This past weekend held two significant milestones for Keyano College as it marked both the 50th anniversary of the college and held the long-awaited graduation ceremony for the class of 2016, the members of which were displaced by the wildfire.
Marlin Schmidt, the provincial minister of Advanced Education, was in town to mark the celebrations and passed on his congratulations to the graduates and the community for rallying together to overcome adversity.
“Today’s ceremony is a tribute not only to the graduates and college, but to a community that has rallied together to overcome adversity,” he said. “Albertans possess an incredible spirit that motivates them to persevere in the face of adversity. That spirit of strength, resilience and generosity is evident here in Fort McMurray and will be essential to recovering and rebuilding.”
What is known today as Keyano College originally opened in 1965 as the Alberta Vocational Centre with the official opening ceremonies held on January 26, 1966. The college opened under the name “Keyano” in 1975. The College said Keyano is a Cree word that roughly translated means “sharing”.
In 1978 Keyano College went public and became a community college, when the province appointed a Board of Governors to serve as the decision-making body for the institution.
Since then, Keyano College has grown to become a modern series of buildings on many campuses and offers a combination of technical training, diploma, degree, and higher education programming.
“We know that good jobs begin with a good education,” said Schmidt. “For 50 years, Keyano College has been preparing Albertans for success with the necessary skills and expertise that will continue to be in demand as our province grows and diversifies.”
The college has undergone an organizational change over the past year, officially appointing Dr. Tracy Edwards as President and CEO after she served in the role in an interim capacity since February. She was brought in to make the necessary changes that would allow the college to continue to deliver its mandate for education in the community amid the pressures of the economic downturn.
