Inuvik (Dec 17/04) - The Class 1 driver training course was an overwhelming success in the Sahtu this time around, as all 12 students graduated with their Class 1 drivers license.

I am very pleased with the support given by the community of Norman Wells.

The program ran from Nov. 8 to Dec. 1, 2004. Following a rigorous schedule - 12 hours a day or longer - the students showed dedication and hard work, while the instructors did an excellent job.

The class included two students from Deline, three from Tulita, four from Fort Good Hope, two from Norman Wells and one from Colville Lake.

This program could not have occurred without the support of all communities in the Sahtu who sent their students to Norman Wells in order to reduce costs. The Aboriginal Human Resources Development Agreement Committees in each community approved candidates and arranged and paid for their travel to take part in the course. In addition, the support of the local contractors, who donated their trucks and maintained them at no cost to the school, made it possible for the college to offer the course free-of-charge to the students. The financial support that AHRDA, RWED, Aurora College, Aurora Campus in Inuvik and ECE made to this program put the final blocks into place.

All who took the Class 1 Driver Training have found employment within the Sahtu.

Also, safety training courses have already taken place in all five Sahtu communities -- Norman Wells, Tulita, Colville Lake, Deline and Fort Good Hope. These courses include Fall Protection, Chainsaw Safety, Workplace Hazardous Materials Information Systems (WHMIS), Transportation of Dangerous Goods (TDG), Gas Detection, Hydrogen Sulphide Safety (H2S Alive) and Confined Space Safety.

The courses were offered in week-blocks and we used local instructors where possible. Nearly every course was well-attended in each community, fulfilling the need for skilled workers in the aforementioned areas and better positioning graduates to obtain work in the ongoing oil and gas activity and related construction. The most common refrain from students was, "We are getting the training in our own community and the training we need."

More than 97 per cent of all students who registered passed their courses. I would like to congratulate all the students, instructors and adult educators on their successes.

Because of this training, people are now working safely in the Sahtu.

Way to go.