News Archives: GPRC Fall Term Enrollment Strong
Friday, September 4th, 2015
Post-secondary students across northwestern Alberta and beyond continue to make GPRC their choice in learning to achieve their education goals. A total of 4,269 students were welcomed to the fall term this week at the College’s campuses in Grande Prairie and Fairview.
“GPRC offers a wide range of post-secondary education opportunities at our campuses in Grande Prairie and Fairview as well as our Learning Centres in Grande Cache, Jasper, Hinton and Edson to meet the community’s needs for skilled and educated staff,” says Don Gnatiuk, GPRC President and CEO.
Enrollment in the fall term remained strong even with the recent adjustments in programming to ensure the College remains financially strong. Of the 4,269 students who arrived on campus this week there are 1,152 students enrolled in non-credit courses, 1,989 enrolled in credit courses, 974 students in trades programs and 154 in collaborative programs with other post-secondary institutions.
This puts GPRC on track to help more than 9,000 students achieve their post-secondary goals throughout the academic year as many programs offer various times for students to start or continue their education.
“The demand for GPRC programs shows the close connection the College has with industry and employers in the region. These close relationships will continue to guide us as we continue to build and grow our programming for students,” says Gnatiuk.
Tiffany Larter, 17, moved into the dorms at the Grande Prairie campus on Sunday. The resident of Fort Simpson, Northwest Territories, 11 hours north of Grande Prairie, is starting her Bachelor of Science degree at GPRC. Her dream is a career in environmental conservation where she’ll make a difference by helping rebuild natural habitats.
“I chose GPRC because it’s a smaller campus, I’ll get more one-on-one time with instructors here, it’s a good step into my university education,” says Larter.
This summer GPRC reinvested in college facilities for students with classroom upgrades, a new power engineering lab and residence upgrades in Fairview, continued restoration of the concourse at the Grande Prairie campus and renovations to food services in Fairview and Grande Prairie. The food services improvements also now give students their choice of Starbucks or Tim Hortons coffee with longer hours of operation. This work totaled an investment of approximately $1.9 million in facilities for students.
“GPRC students will see and benefit from the investments we’ve made in their education when they arrive on campus. New and returning students are trusting GPRC with their education and we will exceed their expectations as we continue to find new opportunities to continue to build and grow and meet the needs of our students,” says Gnatiuk.
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For more information, please contact,
Don Gnatiuk
GPRC President and CEO
Phone: 780-539-2024