Skip to content

Aboriginal students learn mining essentials

Eleven First Nations students from the Sudbury area recently graduated from the Mining Essentials program offered through Collège Boréal.
060911_MS_College_Boreal660
Collège Boréal recently offered a course to 11 First Nations students which familiarized them with the mining industry. File photo.

Eleven First Nations students from the Sudbury area recently graduated from the Mining Essentials program offered through Collège Boréal.

The nine-week long program was created through a partnership between the Mining Industry Human Resource Council (MiHR) and the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) and in collaboration with the mining and education sectors as well as aboriginal organizations.

The students benefitted from in-class learning, workshops, and visits to mining sites as well as presentations from mining experts. They also had the opportunity to work with heavy equipment.

They will receive their diploma, as well as 10 training certificates in fields such as fall prevention, heavy equipment handling, and health and safety.

Six hours per week, Métis Nation elder Richard Meilleur worked with the students and hosted various cultural workshops on smudging ceremonies, the creation of dream catchers and moccasin making.

This is the first time the program has been offered in French, thanks to support from the Élargir l’espace francophone initiative. Mining Essentials has previously been offered in English to more than 300 participants.


Comments

Verified reader

If you would like to apply to become a verified commenter, please fill out this form.