Current News

Here is our regular update from the Association, with a few notes and tidbits for our members. We welcome your suggestions for any additional topics/ recommendations for inclusion in an upcoming message.

2025 CIRPA Virtual Conference: Save the date

As you know, the 2025 CIRPA Annual Conference will be virtual-only and we have the dates: mark your calendars for October 21-23, 2025!

We will be launching the call for session proposals soon; we encourage you start thinking about the projects and expertise you could share in a conference presentation.

The Conference relies on the work of volunteers and supporters. Please consider volunteering – there will be many opportunities to help out – we only need a bit of commitment and enthusiasm.

LinkedIn Updates

We have published the results of the most recent Membership survey on our LinkedIn page, with a few choice highlights from the study – on our members, their responsibilities and perspective on their satisfaction/involvement with the Association.

If you aren’t yet following the page, please subscribe; we are looking to expand our range of communication tools and meet our members where they are active.

Upcoming professional development activities

Our colleagues in the Professional Development Committee are feverishly working to finalize the details of several upcoming online events. Our best presentation winner from the 2024 Conference (Nadia Novikova /OCAS) will be sharing her session in preparation for attending AIR 2025 in Orlando, Florida.

The schedule for the Spring Forum will also be released soon – with the event likely taking place in May.

Kind regards,
Miranda Pearson,
President, Board of Directors,
CIRPA-ACPRI

CIRPA-ACPRI is pleased to announce the winner of the 2024 Conference Best Presentation Award: Nadia Novikova, OCAS.

The topic was “The Linguistic Labyrinth: Natural Language Tools to Support Education and Employment Decisions.” The selection was based on the session evaluation survey and a review by the Best Presentation Committee members and was unanimously endorsed by the CIRPA Board of Directors.

As part of the award, the winner will attend the Association for Institutional Research (AIR) annual forum in Orlando, Florida, from May 20 to 23, 2025 to present the session as the 2024 CIRPA Best Presentation. To help support the attendance, CIRPA and AIR have a joint agreement to cover up to $2,000 for conference expenses.

As a rehearsal for the AIR Forum, the winner will also present their session to the CIRPA-ACPRI members via a special webinar – stay tuned for more details!

Congratulations to Nadia Novikova!

The Best Presentation Committee and the CIRPA Board of Directors also want to recognize the following presentations, in no particular order, that were shortlisted for the award. These sessions were all very strong and a testament to the excellent work occurring within the Canadian institutional research and planning landscape.

• Forecasting Undergraduate Student Enrolment: A Waterloo Case Study presented by Lannois Carroll-Woolery, University of Waterloo
• Bridging Gaps, Building Futures: Leveraging Labor Market Information for Alignment, Employability, and Institutional Excellence presented by Juliana Serje, University of Ottawa
• Closing the Loop: A Strategic Approach to Student Feedback presented by Fraser Hay and Samantha McRae, Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Applied Learning

This year, the CIRPA-ACPRI’s fall conference will take place fully online. All members of the community are encouraged to consider presenting; it is a great way to keep the community abreast of new and exciting changes, and you could be selected to attend the 2026 AIR Forum in Washington, DC.

We are launching the occasional update from the Association, with a few notes and tidbits for our members – we welcome your suggestions for any additional topics/ recommendations for inclusion in an upcoming message.

Volunteers for the 2025 CIRPA Virtual Conference

As you know, the 2025 CIRPA Annual Conference will be virtual-only – and it will be an opportunity to engage with colleagues more accessibly, without the constraints driven by travel and various budgetary pressures. We hope to take advantage of the format to find new ways to foster dialogue and professional development – bring your ideas!

We are looking for several members to join the planning Committee in various capacities, such as helping out with the call for proposals, communication materials or working behind-the-scenes to ensure technical sessions are working smoothly.

2024 Conference recordings

The conference recordings from the 2024 conference in Fredericton are currently available to attendees and will be available to all CIRPA paid members after December 20th. If you’re curious to hear what your colleagues presented/attended this year – and be inspired for 2025, have a look in our Member portal at the presentations and recordings from this year.

While you’re in the Member portal, check out the stimulating conversations taking place within the discussion forum – open to both regular and limited members. Members from post-secondary institutions also have access to a new neutral space on Product User Experience to share reviews and tips on products and services.

Happy Holidays!

On behalf of the CIRPA Board of Directors, I would like to wish you a happy and joyous holiday season, with plenty of good cheer with family and friends. We look forward to working with you/for you in 2025 and continuing to build the Canadian Institutional Research and Planning Association!

Kind regards,
Miranda Pearson,
President, Board of Directors,
CIRPA-ACPRI

We are delighted to announce the 2024 Outstanding Service and New & Emerging Professionals Awards – Dr. Stephanie McKeown (left) and Samantha McRae (right)!

Outstanding Service Award
The 2024 Outstanding Service Award winner is Dr. Stephanie McKeown, University of British Columbia.

Dr. McKeown is the inaugural Chief Institutional Research Officer, providing leadership to the Offices of Planning and Institutional Research, Student Experience Evaluation and Research, and Student Experience of Instruction offices. Dr. McKeown’s leadership has resulted in a combined portfolio that has provided outstanding and streamlined service to UBC’s senior leadership, faculties, and students. She has united the different IR campus teams into a critical service unit for the entire institution, whilst retaining the local culture and identity of each.

She served ten years on CIRPA executive as a Member-at-Large, Treasurer, Vice-President, President, and currently serves as the Chair of the Nominations Committee. She co-chaired the 2016 Kelowna Conference and has served on the organizing committee of several other CIRPA conferences. She has made numerous presentations at the Annual Conferences and is a esteemed contributor to the academic field of institutional research.

For all her contributions over the years to the Association, its members and the field at-large, CIRPA is pleased to grant the 2024 Outstanding Service Award to Dr. McKeown!

New & Emerging Professional Award
The 2024 New & Emerging Professional Award winner is Samantha McRae, Conestoga College.

Sam is a strong IR professional who truly embodies the “Student of Data, Data Serving Students”. Sam’s passionate commitment to collaborate and contribute meaningfully underlies all her endeavours. Sam supports the College IRP mandate in numerous ways, such as, designing and reporting on stakeholder feedback, researching and reporting program information to support major quality assurance initiatives, preparing Labour Market reports that analyze and present considerations of new programs, and undertaking ad-hoc reporting to provide strategic planning and decision-making information.

Sam is newly engaging with the IRP practitioners through her first in-person presence at the CIRPA 2024 conference. She has much to offer and contribute to not only Conestoga College but also the overall field of IRP practice and its future in the coming years.

For her incipient contributions to the field and to recognize the potential for further development, CIRPA is pleased to grant the 2024 New & Emerging Professional Award to Samantha McRae!

We would like to acknowledge the members that have taken the time to provide the nominations: Neil Chakraborty (University of Toronto) and Rashmi Gupta (Conestoga College).

Miranda Pearson
CIRPA-ACPRI President