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Mr. Speaker, today is Pink Shirt Day, a day when we take a moment to pause and reflect on how we treat one another.

The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) has expanded its Career and Education Advisor (CEA) program in the 2021-22 school year.

The CEA program provides specialized education and career advice to Grade 9–12 students and school-aged youth across the Northwest Territories (NWT).  The program is designed to meet the unique needs of NWT students, youth and their families, as well as educators. This year the program welcomed five more advisors to its team, for a total of nine CEAs. This means there is now a CEA based in every NWT region.

The Department of Education, Culture and Employment (ECE) is seeking feedback on the Income Assistance program in the Northwest Territories (NWT). The Income Assistance program provides financial assistance to Northerners to help meet basic and enhanced needs.  The program encourages and supports greater self-reliance, as individual capacity allows, to improve quality of lives.

The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) has launched a pilot program titled Build Your Skills, which provides formal essential skills assessments to identify foundational skill gaps in potential and current apprentices.

Through this pilot program, potential and current apprentices can access curriculum supports online and tools to build essential skills. Participation in Build Your Skills can help future apprentices prepare for the Trades Entrance Exam and help apprentices be successful in completing their technical training.

The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) is seeking feedback through the online Francophone Community Satisfaction Survey to help improve the GNWT’s offer and delivery of quality French language communications and services to the public.

Participation in the survey is anonymous and responses will remain confidential. To complete the survey, please click here.

The survey closes at 5 p.m. on February 28, 2022.

February is Indigenous Languages Month in the Northwest Territories (NWT). This year’s theme is “Let’s Go Fishing,” recognizing the important role of our sacred land and resources in cultural traditions, identity and community.

The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) is announcing changes to the Trades and Occupation Wage Subsidy Program (TOWSP). The changes will help employers hire and retain third and fourth year apprentices, and will encourage employers to recruit women into non-traditional trades.

In the summer of 2021, participating employers provided their feedback through a survey, which informed the announced changes. In the survey, 90 per cent of employers supported allocating the budget remaining after October 1 to fund third and fourth year apprentices.

The Department of Education, Culture and Employment (ECE) is now accepting proposals for NWT Arts Council funding from artists and organizations planning visual, literary, media and performing arts projects, artwork, or events in the Northwest Territories (NWT) from April 2022 to March 2023.

Application deadline: February 28, 2022

The maximum funding amount is $15,000 and must be spent by March 31, 2023. In response to COVID-19, proposals can include virtual/online events, presentations, or showcases.

The Department of Education, Culture and Employment (ECE) is excited to announce a new exhibit featuring the artwork of Germaine Arnattaujuq is now on view at the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre (PWNHC).

The exhibit is on display until May 29, 2022 and can be viewed Tuesday to Sunday from 10 am to 5 pm.

January Diploma Exams for Northwest Territories’ (NWT) students have been cancelled due to the recent change in students’ return to school dates after the holiday break and the evolving COVID-19 situation.

This decision applies to the January 2022 exams only. Decisions around the April and June diploma exams and the Alberta Achievement Tests (AATs) will be made at a later date.