02 Mar 2017 Shepparton News, Shepparton VIC (General News) by Sionnie Kelly GOTAFE FUNDING TO ENSURE STUDENTS ARE TRAINED FOR JOBS IN REGION Victorian Training and Skills Minister Gayle Tierney announced Goulburn Ovens Institute of TAFE would receive $6.9 million during a visit to the Shepparton campus yesterday. The funding comes from the Stronger TAFE Fund, which is part of Skills First and aims to allow TAFEs to more easily focus on training students. The $6.9 million funding will also be used to help the institutes campuses at Wangaratta, Benalla and Seymour. Ms Tierney said the purpose of the funding was to identify skill gaps. It means that were rebuilding TAFE in a way that it will become a lot more relevant than what it ever has been, she said. It means well be training local students into jobs that are here in the region. Ms Tierney said the funding would help the institute build good relationships with local industries and employer organisations, meaning that students would learn skills for jobs in their region. The institutes chief executive Paul Culpan said the funding announcement was fantastic. What its actually doing is supporting our ability to put on new programs and supporting our current facilities, he said. State Member for Northern Victoria Jaclyn Symes joined Ms Tierney during her visit to the Shepparton campus. Ms Symes said the institute was thriving and had a great vibe that was getting better. I think its less about gaps and more about identifying where were going next, she said. Ms Symes said it was about understanding where the region was heading and what skills and jobs it needed into the future. Last month, a new united TAFE Victoria brand was launched with the purpose of helping TAFEs promote the industry-linked courses they have on offer. Although TAFEs remain individual institutions the new brand provides them with a collective voice and all TAFE courses across Victoria can be viewed at www.tafe.vic.gov.au Caption Text: Meeting: Victorian Training and Skills Minister Gayle Tierney talks to Jodee Price. Pictures: Holly Curtis Licensed by Copyright Agency. You may only copy or communicate this work with a licence.