EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
In what way does that make a difference?
Hon. Paul Quassa (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. That’s a very good question, of course.
When they are trying to get a diploma, that’s for a diploma degree. That’s why there is a difference.
Yes, it is geared towards diploma.
Perhaps if I say it in English, (interpretation ends) advanced standing, bachelor of social work.
(interpretation) It is a bit higher. It is advanced.
So, the current course for social services worker that you’ve offered over the years then is not a diploma program?
To date, since the program started, they are training to get a certificate.
In the 2013-14 year there were five students who received certificates and three earned diplomas.
This program has been continuing.
I see you had 480 graduates of the Nunavut Teacher Education Program in Nunavut.
I’m assuming this is since the course started.
Out of these 480 graduates, how many of them are currently teaching in the schools now?
I was trying to put on my glasses.
I couldn’t see clearly but I still can’t see clearly.
I cannot tell you today. We don’t have a figure at this time.
But I’m very pleased to announce that this year there were quite a few NTEP graduates here in Iqaluit.
We’re still increasing the number of graduates.
I could give you other numbers.
In the year 2014 there were 21 NTEP graduates in total.
The total since 2006 is 107 graduates from the NTEP program.
There are approximately that many teachers in Nunavut.
What kind of measures does the college have in place, if any, where somebody trains for four or five years for a degree program and they become a nurse or a teacher that they actually stay in Nunavut and work in Nunavut? Is there anything in place that addresses that?
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.  Chairman: Minister Quassa.
To date we do a review of where the graduates are working but I can also tell that there are 37 graduates of the nursing program to date.
Out of that, 26 graduates are working for the Nunavut Government as nurses.
Also for the teachers, as I will give you a figure in Nunavut. I can tell you that we do monitor where the graduates go to work. I can also tell you again that during the time when they were taking the nursing program they did a practicum here at the hospital in Iqaluit.
Ms. Angnakak: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, minister, for that information. It’s interesting to note that the Nunavut Arctic College is monitoring this kind of information.
Would the minister be able to tell us if they could share that information with us in the House at the next sitting?
Yes we will be able to do so.
I going to go on and talk about staffing with Nunavut Arctic College.
In your business plan indicates that there will be a total of 10.5 more positions. What specific positions have been added to the college?
We are expecting to get instructors for Nunavut Arctic College.
We expect to see more instructors. Those positions are for them.
How are you increasing Inuit in management in Nunavut Arctic College, the number of Inuit in management positions, teaching, or senior administrative? How are you addressing that?
That’s a very good question. In view of Article 23, to date, at Nunavut Arctic College there are seven senior positions and half of them are held by Inuit.
As I stated earlier, the instructors in Nunavut, the majority of them are Inuit. When we were in Whitehorse, Rex Willie was recognized. There are Inuit instructors.
I will leave it at that. I’m not sure if I responded to her question.
Yesterday the Nunavut Food Strategy and Action Plan was tabled in the House.
In reading it, it said that it is important for people to understand the impacts of food choices on their health, environment, and communities.
The concern was that younger generations are not really being taught this. For a change to occur, according to the strategy says foundational skills, such as language, literacy, and math must be strengthened.
Minister, can you tell us what role the Nunavut Arctic College will take when it comes to the Nunavut Food Strategy and Action Plan?
I also would like to thank the member for her question, because it’s a good question.
Nunavut Arctic College has been quite involved in regard to the planning stage.
The Nunavut Arctic College Board of Governors are in agreement with that in your communities.
They’ll be used in the communities for teaching. The communities will work on making improvements.
Nunavut Arctic College Board of Directors is leading this.
Thank you for that answer, minister. Just for clarification then, will the local arctic colleges in every community take the lead on that and provide that kind of training?
Perhaps the President of Nunavut Arctic College should make a supplementary response.
In the planning process leading up to the strategy, the college was involved on all of the meetings. You’ll notice as you go through the strategy they have certain goals over the next couple of years.
We took the plan Makimaniq to the Board of Governors.
The Board of Governors took it is a priority so that at the community level at the adult centres there are a number of things that we have been able to say that we will do within those adult centres within our adult basic education programs to contribute towards the plan.
That’s really good to hear. I like to see that real interaction in partnership of working especially at the community level.
Just to go on to something else a little bit, the community and distance learning division. You talked about the adult graduation program called PASS.
How many individuals are currently registered in this program?
To date total there are 26 individuals who are registered in PASS in seven communities; Iqaluit ten, Pangnirtung six, Cambridge Bay three, Gjoa Haven three, Rankin Inlet, two, Cape Dorset one, and Kimmirut one.
They are part of the pass program.
Ms. Angnakak: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. (interpretation) So all of those communities will have these courses.
This is the first year of the program. Those are the students that are taking part in the communities that I mentioned. This is right now we’re talking about.
When one graduates from that PASS, what kind of support does the college provide after if any for that person to continue on their journey of learning?
Our students, when they graduate, they would receive a grade 12 diploma from the Department of Education that says that they have completed grade 12 and then they can proceed on with their further education if they would like with their new grade 12 diplomas.
It’s up to the students whether they want to pursue further education or not.
Being an adult learner myself, I have been there.
Sometimes I think, when you take something such as this, getting a diploma, you might need some extra help, perhaps by getting some counselling or just in what one can do.
I’m just wondering: are there counselling services at every Arctic College in the communities?
We have counsellors in the college facilities only in the larger communities.
I guess I’m coming down to my last question, really.
Can the minister tell us if it is expected of adult educators in the community to also provide advice to students on what further training opportunities they can access?
Hon. Paul Quassa (interpretation): Thank you.
First of all, we have a toll-free 1-800 number where our students can call and ask questions.
We have community development officers in the communities who help with that. I hope I answered your question properly, Mr. Chairman.
Perhaps the minister can explain a little bit better the process.
If I’m graduating from PASS, I want to go on in my training, but I’m not too sure where I can get that training.
Can I go and talk with adult educator or do I have to call the 1-800 number and, if I call the 1-800 number, who am I going to talk to?
Who is there and is that manned 8:30 to 5:00?
Yes, they can call the 1-800 toll-free number that I mentioned or if you’re in one of the communities, then the community development officer can be approached or the CDOs from the Department of Education.
You can go to any one of those people or just call that 1-800 number.
I just would like clarification. Who is at the other end of the 1-800 number?
Is that a counsellor?
Hon. Paul Quassa (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. (interpretation ends) That would be a registrar. Is that how you say it?
Thank you for that answer, but now I wonder: is the registrar, registraa...
...are they trained guidance counsellors to provide advice for people phoning in from the community when they don’t know where they should be going with their educational journey?
Hon. Paul Quassa (interpretation): My apologies. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. To explain this further, I would like the President of Nunavut Arctic College, Mr. Shouldice, to respond to that question.
Mr. Shouldice: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. In the small communities when someone’s completed their grade 12 and wants to move on, they could talk to the adult educator.
It is part of their job to advise people on a variety of options that is available to them. We have staff that travel into the communities with related programs: often, just doing recruiting for different programs.
It gives them a good idea about that.
Each community has a career development officer, who is with the Department of Education.
There is a certificate that they take in career development. I’m assuming that they’ve completed that. That’s part of their job as well.
They’re employees of the Department of Education. Often they call the college regional campus through the registrar. He can refer them to a variety of people to talk with.
I think where they get the most help is just to go over to the school and talk with the teachers, as well. So there seems to be a process to do that.
We currently have a third-party contract to do a career development centre, which we operate out of Iqaluit and try to provide advice to other areas and regions as well.
The next name on the list. Mr. Mikkungwak.
As the minister may be aware, over the past several weeks I’ve done numerous members’ statements regarding some of my constituents who have completed the Nunavut Teacher Education Program and the nursing program, of which I am very proud of, that have been completed through Nunavut Arctic College.
My first question be in your business plan. On page NAC-7.
It’s in reference to the Inuit employment plan.
On your first sentence there Nunavut Arctic College shares the objective of Article 23 of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement to increase Inuit participation in government employment in the Nunavut Settlement Area to a representative level.
Seeing that, once they’ve graduated from these various programs that are offered by Nunavut Arctic College, whether it be by certificate or by diploma, when these beneficiaries are applying for government employment, once they have graduated, does the Nunavut Arctic College pass on to various government departments as to who has completed and what they’ve graduated in?
Hon. Paul Quassa (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I thank my colleague for asking that question.
Yes, that’s what we do.
The graduates become known by all sorts of people. People start to know what they graduated from.
We do try to promote them.
We say this person graduated from that program. People know them. The department gets phone calls asking us who has just graduated.
We give them that information to anyone who asks. We tell them this person has graduated this program.
We keep that open to all the departments so that everybody will know who graduated from what.
On that very same topic on the very same page, when they are receiving their certificate or diploma, when you guys provide that certificate or diploma, does it verify or do the actual graduates have to identify that they are beneficiaries of the land claims agreement?
They don’t have to explain all that to us but I can say, in the Nunavut Government, we work closely with five different departments for the benefit of the graduates.
I can also say that on March 31, 2014, the Nunavut Arctic College, looking at the number of Inuit employment percentage, we are at 51 percent Inuit employment rate.
And, thank you to the minister for telling us that good news that Arctic College is working with government departments to try to get these graduates working, I guess.
Let me go onto something else on the same business plan. On page NAC 11, the course for interpreters, I talked about this earlier.
I will use an example because I am confident that in Baker Lake, people have always been interested in this and I know, I missed Baker Lake, but I would like to ask, when people are interested in that course and according to the English language, in modules, can you introduce this course through modules in our community?
That’s a very good question so I will get the president, Mr. Shouldice, to respond to that question so he can elaborate on what we do at Nunavut Arctic College.
In… excuse me.
Under the funding for where we’re headed right now with language development comes out of the Language Protection Act and Uqausivut.
We’ve been funded and asked, actually by the previous government, if we would step up our plan a year so that we would offer the interpreter/translator program, for example, in all three regions, which we’ve moved.
We are now moving the staff and offer in the region, so there will be a local program within that region and yes, it can be delivered at the community level.
The modules are third party.
Usually a government department asks us to run the modules and I guess, depending on where the contractor, what that is, that’s most likely the location and content is dictated by that, as well, too.
On that very same topic, on that sentence, “This division includes Inuit language programs such as the Inuit studies and interpreter/translator diplomas.”
The way the sentence is structured, I guess my next question will be, is this open to all Nunavut people whether they are beneficiaries or non-beneficiaries?
The Nunavut government represents all of the people of Nunavut, whoever or whatever they might be.
That is very positive to hear. On that very same page again.
Oral history project. I know that’s being delivered in Igloolik. But at the same time, oral history in my opinion and in my view touches upon a lot of the elders.
Considering Baker Lake has quite a substantial number of elders within our community, is there a possibility of an expansion of this oral history project? Not only reflecting to one community.
I thank the member for his question which is a good question.
At the present time, there is some recorded material that we will be digitizing. We would like to write them to make stories.
This has been done in Igloolik, oral history research by the Igloolik Oral History Research. We want to work on them.
Presently the ones that were done in Igloolik, there have been 62 books that we have produced and we want to continue with it.
On the very same page, moving along, NAC 11, priorities 2013-14.
“Continue building Inuit language capacity by expanding thus increasing delivery of interpreter/translator program to all regions.” I’m aware there are three regions, Qikiqtaaluk, Kivalliq and Kitikmeot.
In the Kivalliq I’m interested what possible communities may be considered?
For clarity I would like to respond to that.
The interpreter translator program has three parts to it. Kivalliq, Kitikmeot and Qikiqtaaluk.
It’s in the regional communities right now but if there was somebody in Rankin Inlet who would like to take the interpreter/translator program they could take the training in Rankin Inlet.
What if there are a higher number of interested people within my community as opposed to the regional hub?
Is there a possibility of venturing the avenue of a module course to meet the higher number of need or higher number of people interested to offset the financial costs?
We could live with that. We could be open to that.
For instance, if there are more people who would like to take the training in your community, we’re open to that idea, even though I have said that at the present time, this is in the regional communities.
We can look at your question and if there are more people in your community who would like to take the interpreter/translator training program.
I’m sure that the money would be well spent if one teacher could go into the community.
One of the members asked this question earlier, but I will ask the question too.
With respect to social worker training, we have social workers in my community and we have a huge population.
Some people don’t want to go to school in Cambridge Bay for social worker training. There is a lot of online training nowadays.
Would you support the idea of having people take online training in the communities?
Hon. Paul Quassa (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I will have the President of Arctic College, Mr. Shouldice, respond to that question, Mr. Chairman, if that’s okay with you.
I keep trying to mute my microphone, thinking I’m turning it on.
The current status on the program is it was moved a number of years ago to Cambridge Bay and it has had a fair success there.
Some people have been hired into social services and justice on a regular basis. There needs to be an additional delivery within all regions for the social work program, we feel.
We have an FMB submission that we want to resubmit. We tried last year for a variety of programs.
Number one is we’re going to look for money to do exactly what you have suggested. Number two, online learning is the direction that the college is heading, I think, down the road.
We’ve had a number of five or six pilot projects now within the NTEP program and other programs, with the PASS program, working with Alberta Learning to do online learning.
We’re comfortable with online learning.
If people do online learning, most likely what we need to do is to talk about the transfer credits between the other institution and the college to make sure that whatever people are taking, it won’t be wasted, that we can actually give them credit towards their diploma.
Again, if we negotiate with our degree partner, then they can get advanced standing towards a degree. It’s heading in that direction and we would be supportive of it.
Seeing that Nunavut Arctic College will be moving in that direction in the near future, how will Nunavut Arctic College determine which community gets the equipment first?
I am happy to say that in all of the communities arctic colleges have courses online or have computers.
That’s very positive news for all Nunavut people to hear across the territory.
So, was the community that is interested in or getting online training, would they have to seek funding source to get this up and running?
Yes, everything costs money so we would have to look for funding for the communities to be able to take online training.
I recognize the graduates from the NTEP program from my community.
My question will be, the NTEP trainees, when they get their certificate or diploma, does it designate which grades the individual will be teaching? Does it state in the certificate that the individual who graduated from the NTEP program can teach any grades or does it have a designation like that?
I could respond to him and say, the one who gets a bachelor of education can teach anywhere in Canada, say, for instance, from kindergarten to grade 12. If you have a bachelor of education you can teach anywhere in Canada from kindergarten to grade 12.
I just got a few questions for the minister here.
I would like to take Ms. Angnakak’s thought up, the student council. In the priorities on page NAC 21, under 2013-14, it’s got implementing the comprehensive student counselling and recreation strategy.
In the status, it kind of made me think, look twice at it, does the college need to meet national standards and revise appropriate policies, procedures, and services relating to student life?
Is there any way that the college is not meeting national standards in that category?
And, I thank my colleague for that question. It is an excellent question.
Perhaps, if the president Mr. Shouldice could answer that, the answer would be much clearer, if it is okay with you, Mr. Chairman?
In terms of student services, that’s one of the sections of the college that we will grow as a priority. Historically, it’s involved things like recreation and counselling services.
At a national level Student Services has a very broad definition.
In our programs, we are attempting to meet number of instructors, number of periodicals in the library, a variety of academic services for students. In terms of the safety services, we think that we provide a good service.
Could we improve?
Yes, we could improve.
I think our Student Services Division is the one thing that’s most likely needs more resources: needs more people.
It will be a requirement if the college grows in the next decade into a university college status, student services would be one of the measures for getting that at a national level as well.
Are we providing counselling to students?
Are we providing housing? Are we providing safe shelters?
All of those things, I think, we’re doing. We need to have a consistent policy right across the territory. To do that, we’ve rewritten a job description for our Director of Student Services.
When that position is functioning, we’re hoping that we will then move into this next phase, where we actually have a consistent policy beyond what we have right now.
What we have right now would be within the residency to respond to an emergency, to a suicide, to a variety of scenarios, someone’s in trouble, someone’s not in trouble. We need to go beyond that and provide better services to the students. That’s certainly an area that we’re trying to improve in.
I would like to get back into the employment category.
I get into the Inuit employment in a moment. When I look at the vacancies across the total departmental positions, the number is decent.
It’s better than the government average. Again, I’m using the word assume and I hate to do that.
I’m going to assume that these positions are created to provide all the services and programming needs that the college provides to Nunavummiut.
As you are not at capacity, what practices are in place to make sure that those services and programs are still delivered at the high quality that we expect?
Perhaps if I can just say naturally this is one of our responsibilities at the college, because it is very important. It is unacceptable and we are unhappy that those positions are not filled and that we are not at capacity, especially when we are a college.
However, it has not slowed our operations, in terms of inputting students.
Perhaps if our president could make an addition to that.
If it’s alright with you, Mr. Chairman.
The interpreters are asking you to slow down a bit.
Hon. Paul Quassa (interpretation): Perhaps they were referring to me?
When I became president, one of the things that I kept asking for were PYs. The previous minister would say to me, “Yes, but it shows you have so many unfunded PYs, or you have so many vacancies.” It’s a definition that the government uses.
I went back and I said, “We’re spending those salary dollars. Where are all these people?” I went back through 46 positions personally that were listed.
What are we doing with them?
Either people were away, people were doing other things. A casual was filling them.
When I went through the list of 46, I actually came across a particular item. So when I went through the list of 46, I actually came up with three positions that I can honestly say to you were not filled, salary dollars not being used.
So the expression of unfilled positions and the percentage has to do, I think, more so within the government structure of how they define these jobs and how they define the availability of them. I can absolutely assure you that we don’t have those gaps in services or salaries. I have personally gone through this.
Thank you for that assurance.
How often do you find it necessary to use casuals, I’m thinking especially in a teaching role, not so much from the administrative side of things.
Hon. Paul Quassa (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. This is an important question.
We use more contractors as opposed to casuals in terms of instructors and teachers.