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COTR gets $843,000 for training equipment
By Ian Cobb
e-KNOW
College of the Rockies (COTR) is getting the biggest piece of a provincial government post-secondary funding pie.
COTR is receiving $843,000 toward the purchase of new training equipment, including two L3 Mobile Truck Driving Training simulators and health care training mannequins announced Advanced Education Minister Andrew Wilkinson during a visit to the College of the Rockies’ Gold Creek Campus this afternoon.
“Our government is giving students access to training equipment so that they have the skills that employers want,” said Wilkinson. “More than $4 million in new trades and health care equipment is an investment which will prepare students for careers in a range of sectors that support economic prosperity.”
The $843,000 for the College of the Rockies is part of more than $4 million from the provincial government to a total of 20 public post-secondary institutions for the purchase of new training equipment.
“The College of the Rockies does exceptional work in helping prepare students for career opportunities in our region and throughout B.C.,” Kootenay East MLA Bill Bennett said. “That is why our government is investing more than $800,000 to purchase new industry-standard training equipment for the college.”
Equipment is for programs that prepare students for in-demand occupations, including truck driving, the trades and nursing.
“This funding is timely and appreciated,” said College of the Rockies president and CEO David Walls. “New equipment provides the college with the opportunity to help students get the necessary experience and skills to begin their careers in high demand fields. These new equipment items add to our already considerable expertise of incorporating simulation into the student learning experience.”
The Ministry of Advanced Education is targeting funding and programs to sectors that have a high-demand for skilled workers. The more than $4 million will support students entering high-demand sectors such as health, trades and transportation. The B.C. Labour Market Outlook 2024 estimates 15,500 job openings for transport truck drivers.
“Truck driving is a skilled occupation that requires a strong training foundation,” said BC Trucking Association president and CEO Louise Yako. “We are extremely pleased the ministry is supporting both the trucking industry and the College of the Rockies in funding state-of-the-art equipment for trainees to help seat our trucks.”
Wilkinson, perhaps the most educated Advanced Education Ministry head, holding both a law degree and medical degree and being a Rhodes Scholar, noted the importance of post-secondary institutions being prepared to train the next wave of workers for the province.
“College of the Rockies ended up getting almost triple the next college or university on the list (of institutions receiving funding) because the college put forward a very solid program with a very reasonable request, so we rewarded them with $843,000,” Wilkinson said.
There is a pressing need for colleges and universities to be outfitted with the latest in training technologies to meet the needs of the future, he added.
“British Columbia is looking at about 740,000 retirements in the next 10 years. A large number of those are going to be in the skilled trades. So we are putting a total of $185 million into equipment for trades training, so those students can be trained on state-of-the-art equipment so when they go out in the work place they’re ready to go. This is a very valuable and very important step we are taking because we’re shifting out advanced education funding so that a much larger per cent of it is dedicated to in-demand jobs, many of which are in the trades,” Wilkinson said.
With this $4 million investment announced today, government has provided more than $21 million toward the purchase of new training equipment for public post-secondary institutions since the launch of B.C.’s Skills for Jobs Blueprint in 2014.
There will be almost one million job openings in British Columbia over the next decade, and most of these openings will require post-secondary training.
Approximately 42% of job openings will require college education or apprenticeship training; 36% will require university and/or significant work experience and 18% will require high school and/or occupation-specific training.
Along with providing the funding announcement, Wilkinson took a turn on a semi-truck driving simulator. ”I was not a great success at double clutching,” he joked later.
Earlier in the afternoon he made a 25-minute speech as keynote speaker at the Cranbrook Chamber of Commerce’s April luncheon at the Prestige Inn, highlighting B.C.’s successes in post-secondary education.
Lead image: COTR president David Walls, Advanced Education Minister Andrew Wilkinson and Kootenay East MLA and Minister of Energy and Mines Bill Bennett at today’s funding announcement at the college’s Gold Creek Campus. Ian Cobb/e-KNOW photos
