Laura Formusa (front l-r), President and CEO, Hydro One and Robert Gillett, President, Algonquin College, Fred Gibbons (rear l-r), President, Northern College; Rob MacIsaac, President, Mohawk College; and, Brian Tamblyn, President and CEO, Georgian Colleges Ontario signed the  . . . 

Toronto, Jan. 23, 2012 – Hydro One continues to invest in Ontario college engineering students with a $3 million commitment to educating and training its future workforce.

With up to 30 per cent of Hydro One’s workforce eligible to retire in the next five years, promoting careers in the utility sector is a timely initiative.

This is the second $3-million contribution that Hydro One has made to the four colleges that make up the Hydro One College Consortium – Algonquin, Georgian, Mohawk and Northern. The first pledge was made in 2008. The funds support scholarships, curriculum development, co-op placements and equipment to educate the next generation of energy professionals. 

“The results are in from the first phase of this partnership and they are outstanding,” says Laura Formusa, President & CEO of Hydro One. “The four colleges have been very effective in attracting more students to their electrical programs, ensuring a stronger workforce for Hydro One and the entire utility sector. This is good news for the people of Ontario.” 

Enrolment and graduation rates from electrical engineering technician and technology programs have doubled at Algonquin, Georgian, Mohawk and Northern since the partnership began. 

The four colleges geographically span across the province, making it a beneficial partnership for the whole province, says Bob Emptage, Consortium Chair and Dean of Engineering Technology and Environmental Studies at Georgian College.

“This is a great example of an innovative partnership that is strengthening the provincial economy.  Hydro One’s investment in college facilities and curriculum allows us to continue providing the highest quality education to our students, who will then be ready for rewarding and good-paying jobs in the utility sector as soon as they graduate,” says Emptage.

The colleges will continue their recruitment and curriculum strategies from the first phase, including student-focused mentorship events that Formusa and her senior team have attended at Georgian and Mohawk colleges.

Emptage says there will also be new projects, including expanding applied research activities to test new ideas and bring them to the marketplace and developing a new recruitment campaign to increase the number of women and aboriginal people in engineering programs and working at Hydro One.

“The colleges are able to implement curricula that meet the needs of our growing and evolving industry. Future applied research projects will help keep Ontario at the global forefront of smart grid technologies,” said Formusa. 

Each college will receive $750,000 in support of their electrical engineering programs and recruitment, over the term of this four-year partnership.

Hydro One was awarded the 2008 Ontario Colleges Community/Corporate Partnership Award in recognition of its contribution to the advancement of Ontario’s college system. 

Mohawk has three programs that benefit from the Hydro One Consortium: Energy Systems Engineering Technology, Energy Systems Engineering Technician and Electrical Engineering Technician, Power. The three programs take in nearly 400 new students every year and offer students co-op opportunities that allow them to enrich their learning experiences.

Media Contacts:
Hydro OneTiziana Baccega-RosaSenior Media Relations Advisor(416)345-6868

Hydro One College ConsortiumBob EmptageConsortium Chair(705)739-3139

 

HAMILTON -- More than 100 technology students will get real-world and hands-on learning in a new Hydro One Lab that officially opens today at the College’s Fennell Campus.

Hydro One President and CEO Laura Formusa and Mohawk College President Rob MacIsaac took part in the official opening, together with students and recent Mohawk graduates who are working for Hydro One as well as faculty and industry partners.

“The establishment of the Hydro One Lab at Mohawk College is a very powerful example of what companies and colleges can achieve together," said Formusa. “This means Mohawk students have the confidence they are acquiring skills on the best equipment that they will be highly employable when they graduate.”

The Hydro One Lab, located in Mohawk’s School of Engineering Technology at the Fennell Campus, will train more than 100 Electrical Technology Engineering students annually on power generation, transmission and distribution and smart meters. The lab features more than $400,000 worth of state-of-the-art training equipment provided by Hydro One.

“One of the hallmarks of a Mohawk education is hands-on and real-world learning,” said Cheryl Jensen, Mohawk Vice President Academic. “What Mohawk technology students are learning in our new lab is exactly what they’ll need to know on the job with Hydro One."

The Hydro One Lab is part of an overall $750,000 investment by the company in Mohawk College. Along with investing in new equipment, Hydro One is supporting scholarships and bursaries, offering co-op work terms and summer internships and helping with curriculum and course development. This year, 11 students are receiving Hydro One scholarships and two students are receiving Hydro One bursaries.

“It takes the power of partnership to transform students into future ready, highly skilled graduates,” said MacIsaac. “Hydro One is helping Mohawk do exactly that as a great industry partner, college champion and supporter of our students.”

Mohawk is one of four Ontario colleges that have joined forces to meet the workforce training and development needs of Hydro One. The partnership marks the first time colleges have collaborated with a provincial employer. The Hydro One College Consortium was recognized with the 2008 Community / Corporate Partnership Award from Colleges Ontario.