Nunavut Arctic College

On March 23, 2011, an apartment fire broke out in Iqaluit’s Road to Nowhere subdivision, which completely destroyed 24 units. Fortunately, no one was hurt in the blaze, but 60 Iqaluit residents were left homeless and without possessions.

On hearing that several other communities were making efforts to lend a hand, the students decided to step up to the plate by turning one of their classrooms into a restaurant for an afternoon. Arviatmiut were invited to eat-in or take-out their orders in exchange for a pay-what-you-can donation.

Iqaluit Mayor Madeleine Redfern thanked the students on behalf of the City of Iqaluit and those affected by the fire. “I’m so proud of them,” she said. “Your community’s generosity is much appreciated. My only wish was that I was in Arviat to buy some of the good food they cooked.”

And cook they did! The students’ sandwiches, soups, hot stew and bannock dishes raised more than $250 in donations. It was also the first time the students cooked for a public audience using the College’s newly-renovated commercial kitchen facilities.

The Nunavut Arctic College Camp Cook program provides students with the basic knowledge and skills required to obtain employment in the food industry. Through hand-on training and classroom instruction, our graduates enter the workforce with confidence, securing employment in mining camps, industrial kitchens, tourism camps and community hotels.

The College’s commercial kitchen renovations were funded through a $120,000 contribution from the Government of Nunavut’s Strategic Investments Program (SIP), administered by the Department of Economic Development and Transportation.

Financial support to offer the Kivalliq region’s Camp Cook programs is provided by the Kivalliq Mine Training Society. The non-profit society’s goal is to deliver comprehensive training programs aimed at preparing Kivalliq beneficiaries of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement for employment in the region’s rapidly growing mineral exploration, mining, eco-tourism amd hospitality industries.

The Camp Cook program is designed to inspire students towards careers in the culinary arts, service and hospitality sectors. The installation of the new commercial kitchen facilities opens the door to offer more cooking programs, including evening cooking classes, traditional food workshops and opportunities to support community-based organizations.

“We’re very proud to see these new facilities contributing, not only to preparing our students for employment, but to make valuable contributions to strengthening our community,” said the Hon. Daniel Shewchuk, Arviat’s Member of the Legislative Assembly and Minister Responsible for Nunavut Arctic College.

Renovations for the Arviat Community Learning Centre’s new commercial kitchen were completed in February, and the first class of students started at the beginning of March. In Arviat alone, more than 60 students applied for the 12 available seats in the program.

The Baker Lake and Rankin Inlet Community Learning Centres will also be installing the new kitchen facilities later this spring, once the current semester’s classes have finished for the summer.

Nunavut Arctic College would like to extend its heartfelt thanks to our Camp Cook students in Arviat for their commitment and hard work, and to all those who came out to support our fellow Nunavummiut when they needed it the most.