Winner announced for the 2020 Co-op Photo Contest

December 9, 2020

Although work-terms looked different this year, Camosun College’s annual Co-op Photo Contest had 16 top quality entries for 2020. The overall People’s Choice winner was Bachelor of Sport and Fitness student David Liira, with an engaging photo of him assessing a client at the BackFit Clinic.

"With almost 2,000 votes cast, it seems like students, faculty, staff and community members were very interested to see what Camosun students have been up to," says TJ Babey, Associate Director of Applied Learning, Co-operative Education and Career Services. "It's fantastic to see the community response and huge kudos to David for winning."

Liira initially connected with Backfit for an informational interview, which turned into a formal interview for a personal trainer and fitness instructor position with the company. Still employed at Backfit, Liira currently performs one-on-one sessions and health assessments.

"My co-op experience was a great mix of structure and spontaneity, an appropriate parallel to the nature of our work," says Liira. "The rapport I was able to build with the leadership team allowed me to take on many independent roles that lead to skill development and maturation."

As with many businesses, Backfit Clinic was affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Management made the decision to close the studio for a period of time until they were able to provide a safe environment for both clients and staff. During this time, Liira sent out online workouts to encourage clients to stay active.

"It has been a challenging year, but it's so important for students to be supported by our employer community to gain real-world experience," says Babey.

As restrictions loosened, the Backfit team decided to dedicate their loft space to personal training to allow sessions to follow the guidelines provided by health authorities.

"I feel extremely grateful to continue providing healthcare while meeting COVID-19 regulations," says Liira. "The biggest shift has been wearing a mask and constantly lathering every surface with a cleaning solution... what a time!"

Honourable Mentions

With so many great photos, the Co-op and Career Services department selected four Honourable mentions. These photos highlight an engaging and diverse array of various work-term opportunities students can undertake. The honourable mentions include:

Zahra Rezai, Bachelor of Business Administration, Human Resource Management & Leadership
Office Administration & Coordinator, Shelbourne Physiotherapy

Joseph Letang, Electronics & Computer Engineering - Renewable Energy
Geophysical Instrument Assistant, Natural Resources Canada

Madison Manitoski, Environmental Technology
LVL1-Seed Orchard Co-op, Skimikin Seed Orchard FLNRO

Meiqi Meng, Hospitality Management
Owner/Manager, The Cracked Mug Coffee Shop

Established in 1971, Camosun is one of the largest colleges in British Columbia with campuses on the Traditional Territories of the Lekwungen and W̱SÁNEĆ peoples.