Cumberland and Parkland College are now less than a month away from merging together and becoming one new entity.
When July 1st hits, the two institutions will move forward together under one new name… Suncrest College.
According to a press release sent to northeastNOW, ‘Suncrest’ is the combination of two words that hold significant meaning to each college.
The sun is meant to represent new growth and beginning and symbolizes the commencement of the merged college. It also represents Saskatchewan, one of the sunniest provinces in Canada. Meanwhile, a crest signifies the top or the peak, representing the colleges’ shared vision of hoping to exceed the needs of their learners, partners and communities.
“I’m very pleased with the name that was selected,” said Alison Dubreuil, interim President and CEO for Cumberland and Parkland Colleges. “We recognize when learners do come into our institutions, they too are sometimes looking for new growth and new beginnings by attaining that education or learning opportunities, so we thought it was well suited.”
Work on the new name began after the colleges received approval from the provincial government to move forward as a merged college.
The colleges worked with an external firm to guide them through the naming process ‘with the goal of engaging as many staff and students as possible’.
“The inclusive process which also focused on community engagement, was to ensure that the name represented the entire expanded region,” it added.
As part of the legal requirements to finalize the merger, a new head office location for Suncrest College was designated as 273 Dracup Avenue in Yorkton or what is referred to as the Trades and Technology Centre.
More details and a sort of launch will be released closer to the beginning of the new school year come the fall, such as a logo, tagline, and more marketing and branding items.
Not everything is changing, however, as Dubreuil will remain in her role for Suncrest, just taking off the interim tag.
“Certainly July 1 will be celebratory in some senses, but we still have a lot of good work to do, and a lot of exciting work to do,” she said. “I am absolutely honoured to be given this opportunity to continue to help with and lead the transition. I think there’s nothing but great things ahead.”
The new college will also see continuity with returning Board of Governors including Corinna Stevenson (Melfort), Ray Sass (Yorkton), Lori Kidney (Tisdale), Brian Hicke, (Melville) and Wendy Becenko (Kamsack).
In addition, the following new members Dr. Adeyemi Laosebikan (Melfort) and Shaun Patenaude (Yorkton) will join the Board effective July 1.
“Certainly the addition of new board members is welcome,” added Dubreuil. “To have additional folks around the table to provide that guidance and that leadership, the merger has certainly driven some significant change within our organizations, and I think it will be very helpful to have some additional folks join us as we move forward.”
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