Cégep de St-Félicien
Cégep de St-Félicien has a long tradition of partnerships with First Nations communities in
Quebec. In 1996, the cégep begain working with the Cree Regional Administration, the Kativik
Regional Administration, the Association of Aboriginal Women of Quebec and representatives
from different First Nations in order to develop a program for Aboriginal Early Childhood
Educators. This training program leads to a college certificate recognized by the Ministère de
l’Éducation, Loisirs et Sports (Ministry of Education, Leisure and Sport), as well as the Ministère
de la Famille, des Aînés et de la Condition féminine ( Ministry of Families, Seniors and Status of
Women).
This program has been offered in Aboriginal communities of Quebec and Inuit communities of Nunavut for up to 10 years. The training program is based on a competency based approach. The success of this program is based on its relevance, the capacity to adapt to local situations, on the quality of the support provided to instructors and students, as well as on the partnerships which are created with the early childhood centres and related community-based services.
Sault College
In 2003, Native specific programs at Sault College were suspended for review.
Recommendations for new programming was based on extensive consultations with various
stakeholder groups/individuals at conferences, workshops and meetings as well as via telephone,
email government reports and past reports from the college. Based on this information, Sault
College was able to align it new programming to meet the identified needs of the Aboriginal
community. The programs and services offered contributes to Aboriginal community development
in that that students are acquiring the necessary skill sets, knowledge and confidence to become
employable within their own communities as identified by Aboriginal stakeholders.
Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies
The Meadow Lake Campus of SIIT in collaboration with the Tribal Council identified and
developed a program for Process Operation Technicians. This was identified as a need by
community employers, first for their Oriented Strand Board Plant, then for the forestry and lumber
industries. The Tribal Council and SIIT organized a campaign to build a million dollar boiler lab.
With such a facility, SIIT and the community have experienced many positive spin-offs such that
they have been able to expand the use of the facility by other sectors and employers such as
power engineering. In addition, industry sends staff to the facility for retraining on a contract
basis with SIIT.
Yukon College
Yukon College has community campuses located in most Yukon communities. Small
communities in the Yukon are predominantly First Nations communities. Campus coordinators
are in constant contact with the local First Nations governments to learn of their needs for
education and training. Community Campus Committees and program advisory committees
typically include First Nations elders or other First Nations representatives. The Director of First
Nations Initiatives liaises with First Nations to develop programs and services.