Who are we?
Sydney Community College is a premier education organisation with a long history and an even longer future. Each year, over 14,000 students choose to participate in one or more of the 400 different short courses and accredited training programs we offer.
In 2008 the College applied for funding from the NSW Department of Education and NSW AMES to deliver the Skilled Migrant Mentoring Program (SMMP) in Sydney.
SMMP AlumniThe SMMP team achieved significant success in finding work experience, training and mentoring opportunities for a small group of clients, and developed some innovative ways of ensuring that we delivered a high standard of service to our participants, supporters and volunteers.
Getskilled
In 2008 the SMMP team gained some additional funding (.auDA Foundation http://www.audafoundation.org.au/) to develop the interactive Getskilled website to support and enrol participants into the program.
The website is a first “port of call” for migrants wishing to access the services we offer and provides relevant up-to-date information, forums and application options for potential and existing clients, as well as volunteer mentors and employers who would like to support the program.
MentorMe
Funding from the Australian Flexible Learning Framework (http://www.flexiblelearning.net.au/) was utilised in 2008 to develop some online training to assist and support our volunteer mentors in guiding skilled migrants in their jobseeking activities.
2009
The College received the Perpetual Award for Business Innovation in 2009 from Community Colleges NSW and St.George Business Bank due to our professional and creative approach to delivery of SMMP in 2008.
This was also a big year as we successfully applied for funding for a companion program, the Refugee Mentoring Program (RMP), which is a pilot program aiming to reduce refugee unemployment and underemployment.
The RMP uses mentoring, work experience, training and other forms of support to assist refugee participants along an employment pathway.
2010
As a response to the growing demand for services in this area, and in recognition of our successes, the SMMP and RMP programs have now grown to cover a large part of the Sydney area, and in 2010 the College created the Sydney Centre for Migrant and Refugee Learning as a standalone division of its Centre for Social Inclusion.
In 2010 the Sydney Centre for Migrant and Refugee Learning aims to assist over 300 clients across Sydney gain employment through mentoring, work experience and training opportunities and our programs are delivered in the inner city, inner West, Canterbury/Bankstown and Fairfield/Liverpool areas.
The College employs four full time staff to coordinate the program across these areas, under the management of Frank Storey, the Manager of the Centre for Social Inclusion.
