Cardinia Shire CEO Garry McQuillan, Member for Eastern Victoria Region Ed O’Donohue, Minister for Higher Education and Skills Peter Hall, Pakenham Secondary College principal Ray Squires, school council president Brian Paynter and in the front Chisholm CEO Maria Peters from Chisholm TAFE were all smiles last week as Pakenham Secondary College becomes home to a Technology Enabled Centre. 89401
By DANIELLE GALVIN
PAKENHAM’S educational future is bright following an announcement that will see the secondary college as the region’s technology learning hub.
The college will be home to a Technology Enabled Learning Centre (TELCs) which is expected to be operational early next year.
Representatives from the various educational agencies gathered at the Cardinia Cultural Centre on Thursday to hear from Minister for Higher Education and Skills Peter Hall.
Pakenham Secondary College is one of eight schools to be home to the technology centre.
Chisholm’s CEO Maria Peters said it would provide more opportunities for young people in the shire and across Gippsland.
“This is something we’ve dreamed about,” she said at the announcement last week.
Mr Hall said it was a delight to be in Pakenham to make the announcement, surrounded by council representatives as well as management from Chisholm TAFE and GippsTAFE.
He welcomed Pakenham Secondary College principal Ray Squires as well as school council president Brian Paynter.
“While we know that higher education is not the be all and end all, but we need to do what we can to provide opportunities to participate in education,” he said.
Mr Hall said the TELCs would allow students to connect remotely to tutorials in real time and were part of a recommendation of the Gippsland Tertiary Education Plan.
“The $5 million investment from the State Government will enable local students to access a wider range of vocational and higher education courses in Gippsland,” Mr Hall said.
The Pakenham centre will be the first to open once it is ready at the secondary college.
“It is a really positive move that the Pakenham Secondary College is the first to access this,” he said.
“Ray is doing some great things in preparation.”
At the announcement, Mr Squires took the opportunity to thank Member for Eastern Victoria Region Ed O’Donohue who, he said, he had a conversation with about the move to make Pakenham the educational hub.
“We need to encourage our students to complete the six years of study,” he said.
Mr Hall said the announcement was “great” for the municipality.
“We know that the cost of travel, relocation and accommodation are major barriers to education in Gippsland and our goal for these centres is to combine face-to-face and online learning in a range of locations to help more people take on training or study, who might not otherwise be able too,” Mr Hall said.
“By ensuring our students have access to these high-tech study spaces, we can broaden the depth and breadth of courses in Gippsland and ensure that students can access courses that are relevant to the local economy and industry needs.”
