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MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
EMBRACING CHANGE
It is an honour to represent GPRC as its 9th President. In my first year serving as President, the College has undergone immense change. The creation of GPRC’s first ever Presidential Transition Committee has provided support in helping create partnerships and connections that allow connection to my new community. I thank the Board, the Transition Committee members, and the community for their support as we continue to strive towards GPRC becoming the northern centre of postsecondary excellence.
The future of GPRC is that of a modern and innovative institution that contributes to the economic growth and success of the region while delivering academic excellence and exceptional student-centred services. In moving forward, the college will focus on five key priorities: modernization and efficiency, academic excellence and degree granting, economic and community development, inclusion and student services, and innovation and partnership.
In modernizing the college to meet the demands of a 21st-century student, GPRC has signed an agreement with Athabasca University to expand our online platform through an important inter-institutional collaboration. In furthering our commitment to accessibility and innovation, the college has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Golden Hills School Division to create collaborative online and virtual trades training and connectivity for K-12 and GPRC students. GPRC has also created innovative tools to increase the quality of programming and academic excellence by designing a new Centre for Teaching and Learning focused on pedagogical excellence for our faculty, and creating the new Learning Commons model for our libraries.
As we were finishing the winter term, we were faced with a global pandemic and the realities of COVID-19. The College acted swiftly to ensure the safety of our students, faculty, staff and community by creating and implementing a COVID management and mitigation plan. We also utilized our services to help support the community in this challenging time by launching the GPRC Cares Initiative. As a college, we took leadership provincially through the Alberta Colleges Economic Recovery Taskforce to leverage the expertise our province’s colleges bring to assist with Alberta’s economic recovery. In meeting this new reality, GPRC had to create a balanced budget by mitigating the largest budget reduction in the college’s history while strategically re-investing for the college’s future growth.
GPRC is embracing our new reality by placing our students, staff and community at the forefront of our work, and planning for a college of the future. We are grateful for the community’s ongoing support, and while further challenges lay ahead, we will remain relentless in our pursuit of excellence.
