General manager of Snowy River Shire Joe Vescio presented his findings to council last week following extensive research over the last few months about what will be needed in the next decade in the Snowy River Shire.

In the 14 years that secondary education has been available at Snowy Mountains Grammar School - and now at Jindabyne Central School - the number of secondary students has exploded locally.

Forecasts indicate that there will be approximately 450 secondary students in the Jindabyne, Dalgety, Berridale and the snow resort villages in the next five years.

The education model has already gained one supporter in Snowy Mountains Grammar School principal Andrew Rostron, who described it as a “wonderful idea.”

“I think it is a wonderful idea. I firmly believe that education does not end when you are 18 years old. This model delivers education to the whole community. We are very much for it,” Mr Rostrum said.

Many SRSC students finish their Higher School Certificate (HSC) and move onto tertiary study options outside the area,

there are others who would like to be able to choose a vocational option and combine their studies with a practical work experience and on the job training and stay in the Snowy Mountains.

TAFE can meet some of these needs locally but the courses on offer in Jindabyne are limited.

Mr Vescio and the SRSC economic development contractor travelled to the Gwydir Shire in July of this year to explore the partnership that their Council has with Gwydir Learning Region.

The Gwydir Shire is located in North Western NSW near Warialda. It has a population of 5,500 and employs people in agriculture, education and health.

In 2000 the Gwydir Shire combined stakeholders that included local government, education providers and the wider community to extend learning options.

In the Gwydir case year nine students were surveyed and the gaps that showed up in what they needed for future employment were then looked at for traineeships and course design.

Things that emerged were traineeships and certificate level studies in retail, theatre, business services, information technology, horticulture, beef cattle production and child and aged care.

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