Student care is tops

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Colleges and technical institutes across Canada are offering more services for Aboriginal students. Grant MacEwan Community College and NAIT in Edmonton are no exception.

Jane Woodward, chair of Native Communications and Co-ordinator of the Aboriginal Education Centre at Grant MacEwan Community College, said the education centre is intended for first time students to meet with a peer group.

"The provided meeting place is the most popular with Native students," said Woodward.

The centre allows student to feel more comfortable in their new surroundings.

The centre is managed by experienced staff who provide counseling, and assist students and graduates in finding employment and recommend daycare facilities for out of town students.

Programs at the college are specifically for Native students including the Native Women's Career Preparation Program, the Ben Calf Robe Adult Education Program and the Native Communications Program. These programs are "geared to Aboriginals," said Woodward, adding that the number of Aboriginal students coming to the college is on a steady upswing.

"Native students are everywhere," she said.

Next year marks the 25th anniversary of the Native Communications program at the college, "which is quite an honor," said Woodward, considering that few courses have that kind of staying power. Former graduates of the Native Communications program are asked to return to the college to share their stories. Woodward expects this group to include both Tantoo Cardinal and Jimmy Herman who have completed this course and "done wonderful things with their lives."

Another option for Aboriginal students seeking post secondary schooling is the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT). At the institute's Asokan Project, co-ordinator Tracy Friedel, said students can choose the Business Administration Accounting program or the Finance and Credit Industry program.

"Both courses are full-time and have a high success rate," she said, adding that 90 per cent of their students finish the program and not less than 80 per cent land work in a related field. "The employment rate is high as NAIT is widely recognized through Alberta."

Friedel has seen many students continue their education with a second course at NAIT or transfer to the other universities or colleges. Friedel strongly believes that courses should be transferable. "What is most important is to have people working," she said.

The business program at NAIT is into its sixth year of operations and the fourth year for the finance program. Interest in these programs is high, so class space is limited. Of the 250 phone inquiries for the current finance program, only 15 students are eventually accepted.