College of Ontario

Pembroke Daily Observer
March 11, 2008
By Jamie Bramburger

The national census data released last week says a lot about the impact Algonquin College in the Ottawa Valley has had on our region for the past 40 years.

It speaks to the importance of having post-secondary education available locally when you read that local municipalities have a higher percentage of college graduates than the national average.

In Canada, 20.3 per cent of people aged 25 to 64 have a college diploma.

By comparison, 23.8 per cent of Pembroke's population, 24.7 per cent of Petawawa's residents and 27.8 per cent of the people who live in Laurentian Valley, have graduated from a college diploma program.

Perhaps more striking than all of the statistics is the median age of a Canadian worker which is now 41.1 years, up from 39.6 in 2001, when the last national census was completed.

It's not surprising that more people are staying in the workforce longer and that golden handshakes have become golden handcuffs as employers try to hang on to their best employees longer.

Employers can't hang on to them all.

While some will stay on for a while, many others will opt to leave when they reach retirement age, resulting in a gaping hole in the Canadian labour market, unless we train more people to fill the gap.

The projections for the number of skilled trades workers, nurses, social workers and employees in other key sectors who are approaching retirement age is astounding.

In fact, there is a higher percentage of people reaching retirement age than at any time in the country's history.

More than 15 per cent of Canada's labour force is 55 or older.

At a time when the nation is concerned about how it will address the skilled labour shortages being brought on by an aging workforce, there has never been a better time to invest in a college education.

With the workforce getting older, there will be lots of opportunities for those who have the skills to fill the positions that are becoming vacant.

The call to action for young people is to stay in school and get the post- secondary credential that will open the door to enhanced career possibilities.

A college education brings with it more opportunities for advancement, higher pay and ultimately greater career satisfaction.

Four decades after it opened its doors, Algonquin College in the Ottawa Valley has a lot more to offer than it did during its humble beginnings.

With 16 full-time programs, dozens of continuing education classes and a growing number of apprenticeship offerings, the campus provides the access point for many people who would not be able to afford post-secondary training in another community.

It's a great advantage to have a college to serve the Ottawa Valley. Now more than ever, having access to college graduates will be paramount to the long term success of Renfrew County.

Learn more about what the college has to offer at an open house on Saturday, March 15 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Jamie Bramburger is the manager of Community and Student Affairs at Algonquin College in the Ottawa Valley