With school almost back in session, B.C.'s Minster of Advanced Education Naomi Yamamoto made a well-timed visit to the Sunshine Coast this week to discuss educational opportunities.
Speaking at an Aug. 22 luncheon facilitated by the Powell River - Sunshine Coast Liberal Riding Asso-ciation at the Sunshine Coast Golf and Country Club, Yamamoto focused her discussion on post-secondary education.
She stressed the importance of youth being able to access courses and programs in both academics and trades and said how pivotal it is for youth to know the importance of advanced education.
"I think increasing their vocabulary at a young age to include university, college and trades training is very, very important, andI'm not sure that we do a good enough job of explaining to children that as they get older their investment in post secondary education will pay off big time," Yamamoto said.
Yamamoto also placed emphasis on developing post-secondary programs on the Coast that reflect Coast culture and showcase what we have to offer geographically. This, in turn, would attract international students while meeting local needs, she said.
Yamamoto said part of her visit was to make sure those local needs of the Coast are being met.
"And if they're not, I'd like to know where we're falling short. It's ultimately up to Capilano University to provide the programming for the community," she said in an interview after her luncheon address. "We [the provincial government] provide the lump sum funding and allow the institutions to be autonomous, but it's just good for us to be responsible with taxpayers' money to ensure the delivery of the services is appropriate."
After the luncheon, Yamamoto held meetings with Jean Bennett, dean of health and education at Capilano University, and with members of VOICE on the Coast, a local organization dedicated to attracting, retaining and engaging the younger generation.
Bennett said the meeting went well.
"What I think is great about what the Minister is doing is she is taking the time to visit campuses in smaller communities," Bennett said. "I think it's really important in terms of understanding what the needs and the challenges are in post-secondary programming."
Yamamoto also received a tour of the university and the facility's programs.
"We took her out to have a look at one of the trails that our mountain bike program has built. That really helped her understand what it is we contribute back in the community and the partnerships we have," Bennett said. "We also wanted the Minister to understand this is the kind of applied work that we do and the ways in which we're working to develop those destination programs that draw students here. We showed how we're serving both the local community while attempting to bring students here for particular types of programs they won't get elsewhere."
VOICE founding director Silas White also said their meeting was very positive.
"Minister Yamamoto was exposed to the broad enthusiasm and support for more post-secondary and training opportunities on the Sunshine Coast," White said. "Our first round of surveying shows that 94 per cent of respondents feel there needs to be more post-secondary and training options on the Coast.VOICE will be continuing to collect information, build community support and collaborate with groups like Capilano University, School District No. 46 and the Coast Community Builders Association to promote trades training and post-secondary expansion."
