UNews - Economic Development Lethbridge

Community organizations collaborate to assist local employers in accessing federal funds, hiring

trevor.kenney — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 16:55:53 +0000

Southern Alberta employers are invited to join ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Co-operative Education (Co-op) programs, the Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Lethbridge, for a brief presentation on how U of L co-op students can meet their hiring needs, all with the assistance of federal wage subsidies.

Find & Fund Your Workforce is a brief workshop for local employers that will outline how U of L co-op students can satisfy hiring and/or project needs. It will take place on Friday, January 24 at 8 a.m. at Tecconnect. Individuals can register to attend in person or via webinar at findandfundlethbridge.eventbrite.com.

“We will share valuable information on how employers can access up to $7,000 per student in co-op wage subsidies through the Student Work Placement Program (SWPP),” says Jasminn Berteotti, the U of L’s director, Co-operative Education. “SWPP is a federally-funded program that represents all industry types to create new co-op opportunities for post-secondary students.”

In the federal government’s Budget 2019, $631.2 million was allocated over a five-year span to provide wage subsidies for Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) opportunities with a goal of creating 84,000 new opportunities per year.

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ to officially open new Science and Academic Building with community celebration

trevor.kenney — Wed, 15 May 2019 15:55:44 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, in partnership with Economic Development Lethbridge and Beakerhead Creative Society, are planning a community celebration to mark the official opening of its new Science and Academic Building – and everyone’s invited.

The two-day event will take place Sept. 13-14, 2019 and feature a host of interactive programs designed to showcase the spectacular 38,500 sq. metre building, celebrate ingenuity, science education, research and discovery.

“This building was designed to showcase the incredible research activities being done here on the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge campus and to inspire future generations of scientists,” says ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Mike Mahon. “From the very beginning, this building was envisioned as a science centre for southern Alberta and we are excited about celebrating the official opening with all of southern Alberta.”

As ambassadors for our city, Economic Development Lethbridge has been a strong advocate for the Science and Academic Building from the outset, recognizing the economic impact of its construction and how it will be a driver of innovation and entrepreneurship for years to come.

“The underlying theme of the Brighter Together brand for Lethbridge is that innovation and leadership will take our community forward into the future,” says EDL CEO Trevor Lewington. “We are pleased to partner with the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ to bring Beakerhead to the city as we showcase the new Science and Academic Building while actively engaging the community in what leadership in innovation really looks like.”

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and EDL have partnered to sponsor the Beakerhead activities that will enhance the many U of L faculty presentations designed to engage and excite visitors during the grand opening celebrations. An Alberta-based charity, Beakerhead’s mandate is to advance education at the crossroads of art, science and engineering, believing that when you throw open the doors to science and engineering through a welcoming world of art and entertainment, ingenuity happens.

“We are excited to bring a small taste of Beakerhead to celebrate the grand opening with the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge,” says Jeff Popiel, Beakerhead CEO. “Creating a hub like this for science education, outreach and collaboration inevitably sparks ideas, inventions and discoveries that will redefine the future.”

The official opening of the Science and Academic Building culminates a near nine-year process of advocacy, planning and eventually construction.

“We had our first meetings with then Premier Ed Stelmach on the day we opened Markin Hall in Fall 2010,” says Mahon. “We have long been committed to creating a science centre that served the needs of our outstanding faculty and student researchers and ignited a passion for science discovery throughout the region. I couldn’t be more excited that we are nearing the day of officially opening that long-held dream.”

Open Mike - February 2013, Strengthening our community bonds

trevor.kenney — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 18:49:12 +0000

It was with great pleasure that the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ hosted the respective boards of the Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Lethbridge to campus recently.

The tour was part of a busy morning for both boards as they first ventured to Lethbridge College to view their trade facilities and gain an appreciation for the planned Trades & Technology Renewal and Innovation Project. They then came to the U of L to see the science facilities on campus and learn about the Destination Project, the proposed science complex that would at long last bring state-of-the-art technologies to our science students and researchers and revitalize ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Hall.

President Mike Mahon was pleased to welcome community business leaders to campus this past month.

We had a wonderful dialogue with both boards and it was readily apparent that they understood the need each of our institutions had for these projects, and even more importantly, how these projects would not only invigorate Lethbridge College and the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge but the city of Lethbridge and southern Alberta as a whole.

While the Destination Project meets a number of needs on our campus, from spurring research activities to recruiting students and faculty and transforming ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Hall, the boards were quick to realize the value that the project would also have to Lethbridge.

From simply bringing more students to the city, to creating employees for new and emergent technologies, to creating incubator space for fledgling companies, the Destination Project is not just a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge project, but rather a community project that will see economic and cultural benefit on a number of levels.

That is why it was so important to bring the city's business leaders on campus so that they could gain an understanding of the magnitude of these projects and thereby champion their worth to the provincial government and potential donors.

I am especially thankful to former mayor Bob Tarleck for addressing the boards and remarking on the key role the Chamber of Commerce once played years ago, when it pushed the province for the establishment of a university in Lethbridge.

These are community projects and it is important that we continue to engage our community so that they see the benefit of a strong post-secondary presence in the city, and that we can count on their support to communicate that to the external world.

Along those lines, our 2nd Annual Play Day celebration, to be held on Monday, Feb. 18 (Family Day), is another way to engage the local community and show off everything we have to offer here on campus.

By opening our doors and allowing families to come in for a day of play, it on one basic level contributes to the health, wellness and quality of life in our community. But on another level, it is an opportunity for the community to learn more about the U of L, for children to be introduced to our campus and experience it in a fun way so that as they grow up, it becomes a part of their lives through further activities such as science camps, Pronghorn games, theatre events and so on.

Our success going forward will only be enhanced through community support and understanding of how integral the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge is to the economic and cultural vibrancy of our city.

I encourage everyone to come out to Play Day, help out as a volunteer or simply get the word out to the community that we want the city of Lethbridge to come to our campus to see what we are all about.

This story first appeared in the February 2013 edition of the Legend. For a look at the full issue in a flipbook format, follow this link.

UNews - Economic Development Lethbridge

Community organizations collaborate to assist local employers in accessing federal funds, hiring

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��Ѹ�����Դ���߿�Ƭ to officially open new Science and Academic Building with community celebration

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