Aboriginal Human Resource Council receives CICan’s Outstanding Partner Award

May 26, 2015

Aboriginal Human Resource Council receives CICan’s Outstanding Partner Award

Today, during its annual conference in Winnipeg, Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan) honoured the Aboriginal Human Resource Council (AHRC) as this year’s recipient of the “Outstanding Partner” award.

Since its inception in 1998, AHRC has engaged with CICan and its member institutions to promote Indigenous workplace inclusion. “In 2001 we were pleased to partner with CICan to deliver the first ever community engagement forum in Canada”, said Kelly J. Lendsay, President and CEO of AHRC. “We also involved CICan and its members in our national trades strategy, Workforce Connex and partnership forums that delivered insights into the needs of Indigenous learners, and made connections between learning institutions and Aboriginal Employment and Skills Training (ASET) holders, which resulted in employment for many Indigenous candidates.”

AHRC’s national annual Inclusion Works event and recruitment fairs, along with the Indigenous youth mentoring and leadership programs delivered through its charity, Kocihta, continue to advance Indigenous students across Canada, and connect them to skills and employment that helps empower them to reach their potential. The partnerships created by AHRC have had an immense impact on colleges and institutes and their Indigenous graduates. “The inclusion of Indigenous learners in post-secondary institutions and in the workplace is absolutely crucial, not only for the well-being of Canada’s Indigenous community, but for the economic well-being of businesses and the entire country”, says Denise Amyot, President and CEO of CICan. “This is why we have always been so pleased to work with AHRC, which is doing wonderful work to build bridges between Indigenous Peoples and employers.”

CICan will continue to work with AHRC and its charity, Kocihta, as it continues to work towards a greater inclusion of Indigenous learners in colleges and institutes across Canada. A great step in that direction was already taken earlier this year with the launch of the CICan Indigenous Education Protocol for Colleges and Institutes, which has since been signed by 30 different colleges and institutes across the country. Colleges and Institutes Canada is the national and international voice of Canada’s publicly supported colleges, institutes and polytechnics. We work with industry and social sectors to train 1.5 million learners of all ages and backgrounds at campuses serving over 3,000 urban, rural and remote communities in Canada. The Association operates in 29 countries via 12 offices around the world.

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For more information:

Julien Abord-Babin



Senior Strategic Communications Officer
Colleges and Institutes Canada
613-746-2222 ext 3131
jabord-babin@collegesinstitutes.ca
Twitter : @CollegeCan