Northern College partners with District School Board Ontario Northeast and Northeastern Catholic District School Board to offer Micro-credentials
TIMMINS, ON: Northern College is pleased to announce its partnership with two district school boards to develop and offer an educational support worker micro credential.
The micro-credential, co-developed with District School Board Ontario Northeast (DSB1) and Northeastern Catholic District School Board (NCDSB), is designed to provide comprehensive training for unqualified educational support workers to assist students experiencing challenges in elementary and secondary classrooms.
“Northern College takes pride in the quality of training offered and is committed to meeting the educational demands of the community while leveraging sector knowledge and experience from local professionals,” stated Dean Lessard, Senior Vice President Academic at Northern College. “Providing pathways for student learning and success, while collaborating with community partners to address workplace needs and ensure economic growth and development for the region is a priority for Northern.”
This micro-credential offering will teach the fundamental concepts of child and youth development domains, while ensuring unqualified educational support workers possess the knowledge, skills and abilities to effectively and successfully support student learning in the classroom.
“We are so pleased to support this amazing opportunity. The learning that participants will receive will greatly impact their success as education support workers in our schools,” stated NCDSB Director Tricia Stefanic Weltz. “We extend our gratitude to our partners for their thoughtful contributions and collaborative efforts. Together, we are improving outcomes for students and staff in Northeastern Ontario.”
“We are so incredibly proud to partner with Northern College and Northeastern Catholic District School Board on this initiative,” stated DSB1 Director of Education Lesleigh Dye. “We are confident that the micro-credentials will empower staff and support students in our classrooms.”
Leveraging the knowledge and expertise of public-school educators, Northern College’s Learning Excellence and Innovation Department (LEID) assisted in developing an accessible micro credential program that will allow full time Board employees to upgrade their skills through a flexible delivery model.
“The goal of micro credentials is to provide a high-quality and relevant educational experience to those who may not be able to take the time for more traditional methods of study,” stated LEID program developer Janna Duval. “These offerings represent an alternative to traditional study, allowing for different micro credentials to be stacked together in achieving a certificate and/or diploma.”
“This alternative learning approach is informed by industry and community partners, while being specifically tailored to address the unique needs of Northern Ontario,” added Duval.
The Educational Support Worker micro-credential initiative provides a real-world training opportunity for educational support workers so they can help ensure a solid learning environment for students in northeastern Ontario. By committing to staff development, this collaboration amongst NCDSB, DSB1 and Northern College will assist in attracting and retaining talent in the region.
About Northern College of Applied Arts & Technology
Established in 1967, Northern College leads the province in Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). It holds the top ranking in the graduate employment rate category in the province of Ontario. It has the highest employer satisfaction score for Northern College alums compared to all English-speaking colleges in Ontario (2023). The College has four main campuses in Haileybury, Kirkland Lake, Moosonee and Timmins, and many Access Centres, providing post-secondary education and academic upgrading to Indigenous learners in remote communities along the James Bay coast. Northern College is a highly respected community and regional partner with nearly 50,000 graduates, including the Haileybury School of Mines (est. 1912); the College is critical in the region’s economic development and global mining influence. Northern College serves the educational needs of post-secondary, apprenticeship, and contract training, both on-site and through remote learning, as well as delivering academic upgrading and employment services. Its catchment area covers 160,000 square kilometres, roughly the size of France, and includes over 65 communities – 18 First Nations.
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