The History of Aurora College

The history of the community-based college system in the Northwest Territories began with the growth and development of community adult education centres. By 1958, approximately 49 communities in the NWT had some form of adult education, usually delivered through the federal day schools. In 1969, educational responsibilities, including community adult education centres, were transferred from Ottawa to the territorial government's new Department of Education.
In the late 1960s, the Department of Education and Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development contracted Frontier College to initiate and implement a system of community-based adult education. This system was formally legislated by the territorial government in 1974.

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.
In June 1992, the Government Leader announced that, as part of the government's decentralization strategy, the Yellowknife head office of Arctic College would be transferred to the communities of Fort Smith and Iqaluit in preparation for the creation of two colleges from Arctic College. On January 1, 1995, two colleges were created - Nunavut Arctic College in the Eastern Arctic, and Aurora College in the Western Arctic.
The operations of the former Science Institute of the Northwest Territories were amalgamated with the new colleges in January, 1995. The portion which now functions as a division of Aurora College is called the Aurora Research Institute, and offers licensing and research assistance in the western NWT. Aurora College has a mandate to deliver community-centred post-secondary programs that accurately reflect Northern culture and the needs of the Northern labour market.