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Training management
School raising the bar

Richard Gleeson
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Oct 09/00) - Necessity has taught Gerry Cheezie a lot in two years.

"I know a lot of the housing managers that work in local housing authorities, and that's how we learn to do our jobs, on the job," said Cheezie.

For the last two years he has managed the housing division of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation. "We don't get courses on a regular basis, it's basically learn as you go."

Cheezie said the formal training has, up to now, consisted of orientation courses organized by the NWT Housing Corporation.

With the imminent transfer of authority for administering their own housing, social and health programs to aboriginal governments, the need to develop expertise is steadily increasing.

Recognizing that need, territorial and federal departments and agencies have combined to assemble a course designed to build administrative capacity in aboriginal communities.

For the last year, the School of Community Government offered courses to applicants either in or pursuing administrative positions in aboriginal governments.

The school receives $400,000 in core funding each year from the federal, territorial and aboriginal partners that developed it, said executive director Dan Schofield.

Cheezie is one of 12 people from around the NWT who enroled in a week-long course presented by the school last month.

The 45-hour course focused on the division between policy makers -- band councils and the board members who oversee band agencies -- and the staff responsible for implementing the policies.

"This part is good for SAOs, band managers or housing managers," said Schofield, a Department of Municipal and Community Affairs employee.

Cheezie agreed, saying the line between administrators and policy makers is often blurred, creating confusion and lowering staff morale.

"Sometimes people that sit on boards or councils kind of see it as their job to partake in administration. This particular approach makes them look at the difference between administration and policy-makers."

The formal training creates standards that will help band workers serve their people better, said Cheezie.

The course is one of seven required to earn a certificate in housing management.