Holland College and the University of Prince Edward Island have entered into a unique partnership that is based on cutting edge technology and entrepreneurship.
The Honourable Pat Binns, Premier of Prince Edward Island; George Proud, Member of Parliament for Hillsborough, on behalf of the Honourable Fred Mifflin, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Secretary of State for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA); Dr. Elizabeth Epperly, President of the University of Prince Edward Island; and Keith Dewar, Vice President of Holland College, came together today to announce that the Information Technology in Education Centre (ITEC) is open for business.
ITEC is a dually located, state-of-the-art information technology resource facility that will offer unique services to Prince Edward Island's learning community. These services will be available through Holland College and UPEI. ITEC will be an economic development catalyst, acting as a resource for entrepreneurs, new partnerships, and joint ventures.
"The educational potential of ITEC is a very important component of this project," said Premier Binns. "This centre will provide support for the education system on PEI, from the entry-level to grade 12, through post-secondary education and on to life long learning. It offers opportunities that, without this partnership, would be much harder to find and much more difficult to offer."
Through the centre, educational products and services can be developed, delivered, and exported internationally. The centre will also encourage new partnerships and will work to increase the comfort of students, teachers, small businesses, and community groups with regard to information technology. This will be done through training, counselling, sharing of information, and partnerships with PEI's information technology sector.
"This centre will move Prince Edward Island one step further in its efforts to become a force in the Knowledge Economy," said Mr. Proud. "Through partnerships such as the one entered into by UPEI and Holland College, the Island can further its plans to build a strong knowledge-based economy. In doing this, it is essential that we have people with strong information technology skills and a spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation."
"Holland College has developed a variety of full and part-time training opportunities to help prepare Islanders for the emerging knowledge economy," said Mr. Dewar. "Over the past two years, the College has more than doubled its number of students in technology-related programs. This centre adds another link to the comprehensive web of information and communication technologies available in Prince Edward Island."
The centre will work toward a goal of promoting indirect long-term job creation. With the Broadband network, the Education Communication Technology project, and now ITEC, PEI has an impressive information technology infrastructure. This infrastructure gives PEI a distinct advantage when prospecting for new information technology based businesses.
"Technology is allowing us to enhance learning and teaching experiences," said Dr. Epperly. "The infrastructure we now have in place will allow us to reach beyond limitations placed by time and location as we continue to provide a top quality university education, and create new learning partnerships and research and development opportunities."
ITEC is receiving funding assistance from the federal and provincial governments under the Canada/Prince Edward Island Regional Economic Development Agreement (REDA). Through this agreement, the ACOA provided an $889,350 non-repayable contribution, and the provincial department of Economic Development and Tourism contributed $381,150.