Tour showed ADM the variety in PCC sector

Assistant Deputy Minister of the Postsecondary Education Division of the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, Nancy Naylor, was treated to a whirlwind tour of some of  Ontario’s Private Career Colleges on June 28.  A diverse range of private career colleges were visited to give ADM Naylor a look into the private career college sector.

Assistant Deputy Minister Nancy Naylor (front, left) speaks with staff at Canadian Business College during her tour of the Bloor Street West campus.

The tour featured stops at a variety of private career colleges including Canadian Business College, Pre-Apprenticeship Training Institute, Liaison College, Metalworks Institute, triOS College as well as The Canadian Academy of Dental Hygiene. ADM Naylor was shown just how varied the registered Private Career College industry is in Ontario.

At Canadian Business  College, students and staff were just getting started as ADM Naylor saw the college. The 22^nd floor campus in downtown Toronto offers a variety of programs and a testing centre. The main level dental hygiene facility gave ADM Naylor a firsthand look at the unique classroom for dental hygiene students.

During the course of the tour, ADM Naylor spoke with students and staff alike to gain some perspective on higher education and PCCs. Tom Bozic spoke about his former job being moved off shore. He decided to attend Pre-Apprenticeship Training Institute in order to get a jump start on his career, and already has a job interview with one of Canada’s largest telecommunications companies.

At Liaison college, a light lunch was followed up with a tour and a brief stop to speak with one of the students. Monica Osei-Bonsu felt going back to college was a challenge being around fellow students who are much younger, but after some encouragement from her faculty, she has stayed the course and helped serve up a delicious three-course meal to ADM Naylor.

The tour made its way to Metalworks Institute, a one-of-a-kind college where the students learn the tools of the music trade. The college is next to Metalworks Studios where big names in Canadian music, such as Drake, Rush and Anne Murray, have recorded albums.

triOS Mississauga Campus welcomed ADM Naylor with a tour the newly renovated facility and learned about the college’s unique features.

ADM Naylor was very interested in the facilities she visited along the tour, stopping often to snap photos to bring back to the Ministry offices.

Here’s a behind the scenes look at the tour!

ADM Naylor (left) speaks with students at Pre-Apprenticeship Training Institute about why they chose to continue their education at one of Ontario’s many registered Private Career Colleges

At The Canadian Academy of Dental Hygiene ADM Naylor spoke with staff about their new facility and the dental hygiene industry.

triOS CEO Frank Gerencser (centre) speaks with ADM Naylor about one of the many programs triOS offers.

Chef David Bakker (left) helps one of his students “plate” the lunch for ADM Naylor at Liaison College Lakeshore Campus.

ADM Naylor (left) poses with Metalworks Institute owner Gil Moore, OACC Board member Frank Gerencser and PCC sector consultant Carol Bruni inside one of the school’s many recording studios.

Running from April 22 to June 4, the Career College Challenge was OACC’s first ever contest for career college students and graduates. The contest encouraged entrants to get creative in explaining why career education was the best fit for them. Well, OACC was happy to receive 28 posters and 11 videos – and a diverse showing of different ideas. Check out a variety of entries below. View all contest entries at OACC’s website.

Winning Poster: Your Future, Your Choice by Sarah Alty of Herzing College

Winning Video – Olunama Presents OACC, by Oscar Luna Martinez, Graduate of RCC Institute of Technology

Learning is Ultimately a Personal Journey, By Kim Morrison of triOS College

To Do List, by Katherine Ker of Herzing College

I Can, by Steve Valentim of Herzing College

The Future Is In Your Hands, By Amethea Cyr of Everest College

Why a Career College by Laura Adlard of Robetech Institute

Be Ahead, by Anna Kazakevitch

Choose the Best, By Diane Brisson of CTS Canadian Career College

VIDEOS

Though it has been in the works for several months, the Ontario Association of Career Colleges is happy to share our latest newsletter with members. The 411: A Guide to Career Colleges in Ontario is designed specifically for high school students and guidance counsellors.

OACC sent out the first edition of the 411 today via email to almost 1,000 guidance counsellors across the province. The information-packed newsletter will be issued on a quarterly basis. It is intended to inform students and counsellors about the career college sector. The May 2010 edition contains facts about career colleges in Ontario and a guideline on how to choose a career college. Click here to read the 411.

So far, four groups have answered the call for video entries to explain why a career college was the best fit for them. There are four videos now entered in the Career College Challenge, OACC’s first-ever contest for career college students and graduates.

The above video was the first one to be entered. It was done by Nicole Vansconcelos, a student at Medix School. Other entries have been submitted by Guino Anderson of Trebas Institute and two classes at triOS College. Click here to view all the videos and VOTE on your favourite! The most-voted on entries will be the finalists. One video will win $500!!!

Learn more about the Career College Challenge by clicking here. The Challenge encourages students and graduates to submit a poster or a video expressing the benefits of career education. The contest runs until Friday, June 4 – so get your entries in by submitting them online (posters at this site and videos here.) One poster and one video will be chosen by an OACC committee to win $500. Happy creating!

Career colleges were featured in a special section in Sunday’s Toronto Sun. The supplement touched on the how career colleges prepare students to enter the work force sooner by allowing them to earn a diploma in an average of 12 months or less. The piece also highlighted the convenience factor – modular training allows career colleges to have start dates throughout the year. The reporter interviewed George Hood, OACC Vice President and President of Herzing College, and Don Thibert, OACC Past President and Director of Academic Affairs for Everest College. Wendy Callaghan, Regional Director of Career Services at triOS, also provided insight for the piece. The Sun also published an array of student profiles – from Herzing College, triOS College, Medix School and Everest College. Click here to read the “Your Future, Your Choice” section online.