Fleming College

The Kawartha Trades and Technology Centre “Building Skills. Shaping Futures.” campaign today honoured four major donors that will help build and equip the new 87,000-square-foot training facility currently being built on Fleming College’s Sutherland Campus. At the same time, volunteers made a very special announcement related to the fundraising campaign – it has surpassed the $1 million mark.

Fleming College Board of Governors Chair Peter McLean and President Dr. Tony Tilly introduced the four ‘Partners in Learning,’ who have each contributed $150,000 to the campaign. They are: The Good Samaritan Hands Up Foundation, represented by Peterborough MP Dean Del Mastro; McCloskey International, represented by Founder, CEO and President, Paschal McCloskey; The Martin Family, represented by Kylie Martin; and, General Electric, represented by Bill Mateer, Site Operations Executive.

“The people and organizations that we honour today all have a commitment to education in our area and recognize the many benefits that the Kawartha Trades and Technology Centre will bring not only to the students of Fleming College, but to our provincial and local economy. Through their gifts they will help ensure a strong future for skilled trades education and training in our area, provide a strong investment in the education and training of our youth, help provide a vital lifeline for the retraining of displaced workers and help to educate students, parents, teachers and our community that careers in the skilled trades are exciting and rewarding career paths, as well as, being a vital component of a healthy and educated workforce,” stated Dr. Tilly as he introduced the donors.

Maxine Mann, Dean of the School of Trades and Technology, thanked the donors on behalf of the school referring to their donations as not only generous but a display of confidence in and commitment to Fleming College.

“During tough economic times, philanthropic gifts of this magnitude show a real belief in the project at hand. When the Kawartha Trades and Technology Centre opens to students next fall, your names will hang proudly in our learning centre, a message to all of our students and faculty that you believe in them,” said Mann.

The campaign cabinet, led by Co-Chairs Jay Amer and Craig McFarlane, unveiled a banner at the event announcing the campaign had surpassed the $1 million mark.

“$1.1 Million and counting!” said Amer. “A very special thank you to all of the donors to date who have supported this very worthwhile project, especially the Partners in Learning who we have honoured here today, in particular General Electric whose gift, received last week, helped us to surpass the million dollar mark and bring us to this very exciting moment in the campaign. But we’re not finished. As we move forward with the campaign we will continue to raise funds to support the equipment and infrastructure costs for the Kawartha Trades and Technology Centre and to offset the $4.7 million debt that the college would need to incur to build this much-needed facility. Stay tuned as we have more work to do.”

Other significant donations included in the $1.1 million dollar total include Peterborough Utilities Group and Gemini Power from Peterborough, MV Wilson Construction and Kawartha Dairy of the City of Kawartha Lakes, as well as Structural Panel Industries and ADL Insulflex of Cobourg. All of these donors have showed a commitment from the communities Fleming serves to the building of this exciting project that will benefit not just the local but also the provincial economy.     

About the KTTC
Fleming College is constructing a new $36.6 million, 87,000 square foot trades and technology skills training facility to be located on the college’s Sutherland Campus in Peterborough. The Kawartha Trades and Technology Centre, through a unique partnership with education and industry, will teach and train students from regional secondary schools, Fleming College and regional industry. The facility will provide new space and equipment for training in such areas as carpentry, welding, plumbing and machining. The KTTC will feature state-of-the-art, sustainable shop facilities, smart-wired classrooms, and labs with the newest technology. It will offer all students access to a full suite of services and supports and a vibrant campus life.

About Fleming College
Located in the heart of Central Ontario, Fleming College has campus locations in Peterborough, Lindsay, Cobourg and Haliburton. Named for famous Canadian inventor and engineer Sir Sandford Fleming, the college features more than 100 full-time programs in Community Development and Health, Continuing Education, Environmental and Natural Resource Sciences, Justice and Business, Skilled Trades and Technology, General Arts and Science and Visual Arts. Fleming College has more than 5,900 full-time and 10,000 part-time students, and more than 65,000 alumni.

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For more information: Nicole Grady, Corporate Giving and Communications Officer, 705.749.5530 x 1204 or nicole.grady@flemingcollege.ca