mental health and well-being are core components of success for both individuals and communities.

Launched in May 2022, the Car2 Plan: Student Mental Health and Well-Being at NIC is a snapshot of who and where we are at this moment and our aspirations for the next five years.

The Care2 plan takes a strength-based approach to supporting student mental health and well-being, focused on enhancing personal resilience and agency. This means that in addition to providing supports for students in distress or crisis, NIC recognizes the importance of resilience, capacity-building and self-advocacy as vital tools for developing and sustaining mental health and well-being.

Explore the Care2 Plan HERE

Institutional Organization

At NIC the aim is to foster a collaborative approach to quality student learning. As an instructor you will be supported by fellow faculty, a department chair, the Dean of your department, CTLI (Centre for Teaching and Learning Innovation), as well as the Leadership and Education Teams.

There are many resources and documents available to faculty that will help you get to know the institution and those that work in each area. Some helpful documents and resources to bookmark are:

Who to Contact About What

Department Chair and Coordinator List

Employee Directory

Human Resources

Faculty Resources

NIC ADMINSTRATIVE ORGANIZATION 

NIC is comprised of several Leadership, Education and Operational groups and Committees that work together and with Faculty to keep the Institution moving towards the NIC vision and ensuring all departments are focused on quality student learning. These groups include:

Leadership Team

NIC’s Leadership Team consists of dedicated individuals focused on student success. Led by NIC President and CEO Lisa Domae, the team works with the Education Team and Operations Team to support NIC’s strategic planning goals and realize NIC’s vision to deliver BC’s best individualized education and training experience by 2026.

Education Team

The Education Team (ET) is made up of educational positions (deans, directors) at the College including members of the Leadership Team. ET provides educational direction and instructional program planning under the direction of the Vice-President, Academic.

Education Council

​Established by the College and Institute Act, Education Council’s role is to ensure educational quality at North Island College. Education Council has two main functions in this regard:

1. To review and approve curriculum and policies that relate to academic standing, academic standards and evaluation of student performance; and
2. To advise the Board of Governors on the development of educational policy (e.g. related to the implementation and/or cancellation of courses and programs, evaluation of programs and educational services, terms of affiliation with other post-secondary bodies, qualifications for admission policies, and criteria for awarding certificates, diplomas and degrees).