They're critically important, and they'll be even more important as we look at the need for microcrendentialling and retraining in careers.
When I travelled the province—and I travelled your beautiful part of the province—I went into many of those small communities. I listened to the concerns of the town councils and the concerns of our alumni who run the small businesses in those communities. Everywhere I went, people talked about access: access to training, access to education.
I mentioned my mother and six of us children growing up in Labrador. She did finish high school, but when she was pregnant with her sixth child in eight years, she decided she had to do something. She did distance education. At that time it was all through the mail. She got a degree doing it at home, cooking and helping the family with all her children. That was the only way we could end up all going to university. It was because she had access to distance education.
I mentioned earlier that the Internet is critical. In some communities there is not even cellphone service. Imagine the vulnerability without cellphone service, but the lack of access is the biggest challenge in education for working women, young mothers or women in mid-career who need to pivot and change.
It's critically important, and I'm glad you brought it up, absolutely. Thank you, Ms. Hutchings.