UOIT students' Capstone project leads to provincial award

A collaborative project between fourth-year Game Development and Entrepreneurship students at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) and the Durham Region Works Committee (DRWC) is garnering special attention on the provincial stage. The Capstone project developed between the UOIT Faculty of Business and Information Technology (FBIT) and the DRWC has received with the (Ontario) Municipal Waste Association’s 2012 Bronze Promotion and Education Award.

The students created and designed a video game that challenges players to collect various household items and sort them to their correct waste disposal bins. The game, appropriately titled Sort ‘em Up, now exists as an educational game on the Durham Region website. Targeted at children between the ages of eight and 12, Sort ‘em Up has been an outstanding success for the DRWC’s Waste Management website. Players enjoy the fun and interactive game and also learn about environmental awareness.

Sort ‘em Up was created by Game Development and Entrepreneurship program 2012 graduates Veronica Cole, Aaron DeChamplain, Eric Koalicki, Ian McCabe, Eric Rosendale and Matthew Stephan (Cole, DeChamplain, McCabe, Rosendale and Stephan went on to form Squabble Studios Ltd., a game development studio that focuses on the creation of original serious games, simulations and training applications).   

“The success of Sort ‘em Up demonstrates how UOIT students can take an innovative idea and develop it into a real-world solution,” said Stephen Rose, Associate Dean, External, FBIT. “The FBIT Capstone program allows students to collaborate and engage with an outside organization, apply classroom concepts and gain relevant, hands-on work experience. Our graduates enter the workforce prepared not only with technical knowledge, but also with the problem-solving skills they will need to lead and succeed in today’s evolving workplace.”

• Link to original March 2012 UOIT news story about Sort ‘em Up