Education
April 30, 2010

The Honourable Darin King, Minister of Education, together with the Honourable Ross Wiseman, MHA for the District of Trinity North, officially opened the new apprenticeship and certification office in Clarenville today.

"While we currently have three regional apprenticeship offices, we felt it was important to have a bigger presence in the rural eastern part of the province and foster job creation for this region," said Minister King. "We're putting a great deal of resources into improving our apprenticeship system and this is the latest in a series of initiatives to promote skills training in the province."

The new office is staffed by five individuals who work with the Institutional and Industrial Education Division with the Department of Education, and are focused on the development and maintenance of curriculum and other supports. These supports include study guides; accreditation; exam development and maintenance; prior learning assessment and recognition; and essential skills. These supports ensure that up-to-date occupational standards on both provincial and national levels are being met. There will also be limited client services available for apprentices and those seeking trade qualifications.

The office will also house a newly created client service representative position for the Student Financial Services Division to offer improved student aid services. Minister King said that the Provincial Government has also hired a new client service representative for Corner Brook. These individuals provide outreach services to high schools, post-secondary institutions and students in the area, as well as e-mail and telephone support on a province-wide basis. The potential for expanding this service to other regions of the province is currently being investigated.

"This is another example of the Williams Government expanding services to rural Newfoundland and Labrador in order to be accessible to as many of our residents as possible," said Minister Wiseman. "I am especially delighted this office will be located in this area, providing additional employment as well as the added service and convenience."

The Provincial Government has made substantial investments in recent years to support apprenticeship through areas such as science and technology, programming, training and infrastructure. This includes approximately $5.2 million for the Apprenticeship Hiring Program to support Provincial Government departments and agencies to hire apprentices.

The Provincial Government also has implemented several initiatives designed to improve the apprenticeship system in the province, including the following:

"As a government, we are great supporters of our post-secondary education system," said Minister King. "We certainly recognize it as one of the cornerstones to the economic development and growth of our province. And with major projects coming on stream, such as Long Harbour, the Hebron development and Lower Churchill, we want to make sure we have the labour force to meet the demands of industry."

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2010 04 30                                                       12:25 p.m.