Municipal-post-secondary partnership showcases local projects, workforce pathways
The City of Oshawa and its post-secondary partners have released the latest TeachingCity annual snapshot, outlining a ninth year of collaboration that connects student learning to municipal priorities and local employer needs. The publication highlights a range of applied-research and curriculum-based initiatives involving Durham College, Ontario Tech University, Trent University Durham GTA and the University of Toronto's Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering.
Among the initiatives detailed in the snapshot are a curated photography collection produced by Durham College students and a cybersecurity training partnership that embeds learners in a real-world operations environment with the city’s Information Technology Services (ITS) team.
Student photography becomes part of city communications
As part of a course assignment, photography students explored community sites and events to capture images that reflect the themes of the City’s strategic direction for 2024–27, framed around innovation, belonging, care and leadership. The City now keeps a curated set of student images intended to support future communications and to showcase local assets.
- Oshawa Strategic Plan photography — students accessed municipal spaces and events to produce images tied to the plan’s key pillars.
- Curated collection — selected photographs will be retained by the City for communications use.
Cybersecurity pipeline aims to meet local labour demand
Ontario Tech’s Institute for Cybersecurity and Resilient Systems has continued its partnership with the City’s ITS to operate a Security Operations Centre (SOC) staffed in part by students. The SOC monitors the City’s public Wi-Fi for threats and tracks recurring issues, giving learners a chance to practise detection and response in an operational environment.
The student SOC team also receives training from industry vendors named in the snapshot — Fortinet and Trend Micro — positioning participants toward entry-level cybersecurity roles within municipal IT and other local employers.
Academic partners and project types
The snapshot underscores a mix of experiential learning, applied research and curriculum-linked work that connects classroom learning to municipal plans and services. Below is a brief summary of partners and highlighted projects:
| Partner | Highlighted project |
|---|---|
| Durham College | Photography collection tied to Oshawa Strategic Plan |
| Ontario Tech University | Student-run Security Operations Centre with industry training |
| Trent University Durham GTA | Curriculum-based and applied research collaborations (noted in snapshot) |
| University of Toronto (Civil & Mineral Engineering) | Applied research partnerships with municipal relevance |
City staff and academic partners framed the snapshot as evidence of the TeachingCity model’s capacity to provide hands-on learning while delivering municipal value. For residents, the work represents both immediate community-facing outputs — such as photography for promotions — and longer-term benefits in building local talent.
Local implications and next steps
At a time when municipalities face competition for skilled workers in technology and other sectors, programs that provide real-world experience and direct employer connections can influence hiring pipelines. The SOC initiative, which places students into operational roles and pairs them with vendor-led training, is explicitly aimed at creating a pool of candidates suited for entry-level cybersecurity work within the City and regional employers.
For the post-secondary institutions, the partnership offers access to municipal data, sites and operational environments that enrich curricula and research opportunities. For the City, the relationship supplies creative assets and labour resources while strengthening ties to local campuses.
The TeachingCity Oshawa annual snapshot is available online for residents, students and local employers who want to review detailed accounts of this year’s projects and consider future engagement.
