Mississauga-Based School Getting Over $1 Million in Funding
Published February 12, 2019 at 8:09 pm
A Mississauga-based academic institution is getting a huge influx of funding from the federal government.
Recently, Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, along with Omar Alghabra, MP for Mississauga Centre, announced that FedDev Ontario is investing $1.5 million in Sheridan College’s Hazel McCallion campus.
FedDev stands for Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario.
According to the government, the investment will provide a broader range of entrepreneurial support and services at EDGE (Entrepreneurship Discovery and Growth Engine)—Sheridan College’s innovation hub.
For those who are unaware, EDGE is a collaborative space where people can access resources to start and grow businesses. Those resources include mentorship, networking and skills development, and access to financing.
While EDGE was originally focused on student-led ventures, the new funding will allow it to assist local entrepreneurs.
Videos
According to the government, this funding will be used to deliver new mentorship programming, create new workshops and education programs, and provide support targeted to the needs of the region.
Through this project, 60 high-potential companies will be supported, over 80 industry partnerships will be established and strengthened, and 70 jobs will be created and maintained in the Mississauga region.
“Sheridan is enormously grateful for this significant investment from FedDev Ontario and the opportunity it provides to foster deeper collaboration among the local entrepreneurship ecosystem through the intelligent combination of expertise and resources,” Dr. Janet Morrison, president and vice chancellor, Sheridan College, said in a statement.
“Our collective efforts will strengthen regional competitiveness, while promoting deep learning and the development of invaluable 21st-century skills such as critical thinking among early-stage entrepreneurs.”
The funding aims to increase innovation throughout Canada.
“The Government of Canada has an ambitious plan to help make Canada a world leader in innovation and entrepreneurship,” Bains said in a statement.
“We are pleased to support Sheridan College in providing more opportunities for early-stage businesses to access the resources needed to build innovative companies and create more jobs for Canadians.”
In 2018, Sheridan College was ranked in the top five research colleges in Canada, and was first overall in completed research projects. Since 2017, EDGE has been providing training and mentorship services to Sheridan’s student-led start-ups.
FedDev Ontario’s non-repayable contribution of $1.5 million is toward total project costs of $2 million, leveraging $500,000 from Sheridan College and other partners.
“This funding is important not only to Sheridan College, but also for the City of Mississauga. We are working hard to foster an environment of innovation and entrepreneurship that will allow people with great ideas to take them from concept to commercialization, right here in Mississauga,” Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie said in a statement.
“That’s why our city has been so supportive of the Sheridan EDGE Innovation Hub, and why we are thankful for today’s important investment by the federal government. Only by working together can we make innovation come to life.”
insauga's Editorial Standards and Policies advertising