Students in ag programs can access new equipment and training
By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com
Students enrolled in Lethbridge College’s agriculture and heavy equipment apprenticeship programs will have access to the latest machinery and technology after the school became the first post-secondary institution in Canada to sign the AGCO Advantage Partnership.
The partnership means the school will work with AGCO and Hanlon Ag Centre Ltd. to provide different training aids for instructors and learning materials for students at no cost to the college.
“We’ll help support the college with state-of-the-art technology, which means that we’re going to allow them into our factory training, just as we would our dealership technicians in the region — so they are up to the same speed as our dealers,” Russel Goertzen, AGCO Advantage Program Manager told the Lethbridge Herald.
Dr. Paula Burns, CEO and president of Lethbridge College, said the new partnership can impact student enrollment and relationships with other businesses.
“AGCO’s tremendous commitment allows us to offer more openings for students in our apprenticeship programs,” Burns told Global News. “It also lets other companies know that we are open for business and always looking for mutually beneficial industry partnerships.”
Students are enthusiastic about the prospects of having leading edge technology at their fingertips.
“It’s nice to see cutting edge technology right here at home,” Sam Mitchell, a second-year ag equipment student told the Lethbridge Herald. “You don’t have to travel long distances to get good, professional training.”