Nunavut Arctic College expansion gets a $10M federal infusion

New building in Iqaluit will house labs and expand classroom space

By STEVE DUCHARME

Bardish Chagger, federal minister of small business and tourism as well as Government House Leader, stands beside Nunavut's education minister, Paul Quassa, in Iqaluit Nov. 23 to announce $10.64 million in federal money to help pay for a new Nunavut Arctic College facility at the Iqaluit Nunatta campus. (PHOTO BY STEVE DUCHARME)


Bardish Chagger, federal minister of small business and tourism as well as Government House Leader, stands beside Nunavut’s education minister, Paul Quassa, in Iqaluit Nov. 23 to announce $10.64 million in federal money to help pay for a new Nunavut Arctic College facility at the Iqaluit Nunatta campus. (PHOTO BY STEVE DUCHARME)

The table is set for Nunavut Arctic College’s Iqaluit campus to begin planning for a brand-new, state-of-the-art facility, following the commitment of nearly $30 million in territorial and federal money for the project.

Federal minister of small business and tourism as well as Government House Leader, Bardish Chagger, announced the funding—alongside Nunavut’s education minister Paul Quassa and Nunavut MP Hunter Tootoo—in front of a cheering faculty at Nunavut Arctic College’s Nunatta campus in Iqaluit, Nov. 23.

“The future of Canada and Nunavut depends on the success of our students. That’s why we need to ensure they have the facilities they need for tomorrow’s job market,” Chagger said.

Ottawa will commit $10.64 million to the new facility, allocated through its “Post-Secondary Institutions Strategic Investment Fund.”

The money adds to the $18.9 million already committed from the Government of Nunavut.

The new training facility, which will be built near the current Nunatta campus, will house laboratories for students studying fisheries as well as classrooms for language and culture programs and Inuktitut interpreter and translator studies, among others.

The facility’s design will also incorporate renewable energy and sustainable building options, according to information provided at the announcement.

“Investing in infrastructure for post-secondary education through the proposed expansion of the Nunatta Campus in Iqaluit is a tremendous addition to our capacity for delivering programs as we continue building a representative workforce,” Quassa said in an accompanying new release.

The Post-Secondary Institutions Strategic Investment Fund is a $2 billion dollar federal fund designed to update Canada’s research and commercial training facilities.

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