Higher education in the Northwest Territories

Higher education in the Northwest Territories traces the development and expansion of higher education (also described as post-secondary or tertiary level education) in Canada's Northwest Territories. In Canada, education is a provincial or territorial concern and there is no national regulation nor accrediting body.

The only post-secondary institution in the NWT is Aurora College. The former Arctic College was split into Aurora College and Nunavut Arctic College when Nunavut Territory was created in 1999. Aurora College has campuses in Inuvik, Fort Smith and Yellowknife [cite web
last =
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authorlink =
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title = Aurora College, Yellowknife Campus, Yellowknife - Yellowknife, Northwest Territories - Undergraduate Information
work = College View
publisher = Hobson's
date =
url = http://www.collegeview.com/school/school_hub.jsp?scid=5002152
format =
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accessdate =2008-06-19 ] . It has learning centres in many other communities in the NWT.

There has been an evolution of the land area which comprises the NorthWest Territories since it was first created in 1870. This article has some chronology of the higher education of the Northwest Territories before the separation of Nunavut in 1999. [cite web
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title =The Northwest Territories - Canadian Confederation
work = Library and Archives - Canada Collections Canada
date = 2005-05-02
url = http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/confederation/023001-2245-e.html
format =
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accessdate = 2008-06-19

History

Up to 1945, the Anglican and Roman Catholic church organizations and missions were mainly responsible for education in the Northwest Territories, with schools and nearby student residences typically being set up in higher populated towns. Starting in 1959, the federal government of Canada began programs that would see it taking more interest and involvement in the Territories’ system of education. During the 1960s the government built schools in the communities where indigenous peoples had recently settled and recruited teachers to staff these new schools. [ [http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761561711_6/northwest_territories.html Northwest Territories: V. Education and Cultural Life (n.d.). Retrieved on July 05, 2008] ] By 1969, power over education was officially transferred over to the government of the Northwest Territories under its Department of Education. [ [http://www.rnantnu.ca/Portals/0/Documents/News/history_nursing.pdf Moffitt, P. (n.d.). "A History of Nursing Education in the Northwest Territories The Northern Nursing Program at Aurora College"Retrieved on July 06, 2008] ]

In 1971, the Adult Vocational Training Centre (AVTC) established at Fort Smith [http://www.auroracollege.nt.ca/about/history.aspx Aurora College (n.d.). "About Aurora College and our History". Retrieved on June 19, 2008] which, by 1977, was made responsible for all vocational training in the Northwest Territories. [Hilyer, G. M. (1997). Higher education in the Northwest Territories. In G. Jones (Ed.), "Higher education in Canada: Different systems, different perspectives". New York, NY: Garland Publishing, p. 310.] AVTC was officially declared a college by the Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly in 1981 and was renamed Thebacha College. [Hilyer, G. M. (1997). Higher education in the Northwest Territories. In G. Jones (Ed.), "Higher education in Canada: Different systems, different perspectives". New York, NY: Garland Publishing, pp. 310-311.] To institute a model of education that better served the community at large and not just those requiring technical skills, Arctic College was established in 1984 in both Fort Smith and Iqaluit and grew rapidly to consist of campuses across all regions of the NWT. In 1984 the Great Slave Helicopters Flight Training Centre opened by Rodney Wood and Gabe Devenyi, which represented one of the few Yellowknife Career Colleges and Trade Schools. [cite web
last =
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authorlink =
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title = Profile of Career College/Trade School
work =
publisher = canadian-universities.net
date = 2003-2008
url = http://www.canadian-universities.net/Career-Colleges/Great_Slave_Helicopters_Flight_Training_Centre.html
format =
doi =
accessdate = 2008-06-19] By 1987, it was agreed that community learning centres across the North would join the college system, a process which was completed in 1990. [http://www.auroracollege.nt.ca/about/history.aspx Aurora College (n.d.). "About Aurora College and our History". Retrieved on June 19, 2008]

In 1995, Arctic College was divided into Aurora College in the Western Arctic, and Nunavut Arctic College in the Eastern Arctic in order to strengthen adult and post-secondary education across the North and focus on meeting community needs. [Hilyer, G. M. (1997). Higher education in the Northwest Territories. In G. Jones (Ed.), "Higher education in Canada: Different systems, different perspectives". New York, NY: Garland Publishing, p. 310.] [http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1SEC891732 Northwest Territories: Education(n.d.). "The Canadian Encyclopedia" Retrieved on July 05, 2008] In that same year, The Science Institute of the Northwest Territories, which was established in 1984, was split and merged by the NWT Legislative Assembly into both institutions. [http://www.auroracollege.nt.ca/about/history.aspx Aurora College (n.d.). "About Aurora College and our History". Retrieved on June 19, 2008] In 1999, The Nunavut Act reorganizes the Northwest Territories into two jurisdictions: The Northwest Territories and Nunavut.Cite web| url= http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/showdoc/cs/N-28.6//20070517/en?command=searchadvanced&caller=AD&search_type=bool&shorttitle=Nunavut%20Act'&day=17&month=5&year=2007&search_domain=cs&showall=L&statuteyear=all&lengthannual=50&length=50 |title= Nunavut Act| author= Justice Canada |authorlink =Department of Justice (Canada) | year= 1993| accessdate= 2007-04-26]

In 2001 and 2002, Aurora College implemented four literacy projects with funding from Human Resources and Social Development Canada to support increasing literacy across the territory: Northwest Territories International Adult Literacy and Skills Survey (IALSS) 2002, Family and Community Literacy Development Project, NWT Literacy Council (NWTLC) projects, and WOW!: Wonder of Words Newspaper for At-Risk Youth. [cite web
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title =National Literacy Secretariat - Project Funding 2001-2002 Northwest Territories
work = Human Resources and Social Development Canada
publisher = Government of Canada
date = 2004-11-16
url = http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/hip/lld/nls/Funding/2001-02nt.shtml
format =
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accessdate = 2008-06-19] In 2006, 20% or 8292.8 persons [cite web
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title = Educational Portrait of Canada, 2006 Census: Provincial and territorial highlights
work = Statistics Canada, Census of Population and Housing
publisher = Government of Canada
date =2008-03-13
url = http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/analysis/education/northwest.cfm
format =
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accessdate = 2008-06-19] had a post secondary education out of the 41,464 residents of the Northwest Territories. [cite web
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title =2006 Census Profile for Northwest Territories
work = Statistics Canada, Census of Population and Housing
publisher = BC Stats
date =2006
url = http://www.bcstats.gov.bc.ca/data/cen06/profiles/detail_b/61000000.pdf
format =
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accessdate = 2008-06-19]

tructure

The territorial Department of Education, Culture and Employment is the government agency responsible for post-secondary education in the Northwest territories. There is one public post-secondary institution, Aurora College, and two career colleges located in the NWT. The Academy of Learning is located in Yellowknife and provides business information technology courses. [cite web
last =
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title=About Us
work =Academy of Learning in Yellowknife
publisher = canadian-universities.net
date = 2003-2008
url = http://www.academynorth.ca/About_Us/index.htm
format =
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accessdate = 2008-06-19] In addition, Great Slave Helicopters Flight Training Centre applies Global Positioning Systems training for helicopter pilot education. [cite web
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title =Yellowknife Career Colleges and Trade Schools
work =
publisher = canadian-universities.net
date = 2003-2008
url = http://www.canadian-universities.net/Career-Colleges/Northwest_Territories-Yellowknife.html#Academy%20of%20Learning%20-%20Yellowknife
format =
doi =
accessdate = 2008-06-19

ee also

* Higher education in Canada

References

External links

* [http://www.cicic.ca/en/page.aspx?sortcode=2.20.24.27.34.35 Postsecondary Education in the Northwest Territories at the Canadian information Centre for International Credentials]