By Charles Lefebvre

RBC donates $100,000 to college’s entrepreneur program

Feb 7, 2019 | 4:25 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB — The Royal Bank of Canada has provided significant funding to Medicine Hat College to help teach business skills to budding entrepreneurs.

RBC announced a donation of $100,000 to the college’s Entrepreneur Development Centre Thursday afternoon. Of the announced funding, half of it will go towards the Rural Youth Entrepreneurship project.

The project, which began last year, is a partnership between the college and Prairie Rose School Division. Staff from the college attended Eagle Butte High School, Foremost School, Senator Gershaw School and South Central High School in Oyen, and helped students develop their own ideas for businesses.

“It’s an incredible investment in our youth, their ability to gain critical skills, both here at Medicine Hat College, and in the Prairie Rose School Division in the high schools,” said Kevin Zimmel, regional vice president of business financial services with RBC. “We’re honoured to participate and make this donation of $100,000.”

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Tracy Stroud, manager of business development at the college, says the pilot project with Prairie Rose shows the importance of teaching students business skills at an earlier age.

“We know if we do that, they’re going to be that much more successful entrepreneurs, because you need to learn as you go along,” she said. “Typically, most entrepreneurs start in their 40s. If we can reach people with this skill set, they will be more future ready. The businesses that they start will likely be more successful, and even if they decide not to go into business, that skill set they’re learning through entrepreneurship will help them for years to come.”

RBC has been providing support to the Entrepreneur Development Centre at the college since 2010.