Message Centre

Overview:

The Buy Ontario Procurement Directive (BOPD) represents a significant change to how the university will plan, conduct and document procurement. The directive came into force on April 13, 2026, and is mandatory for all publicly-funded institutions.

The BOPD does not replace the existing Broader Public Sector Procurement Directive (BPSPD). Instead, it operates on top of current procurement rules, adding new requirements focused on prioritizing Ontario and Canadian suppliers, goods, and services. Compliance is required and non‑compliance may result in provincial funding penalties.

Strong executive support and institution‑wide alignment are essential to ensure compliance, manage risk, and support sustainable implementation.

What’s changed:

The BOPD brings together several government initiatives into a single procurement framework, including:

• Building Ontario Businesses Initiative (effective April 1, 2024)
• Procurement Restriction Policy (U.S. businesses) (effective March 4, 2025)
• Strategic Categories
  • Fleet vehicles (effective April 13, 2026)
  • Capital infrastructure (effective April 13, 2026)

Collectively, these changes introduce a level of procurement complexity not seen since the introduction of the BPSPD in 2010.

What this means for Ontario Tech:

The Institution is required to:

• Actively prioritize Ontario and Canadian-manufactured goods, not just businesses, using prescribed evaluation and decision‑making approaches.

• Demonstrate compliance through strengthened governance, reporting and audit‑ready records.

• Document feasibility decisions, including when Buy Ontario requirements cannot be applied.

Final perspective:

As a publicly-funded institution, we support the goal of strengthening domestic supply chains and reducing reliance on external sources. The BOPD, updated BPSPD framework and applicable trade agreements all help move the sector in this direction.

Our focus will be on steady progress: Build a shared understanding, communicate clearly across our campuses, and establish consistent, defensible procurement practices that are practical, sustainable and compliant.

We recognize that this directive comes during a period of significant change across the public sector. Procurement is here to support you. Our role is to help enable purchasing needs and find practical, compliant solutions. Faculty and staff partnership will be essential as we work through these changes, together.

Further to our previous communications and recent Town Hall, we are writing to provide an update regarding the cybersecurity incident involving Instructure, the parent company of the Canvas Learning Management System (LMS).

Instructure has advised that it has reached an agreement with the unauthorized actor involved in this incident. As part of that agreement, the data involved was returned to Instructure, and Instructure has received digital confirmation that the data was destroyed. Instructure has also advised that the agreement includes a commitment that no Instructure customers will be extorted because of this incident, publicly or otherwise.

Instructure is currently reviewing the affected data and is in the process of informing schools whether their data was directly accessed during the incident. At this time, Ontario Tech has not received notification that its data was accessed. 

All unauthorized access was limited to Instructure’s systems. Ontario Tech’s internal systems were not breached, and no university passwords or credentials were compromised. Our Information Technology team continues to monitor our systems, including Canvas, and is confident that the necessary security measures have been implemented to address the vulnerability and support the secure use of Canvas going forward.

While aspects of the investigation remain underway, based on the information currently available, the university considers the risk associated with this incident to be resolved.  

As a matter of general practice, members of the university community are advised to remain alert for phishing emails and suspicious messages, and to avoid sharing personal information through unsolicited communications or with unknown senders.

Thank you for your patience and understanding throughout this matter.

Please direct inquiries to servicedesk@dc-ot.ca. 

After more than 15 years of dedicated service, Tom Lynch, Director, Office of Campus Safety (OCS), will retire, effective Tuesday, June 30.

Following an extensive policing career and background in incident response, risk assessment, and criminal investigations, Tom proudly served our campus community as the Director of the OCS.

In this role, he demonstrated a deep commitment to safety and well-being, and implemented a number of key initiatives, including the launch of the Major Case Management System for all investigations undertaken by the OCS to ensure accountability and efficiency, enhancements to the emergency management and security infrastructures, and the creation of an on-campus Emergency Operations Centre to support the Emergency Response Team.

To honour Tom, a drop-in celebration will be held on Wednesday, June 24 from 3 to 7 p.m. at 2200 North in the Campus Ice Centre. Anyone wishing to contribute to a retirement gift can contact Peter Trimble or Michelle Osborne.    

Thank you for your service, Tom. We wish you the best in your well-deserved retirement!

Please note: If you already have an annual parking permit valid September 2025 through August 2026, no action is required.

If you need to extend your winter semester permit (valid January through April 2026) to cover the spring semester (May to August 2026), you can register and pay for it on the Interactive Parking Access Subscriber System (IPASS) website. If you don’t extend your winter semester permit, your parking access card or hang tag will expire after Thursday, April 30.

Purchasing a new annual or semester permit:

If you don’t already have a semester or annual parking permit, use the IPASS website to register and pay for your spring semester permit online.

Please ensure the IPASS application indicates May 1, 2026, as the activation date.

Please note: A semester permit is only valid for four months at a time:

• Fall (September 1 to December 31)
• Winter (January 1 to April 30)
• Spring/summer (May 1 to August 31)

All annual permits expire on Monday, August 31, regardless of date of purchase.

Pay-As-U-Go (PAUG) option:

• Only available for Founders 2 and Commencement lots. 

• Register on the IPASS website using a credit card. You will receive an access card to park in a designated gated lot.

• Charge per day is $12 and allows you to exit and re-enter the lot (in-and-out privilege) with no additional charge during a single 24-hour calendar day (12:01 a.m. to 11:59 p.m.).

• Precise ParkLink monitors PAUG card use. Charges on the registered credit card will be applied at the end of each month; you will receive a monthly email statement.

General notes on registration:

• Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis.

• You must use your ontariotechu.ca email address to register.

• Use the IPASS registration website to pay for your parking permit. You can choose to pay in full, or set up equal monthly payments through credit card or pre-authorized payment.

• After completing the registration, you will receive an email response from IPASS within 48 hours indicating either:

  • Approval, with follow-up instructions.
    
    
  • Declined registration due to one of the following:
    
    

    • Non-institutional email on application

    • Incorrect credit card or banking information

    • Full lot

  • If the registration is due to:
    
    

    • Use of non-institutional email or incorrect credit card/banking information: Re-apply on the IPASS registration website with the appropriate correction.

    • Full lot: Forward email indicating declined registration to the Parking Services office for alternative options.

Access cards and hang tags:

• Those with parking access cards can input the card number while registering. This card will be activated upon IPASS approval. No further action will be required.

• Those without parking access cards will receive one at no charge. You can request a replacement card for $25.

• Prior to Friday, May 1, visit the Parking Services office in the Gordon Willey Building at the north Oshawa campus location, Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. to pick up your new access card or hang tag, or have a new sticker applied to your existing hang tag.

Daily parking:

• Available in:
  • pay-and-display lots
  • gated lots
    
    

• Fee: $5 per hour ($18 daily maximum).

• Tap debit and credit card payment is available at exit gates.

• Pay stations accept cash, coins, debit and credit cards. They are in the Founders Lot 2 (southeast corner) and the Commencement Lot at the north Oshawa campus location.

Lots and rates – semester | year:

• Charles Hall: $350 | $700

• Founders 1 (waitlist only): $350 | $700

• Founders 2: $325 | $650

• Founders 3: $350 | $700

• Founders 4 (Campus Ice Centre): $300 | $600

• Founders 5 (north Campus Ice Centre): $200 | $400

• Commencement: $325 | $650

• Simcoe Village: $325 | $650

• Ball Diamond: $300 | $600

Contact:

• For information specific to the IPASS registration website, see the IPASS frequently asked questions or complete and submit the contact form. IPASS will respond to all questions submitted through this portal within 48 business hours.

• For general inquiries, contact Parking Services.