College gets boost of confidence from budget
Post-secondary education was arguably the biggest winner in the Alberta budget released Thursday.
Not only did colleges and universities get a two per cent budget increase in 2017/18, colleges, specifically, will also benefit from an additional $46 million in apprenticeship delivery funding, and $85 million in additional grants funding for Foundational Learning, with emphasis on English as a Second Language service delivery, basic skills training, academic upgrading and short-term occupational training.
Medicine Hat College will also receive an additional $4 million in 2018/19 for East campus development.
Post-secondary students also received a lot of benefit from the budget, with $252 million allotted for Student Aid and $630 million for student loans, an increase of $51 million over last year.
Medicine Hat College vice president of administration and finance Wayne Resch says the numbers show the government’s confidence in MHC to deliver quality education programs. He is looking forward to getting more details from Advanced Education on these budget promises in the coming weeks.
“We don’t know how it’s going to break down yet but it’s all good news,” says Resch. “They are increasing funding for both skills and trades, and those are really good for the college sector as a whole in Alberta ... We as an institution have, for the last couple of years, worked at being a partner with the ministry— not just a taker of resources. We hope they do see us as a partner, and that we are providing solutions toward creating greater economic viability in the region.”