Contact North raising awareness about training opportunities

News Release
Contact North

Sudbury / Thunder Bay (Tuesday, May 23, 2006) – Under the banner Go ahead and get ahead, Contact North/Contact Nord, Northern Ontario’s Distance Education and Training Network, launched today a major awareness campaign aimed at helping Northern Ontario residents improve their chances of achieving economic success by upgrading their skills or furthering their education without having to leave their community.
Through its Access Centres in over 60 communities, Contact North/Contact Nord provides access to a range of full and part-time programs and courses offered by Northern Ontario universities and colleges using the latest technology. Residents of Northern Ontario not only have greater access to educational opportunities, they have more choice than ever before.
“As the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, the Honourable Chris Bentley, stressed in the Legislature last week, if Ontario is to remain globally competitive, our continuing prosperity depends on quality and accessible post-secondary education. Our goal is to ensure today’s students have access to a high-quality, relevant post-secondary education experience. This major awareness and recruitment campaign is part of helping Northern Ontario achieve that goal,” said Contact North/Contact Nord President & Chief Executive Officer, Maxim Jean-Louis.
Results of a survey commissioned by Contact North/Contact Nord show that more than 40% of Northern Ontario adults either would like to have formal training, or to further their education. However, for financial or personal reasons, many either cannot or will not leave their community. For thousands of Northern Ontario residents who choose to remain in their community, Contact North/Contact Nord offers the only access to post-secondary education.
Access to training and education is vitally important in Northern Ontario, a region characterized by outmigration, an aging population as well as a shortage of skilled labour in trades and growth sectors such as health. A key objective of the awareness campaign is to show residents that they have far more options than they think, in particular those residing in smaller or remote communities.
As Canada’s largest distance education and training network, Contact North/Contact Nord provides access to a broad range of full and part-time programs and courses offered by Northern Ontario’s colleges and universities. Here are some quick facts from 2005: 12,662 college, university and secondary school course registrations; 589 full and part-time programs and courses offered; access centres in 66 small and remote communities; 14 educational partners; more than 5,000 learners served in English and French.
By mid-June, the awareness campaign will have rolled out across Northern Ontario in waves of radio and newspaper ads. The spring campaign will be followed by a full-scale recruitment drive in August. In addition, Contact North/Contact Nord has overhauled its web site www.contactnorth.ca