Building new pathways

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 24/05/2017 (3277 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Pathways to Education Canada are a step closer to expanding their program.

On May 16, Great-West Life’s executive vice-president David Hodge announced a $500,000 commitment to the national Pathways Innovation Fund, which allows their partners across the country to request additional funding for development and projects that will impact current and future students.

Since partnering with Community Education Development Association (CEDA) in 2013, the Pathways program has changed many inner-city students’ relation to education. According to Pathways director of corporate philanthropy Steven Presser, the program was adapted to meet the needs of Indigenous students in Winnipeg and they’ll soon be able to evaluate their impact. Presser said graduation rates in communities with a Pathways program increase by an average of 85 per cent, and 74 per cent of that go on to post-secondary.

“Behind each one of these numbers, behind graduation rates and transition to post-secondary are individual students who are realizing their potential,” he said.

Great-West Life has supported Pathways since 2003. Their contribution to the Pathways Innovation Fund will enable the program to expand and help their partners test and to share best practices, to learn and continue to help young Canadians reach their potential.

“Partnering with outstanding organizations…to deliver the Pathways program…we know we can address the barriers that many youth face by providing them with a unique combinations of supports.”

Hodge said Great-West Life knows that CEDA and Pathways perform a valuable service giving kids the support they need to succeed in school.

“It’s not simply a matter of passing tests and gaining knowledge. It’s about developing self-confidence. It’s a foundation for the better choices that they make and the opportunities that will come…The ability to learn is now a lifelong pursuit,” he added.

Students in the North End face several barriers to their education that could prevent them from graduating and education provides help them reach their potential, Presser said. He explained that for many Pathways students, they are the first in their families to graduate and go to college or university.

Rose Olsen is a 20-year-old Pathways graduate who said the strong role models she met during the program helped her make the right decisions about her educational path. 

“I really believe that they shaped me into who I am today,” she said at the announcement, adding she has started an internship with the deputy minister of education. “Without (CEDA/Pathways) I don’t think I’d ever be who I am today or where I am.

”Pathways is looking for new ways to scale and adapt its program to continue to meet the evolving and changing needs of communities. Presser said the CEDA/Pathways program is an example of innovation and that adapting the program has a positive impact on the youth.

Currently, Pathways works with young people in a defined catchment area, bordered by certain streets in a community. Presser said the new funding would allow them to work with a hub-and-spoke model where they’ll increase the staff in the community partner agency. Those additional staffers would go out into different communities, offering programming and one-to-one support, reaching more students.

“We know that there are many more youths that could benefit from the program,” he said. “Bordering these communities are other communities that could benefit from the Pathways program.”

CEDA/Pathways is currently located at 419 Selkirk Ave. and 470 Stella Ave. Those interested in their services can call 204-582-7434 or 204-582-5800.