Since Ritchot opened its expanded civic office one year ago, economic development officer Ryan Faucher has been brainstorming ideas for the building’s unused space—specifically, the area that once served as council chambers and the old building’s reception.

Thus was born the Training Hub—a collaboration between the municipality and Assiniboine College. Local residents will soon have access to postsecondary education, employment services, and skills training.

“We’re thrilled to be here and have access to the Hub,” says Michael Cameron, Assiniboine’s dean of community development. “Not only for [new learners] but also for lifelong learners who want to better their skills in something. We believe very strongly in community-based training. When you train people locally, they tend to want to stay local.”

Over the coming months, the college will undertake a training needs assessment in Ritchot in order to determine the current and emerging skill gaps, workforce trends, and training priorities. They will talk to residents, employers, and community organizations to help inform future programming.

For Faucher, one of the more obvious training gaps concerns early childhood education (ECE).

“We have six daycares in the RM,” says Faucher. “There is an immediate need for [childcare providers].”

There’s room at the Hub for a wide cross-section of programming to be offered in the years ahead. While the main classroom holds 20 students comfortably, most courses don’t run five days per week. An ECE course, for example, is offered two weekdays of every week, leaving plenty of time for other programs to run concurrently.

“There might be an introductory to something so that people can get their feet wet to decide if they want to go in further,” Faucher says. “Or [full course loads] if they’ve made a commitment to what they want to do in life.”

For Faucher, the idea of creating a local educational hub took flight when he overheard a group of residents discussing carpooling to another community for training.

Since municipal growth is a distinctive part of his portfolio, Faucher recognizes the importance of giving the municipality’s youth and younger adults one more reason to keep their roots firmly planted at home.

“I’m the classic example,” Faucher says. “I left home at 17 to go to university. I had to move to Winnipeg and I never went back. [We’re working on] a holistic view of building up our community and keeping our youth closer to home, to give them the options and amenities that they would have [somewhere else].”

Convenience as well as cost savings, he adds, speak loudly to adult learners, especially in this economy and with the hectic pace of life.

Assiniboine College seemed to be the right fit, according to Faucher, since they offer such a broad range of programs and pride themselves on flexibility in their teaching models.

The college’s recent interest in expanding to French teaching modes doesn’t hurt, either, when it comes to bilingual municipalities such as Ritchot.

“We’re actually going to be rolling out our very first French program early next year,” Cameron says. “It’s called Green Buildings and Retrofitting. Right now, we’re delivering that program to 1,600 people across Canada in English, but it’s being translated into French.”

The college has long been known for their interest in bringing education to the people. They have campuses in Brandon, Dauphin, and Winnipeg and operate satellite hubs in Morden, Virden, and now Ritchot.

They have a reputation for excellence in nurses training, health and human services, agriculture, trades, business, and environmental studies. As well, the college offers a high school program for those wishing to complete their Grade 12 accreditation as an adult.

Wherever possible, satellite hubs in rural communities have a live instructor on site. If the local contingent of students is too small to justify this, the college offers virtual teaching in order to involve students from other communities.

“Our first option is always to put somebody in the classroom with the students,” Cameron says. “We believe that having that personal connection with your instructor, face to face, just helps to enhance the learning.”

The Hub won’t be exclusive to Ritchot residents. Faucher says students from surrounding municipalities will be welcome to learn there as well.

In the coming months, a landing page will be added to the RM’s website with a list of upcoming courses. The site will also include a link to the Assiniboine College website where students can register.