New College Lanarkshire recently hosted over 50 international visitors at an educational conference for schools and colleges from across Europe.
The College’s International Business Development team hosted the 12th annual EcoMEDIA conference which focused on developing Europe’s young workforce through innovative education.
Principals, teachers and education specialists were just some of the attendees at the conference, held in the Coatbridge Campus events and conferencing facility, 101 Park Street.
Held over the week, delegates from over nine countries took part in workshops and seminars led by experts from all over Europe.
They also took part in cultural visits to sites such as the Scottish Parliament.
Jim O’Donnell, Organiser and External Funding Manager at New College Lanarkshire, said:
“It was with great pleasure that we introduced so many guests from across Europe to our beautiful country and our college.
“All the delegates were very impressed by our hospitality, along with our dedication and knowledge of the education sector.
“At New College Lanarkshire we are very proud of our innovative college and how it helps students gain the skills they need for the future, so it was fantastic opportunity for us to share our good practice along with learn from others the innovations that are taking place across the world.”
Minister for Employability and Training Jamie Hepburn officially opened the conference and spoke about the various innovative practices that have been taking place in the education sector in Scotland.
He also congratulated the College for its recent successes in promoting STEM subjects to young females – including the recent success of student Betsy Crosbie at WorldSkills Abu Dhabi, who won a Medallion of Excellence for her internationally recognised performance in Computer Aided Design.
He said: “Congratulations to New College Lanarkshire for hosting such a fantastic event which showcased the innovative approaches Scotland takes to developing its young workforce.
“The types of vocational education and training available at New College Lanarkshire is crucial as it is building young people’s skills and confidence, and helping our economy grow and flourish.”
Also opening the event was Herbert Eile, Chairman of Education at the Association for International Cooperation and EcoMEDIA Project Coordinator, Erwin Bratenggeyer, Programme Chair of EcoMEDIA and Martin McGuire, Principal and CEO of New College Lanarkshire.
Herbert commented on the success of the event, saying: "The conference created many new ideas for digital learning and enabled one international experience exchange.
“Many top experts from Europe were in attendance to share good practice and exchange ideas about the digital revolution of education which was ground-breaking for the future of Europe’s education institutes.”
New College Lanarkshire has a strong track record for international relations and regularly meets with partners across Europe, China and Africa. It also proudly hosts a number of Erasmus programmes. For more information, visit: www.nclanarkshire.ac.uk.