Unique Training Program Inspires Career Success – 3blmedia.com

June 18, 2015

It’s not often that an educational institution can boast about a 95%+ hiring success rate for students upon graduation, but Excel Career College in Courtenay, B.C. can do just that for its Aquaculture Technician Diploma Program. This unique program tackles both the challenges by integrating into First Nations culture and going into the remote territories, such as Ahousaht in the Clayoquot Sound, with customized curriculum for each community to effectively train students, preparing them for the realities of the job.

The unemployment rate for the working-age Aboriginal population is more than twice the rate for other Canadians of the same age, and it’s even higher for those living on reserves – especially remote First Nations communities such as Ahousaht in the Clayoquot Sound.

The Ahousaht Nation has 25 reserve sites within the nation’s territories, the largest being on Flores Island, all accessible only by floatplane or boat. With over 2000 members Ahousaht Nation is the largest of the Nuu-chah-nulth nations, and the largest single nation on the west coast of Vancouver Island. Approximately one third of Ahousaht live within Ahousaht traditional territories.

Cermaq Canada, B.C.’s second largest salmon farming company with 27 sea sites around Vancouver Island, has had a protocol agreement with Ahousaht for more than a decade. The agreement was renewed, and broadened, in 2010 with a goal of working together to develop a sustainable salmon aquaculture business, incorporating Ahousaht’s respect for and balance among all living things. One of the cornerstones of the partnership is to collectively develop aquaculture training programs for Ahousaht people that lead to long-term, well paying, year-round employment.

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