(File photo/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Angela Brown

Future growth

City shows support for North West College’s new campus plans

May 31, 2022 | 5:28 PM

The City of North Battleford agreed to show its support to North West College for the school’s future plans to construct a new campus in the Battlefords.

The college is currently involved in preliminary plans for the new campus and asked for the city to sign a letter of endorsement for the project.

“The college has been looking at a new campus for a number of years, and is now putting quite a bit of effort into trying to bring a proposal to the province for the 2023 budget,” Mayor David Gillan said. “So they are asking the key partners in the region – the municipalities and First Nation organizations to provide a support letter.”

Council reviewed a draft of the letter the college hopes the city and other regional partners will sign.

“As a partner of North West College, we directly experience the positive impacts that the college has on our community and recognize the urgent need for a modern learning environment,” the proposed letter stated. “With an enrolment of 61 per cent First Nations students, North West College is a major driver of social and economic prosperity in the northwest region of the province.”

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The letter also said that the new campus “is not just about a larger building in which more students can learn. There are also significant benefits to the community as a whole. These include the opportunities to provide housing, childcare services, access to health-care services and other economic development.”

North Battleford city council authorized the city to sign the letter and show its support for the project.

North West College has not decided yet whether it will be looking at a new campus or a replacement campus in the Battlefords area.

“At this stage, it’s very preliminary discussions,” president and chief executive officer Eli Ahlquist told battlefordsNOW. “However, we are having a lot of success at the college in terms of growth amongst domestic and international students, as well as a diversity of programming.”

He noted as a result of this growth the college requires additional space to be able to fully serve the surrounding area.

“That’s why we are pursuing discussions around the potential for a new campus that would be able to support that growth, as well as support the regional need for education,” Ahlquist said.

The actual site has not been decided yet but the new campus will be located somewhere in the Battlefords.

While there were some delays due to the pandemic previously, the college is back to focusing on the project again.

“We’re looking to invigorate this conversation and to push this forward,” Ahlquist said.

The college is currently in the process of formally making the request for the new campus, which needs to go through the proper steps for provincial approval.

Ahlquist said the college appreciates the city and all the community partners’ backing.

“Obviously, this is a regional need, so we’re looking to garner that support from the community,” he said, adding that “everybody really wins through education.”

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angela.brown@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @battlefordsNOW