December 3, 2021

As a longtime supporter of local entrepreneurship, the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) Foundation has made another significant contribution to the Entrepreneur Development Centre (EDC) at Medicine Hat College (MHC). 

The Future of Work and Rural Education Outreach Project will receive $225,000 in total funding from the RBC Foundation over the next three years, seeing $75,000 per year be allocated to a variety of entrepreneurship-focused initiatives deployed by the EDC.

The partnership between MHC and the RBC Foundation dates back 11 years, with initial seed funding investment to launch the EDC in 2010 and on-going support for students, alumni, and start-up businesses through entrepreneurship coaching, training, mentorship, and grants at MHC each year after. 

Through to 2024, the funding will continue to support three entrepreneurial internships and provide entrepreneurship education in rural high school classrooms throughout southeastern Alberta, as well as credit and non-credit post-secondary courses offered through the college and Continuing Studies.  

 

New this year is the inception of the “education-in-a-box” concept. These entrepreneurship and career learning experience boxes have customized themes to suit the classroom in which they are utilized, with course materials, educational resources, and items needed to trial a business idea or career.  

Katie Deroaldes’ foods class at Medicine Hat High School was the first to implement the innovation as part of their participation in the Entrepreneurship in the Classroom program offered through the EDC. 

“The “education-in-a-box” was a great tool to incorporate into the entrepreneurship learning process. My students loved the hands-on involvement to help them through the entrepreneurship planning experience and the tangible box helped keep the students engaged and interested!” shares Deroaldes. 

The final innovation to come from the Future of Work and Rural Education Outreach Project is the development of a new social enterprise venture that will provide six MHC students with work-integrated learning experiences. Additional information regarding the MHC Social Enterprise Venture Incubator is to be released at a later date as concept and business plan development unfolds.

 

Christie Wilson, entrepreneur outreach coordinator at MHC, emphasizes that the RBC Foundation’s continued support through financial contributions and employee expertise and mentorship has been monumental in pushing the development and innovation of our local entrepreneurship industry forward.  

 

“While impossible to measure the comprehensive impact of RBC’s contributions, there will be hundreds of students, as well as aspiring and current business owners that will learn valuable entrepreneurial knowledge and skills over the next three years as a result of the programming supported by RBC, contributing significantly to the future of work and business in our region long-term.” 

 

To learn more about the programs offered through the EDC, visit www.mhc.ab.ca/services/entrepreneurdevelopmentcentre.

Watch the winning team's video below!