Aurora College

The history of the College, as a campus-based institution, finds its roots in 1968 when a Heavy Equipment Operator course was offered at Fox Holes, just west of Fort Smith. In 1969, the training being done at Fox Holes was moved to Fort Smith and the Adult Vocational Training Centre (AVTC) was established. In 1971, Canada Manpower/CEIC, now Human Resources and Social Development Canada) began to sponsor programs, and throughout the 1970s, programs at AVTC expanded. In 1981, AVTC was declared a college and renamed Thebacha College. The following year, the Legislative Assembly's special committee report on Education, Learning: Tradition and Change in the Northwest Territories, proposed a return to a model of program delivery at the community level. The creation of Arctic College in 1984 recognized this commitment. Initially with campuses in Fort Smith and Iqaluit, the College grew quickly to include campuses in each region of the Northwest Territories. In 1986, the Arctic College Act established the College as a corporate entity at arm's length from the government, and gave it the mandate to deliver adult and post-secondary education. By 1987, it was agreed that community learning centres across the North would join the College system, a process which was completed in 1990.