Thank you, Laurie.
My name is Jeanette Jules, and I'm a fourth-year councillor for the Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc, and I have been an AMTA board member since the organization's inception. I've spent 32 years working in first nations education in a variety of capacities, including as the manager of the HRDC programs within my nation. I have experienced first-hand what works and what doesn't work when it comes to training and development of first nation learners.
To continue where Laurie left off, another way AMTA is different, and the reason we are able to achieve what we have in a short time is our focus on the individual. What I've seen time and time again over my career is that aboriginal students are not successful because these programs that they are enrolled in are focused on the group, not the person. The standard approach within the education setting says everyone should be treated equally. The AMTA model challenges this very assumption, and delivers an innovative model for training and development: a candidate-focused solution.
In my opinion, the AMTA model is one that everyone should follow because we've proven that by tackling the issue one person at a time, one by one, we're helping aboriginal learners achieve their potential and make a contribution to their economic health, to their families and their communities, to the province, and to Canada. We have 730 examples of how it works, and another 1,500 in the works. At AMTA we have a model for education and training that is transferable and repeatable, yes, but it is successful because it is flexible and adaptable. We have a relationships and partnerships with more than 150 first nations in British Columbia, and there are 203.
In every instance, we take guidance and direction from the nation's leadership, who understand what is best and what their members' needs are. In this respect, we challenge the assumption that the issues and obstacles for one first nation or another target group, for that matter, are the same for the next target group, because each is different. We then work together to build and facilitate relationships and partnerships between AMTA communities and industry to ensure we're all working towards the same goal. It's not enough to have training and education clauses in IBAs. Those are words on a page. What is critical is the partnerships that we will make in order to ensure that these things happen. It is not easy, but it is possible.
Once the needs of our community and industry partners are clear, we can focus on preparing our candidates for the opportunities that exist. We do this by developing individualized education plans, one candidate at a time. Anyone on the AMTA team will tell you that the individualized learning plans are a must-have, not a nice-to-have. We offer flexible entry, clear pathways, and continuous coaching to ensure successful completion and ultimately consistent job placement.
The mentoring relationship doesn't stop when a candidate enters employment. There are genuine, heartfelt connections between the candidates and the AMTA coaches, who continue for as long as our candidates want them.
We must be doing something right because once our candidates are successful in landing a job the overall retention rate is more than 80%.