Centennial College’s programs have always connected students to experts in whatever field they’re studying, and those experts often bring innovative, new ideas into the programs they teach. Such is the case with Howie Page, who spent 36 years with the Toronto Police Services, starting in uniform, then moving into investigative units, and managing specialized squads. And then, one day after he retired, he brought his experience to Centennial College. First, Howie taught in our Police and Public Safety Foundations program for six years, and then two years ago he became the Program Coordinator while still teaching, making sure the entirety of the program stays cutting-edge and practical.
Discovering a passion for teaching
During the later years of his policing career, Howie would become known as a court expert in certain areas, which led to him being tapped to educate others.
"For about 15 years of my career, I was lecturing at the Toronto Police College on a number of investigative courses," Howie says. "I was also lecturing across the country on behalf of the RCMP on drug related investigations, so I soon discovered a passion for teaching."
"Dr. Frank Trovato is a fellow professor in in the police foundations program and a former senior officer with Toronto, and he's my best friend," he continues. "Frank took me aside one day and said, Howie, listen, you’ve got to stop doing all this for free, and start looking at life after the Toronto Police."
Frank told Howie that, once he left the Toronto Police, people would eventually stop knocking on his door with career opportunities. "You have a passion for teaching, and you're good at it," Frank told him. "So, Frank encouraged me to get my university education."
Proving that it’s never too late to get your education, Howie would dive right into preparations for what would become his second career.
"I was in my 50s, believe it or not, and I got a degree in Criminal Justice Studies," he says. "So that allowed me to start getting approached by post-secondary institutions. I taught part time at Humber for five years in their Police Foundations program while I was still a senior officer with the Toronto Police. And then what happened is, believe it or not, I found Centennial College job hunting me."
From the field to the classroom
In so many cliché police stories, you hear about how someone is one day away from retirement. Well, in Howie’s case, he made it to retirement, but it only lasted one day!
"I wasn't looking at retiring, I had 36 years of service and was an Inspector with the Toronto Police," Howie says. "I was also the Unit Commander of the Toronto Drug Squad and was very happy with what I was doing. But you know, sometimes you have to look at 36 years, and ask, is it time to maybe give back to others? I spent 36 years serving my community in a law enforcement capacity. Once I started teaching at Humber, I really got a passion for teaching young people versus police officers, just because of where they were in their life."
"I was literally retired for one day," he says. "I was hired by Centennial, given a start date, and I retired, and then one day later I started at Centennial full time."
Practical experiences
Going straight from the Toronto Police to the classroom gave Howie a unique insight, which he was able to pass onto his students.
"I can say, listen, when I was at a crime scene, when I was dealing with this, whether it be blood, or whatever it would be, this is what you have to do," he says. "And I think the students gravitate to that. And I'll tell you, the reason why. You're not just talking out of a textbook." This need for practical experience would be something Howie pushed for once he became Program Coordinator, as well.
"One of the courses that I personally teach is the crime scene management course," he says as an example. "Within that course, over one semester, there will be three different crime scenes in a [classroom set up like an] apartment. The students spend half that entire course going into the crime scene as police officers, as forensic investigators, as detectives, and each time they have a different role and the room is set up differently for them." Similarly, another classroom is set up like a courtroom, which serves as another important bit of practical learning.
"They have to take all the learning that they've done over the past year and a half of our program," he says. "They apply it in a mock trial, a full-blown Superior Court judge and jury trial in our courtroom designed lab. They wear formal court robes, they get a scenario, they're either the Crown Attorney prosecuting side, or the defense attorney, defending the person who's charged with a serious criminal offense. They take this from the beginning, and they work the entire course, in a group setting."
"It's amazing to see the transformation of our students," he says, "watching them cross-examine witnesses, watching them give evidence in court, all on their own. Of course, as faculty we are guiding them or mentoring them, but it's the students taking control of that."
"The other aspect is, we're not sitting on our laurels. Our faculty is one cohesive team, and we meet regularly to discuss ways we can improve our program for the students. We're constantly bringing new learning ideas to our program," he says. "I wouldn't say we're just maintaining and meeting the industry needs; we're staying ahead of the industry." For example, the end of 2023 saw a special pilot project to use Virtual Reality to teach students to manage crime scenes, and 2024 will see its integration into the program.
Thinking for yourself
Another important aspect of Howie’s role as Program Coordinator is that he espouses a learning philosophy that focuses on critical thinking skills, and challenging social norms, which is important when students are being trained to be in positions of authority.
"We want our students to challenge the norm and feel able to express themselves in the classroom setting, let's dissect and challenge this law that's 20 or 30 years old and still on the books," Howie says. "Does it properly apply to today's society's norms?"
"In our classroom, we want them thinking outside the box," he says. "Because the profession they're going into, whether it be a police officer, a special constable, or a security investigator, our students need to be prepared."
It comes back to that passion
"I love teaching, I'm very passionate about it," Howie says. "And I'm very passionate about our students. I’ll tell you, the happiest days for us, and I can speak on behalf our whole faculty team, is when we see our students finish at whatever academy they're at, and they're getting their badge, and they're in their uniform, they look sharp, and it’s their graduation, say from the Ontario Police College, or the RCMP Academy, and they send us a picture back, and they express their gratitude to the faculty team and their Centennial College experience. That's what we're here for. If we can do that and build these young people to be tomorrow's protectors of society, then we've done our job."