Horticulture Industries Day

Posted on Friday, October 2nd, 2020

The prepared remarks of President Claude Brulé.

January 10, 2020

Thank you everyone for attending our Horticultural Industries Day.

What a fantastic event for our co-op group! Today was a great example of a college education in action – students and industry networking and discussing future business and employment opportunities. We love it.

You know, a co-operative education is a major component of Algonquin College’s experiential learning strategy, and a major reason why our students and employers continue to seek out these co-op experiences.

Co-op is a key pillar in our strategic plan’s goal to lead the college system in co-op and experiential learning by growing co-op and further engaging our students while ensuring they are satisfied with their co-op experience.

 

To date, we have met the 50% mark of our strategic plan to increase the number of students registered in co-op to 11,000 by 2022.

To our students, I hope you found today to be a helpful exercise to practice your professional skills and network with potential co-op employers. Good luck in your upcoming job application and interview process for your Summer 2020 co-op work term.

We are incredibly proud of our co-op students each semester as we see them grow professionally and make the transition from college to career. You are the reason why employers look to us for their next hires.

And of course, to our Employers…

Thank you for being here today, and for your continued support of the Horticultural Industries Program. I am always impressed by the dedication employers from this industry have shown to our students, this program, and our college.

Not long ago, we worked closely together to reimage this program to reflect the current and future needs of the industry. We heard loud and clear that this is an important program in Eastern Ontario to develop future employees, and that we should build in more opportunities for students to engage with employers.

As a result, it was recommended that we add co-op to the program. We have now been offering co-op in the Horticultural Industries program for about 5 years, and industry engagement could not be stronger.

We have heard from our employers that they look forward to this annual event as it provides the opportunity to meet and reconnect with each other prior to the upcoming growing season, further strengthening their community of practice.

 

Thank you again for your continued partnership and support of Algonquin College and our talented students and graduates.

Merci, Miigwetch.


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