Georgian College’s future looks bright as it rebounds from the COVID-19 pandemic, city council heard Monday.
The college’s president and CEO, MaryLynn West-Moynes, updated council on Georgian’s economic impact in both the city and the region.
Council learned Georgian has resulted in $1.7 billion in total income added to the region, representing 5.3 per cent of the gross regional product, and supports 22,752 jobs.
In 2019-20, the college had a total economic impact of $31.2 million in Orillia.
“Despite the many challenges … we continue to thrive,” West-Moynes said.
Enrolment is down, but that is mostly because of the effect the pandemic has had on the number of international students attending Georgian.
Pre-pandemic, enrolment was at about 11,500. It is currently closer to 9,000.
Georgian anticipated a loss of $43 million when the pandemic hit, but the loss was significantly less because some of the “high-interest” courses for international students went entirely virtual.
“We need to get the international students here if they’re going to help us deal with our talent needs,” West-Moynes said.
“Individuals graduating from high school will not return to their 2018 numbers in Simcoe County until 2031. The avenue in order for us to get the talent we need to drive our economy is really going to have to come from the international agenda.”
Overall, on-campus learning and activities have been increasing. For about 70 per cent of students, the majority of their learning is being done remotely.
Coun. Rob Kloostra noted he has a son enrolled at Georgian’s Barrie campus and that he looks forward to moving away from virtual learning so he can have the traditional college experience.
West-Moynes said it is anticipated 90 per cent of students will have increased activity on campus this winter. Ten per cent will be completely remote.
She said she understands virtual learning can be difficult for students, but she had a message to potential employers who might be concerned about the students’ abilities: “If they have the resilience to make it through this, they’re going to be great employees.”
West-Moynes will soon be retiring, and she’s proud of the progress the college has made under her watch.
“The campus has proven itself on the degree agenda,” she said. “We leveraged the relationship with having the OPP next door, and the diplomas and degrees in the justice area are recognized right across the country.”
It was also recently announced Georgian would introduce a four-year bachelor of science in nursing degree starting next September at its Barrie and Owen Sound campuses. There have already been more than 200 applications to the program.
Students will be able to complete the entire program close to home and will be more likely to stay in the community to work once they graduate, West-Moynes said.
She noted 4,300 nurses will be needed over the next decade to accommodate growth and replace retiring nurses — and that was the figure before the pandemic.
“We know that hospitals like Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital are working hard to keep their nurses and they have large numbers of nurses that will retire earlier than planned because of the pandemic,” she said.
Working with Lakehead University on ways to provide access to degrees locally has also been a highlight, she added.
“It’s an exciting time at Georgian. The pandemic has only strengthened our innovative spirit,” she said.
“We want you to be proud of your community college and we want to be strong partners with you.”
