A pool of 44 finalists have been announced for the 67th Victorian Training Awards, recognising the achievements of apprentices, students, teachers, trainers and employers.
Minister for Training and Skills Gayle Tierney today announced the finalists and said this year’s event would acknowledge the resilience and innovation of the sector amid the ongoing challenges of the pandemic.
Finalists have been named across six award categories for individuals, four for employers and four for training organisations as well as the Industry Collaboration Award.
Finalists include Federation University TAFE nursing student Samantha Brown who worked as a hotel manager before re-training as a nurse and Yorta Yorta and Wiradjuri man Stephen Cranage who took up cyber security at GOTAFE as a mature aged student.
The finalists represent all parts of metropolitan and regional Victoria, including Bendigo, Geelong, Warrnambool, Wodonga and Warragul.
Institutions and businesses in the running include South West TAFE, Wellsprings for Women, Master Builders Association of Victoria, Terra Firma Laboratories and Mansfield Armchair Cinema.
This year’s awards received the highest number of nominations in more than a decade, with individual award categories proving most popular among nominees.
Award recipients will receive $5000 prize money and a selection of award recipients will have the opportunity to represent Victoria at the Australian Training Awards.
The event is supported by principal partner Apprenticeship Employment Network (AEN) and the Global Apprenticeship Network (GAN Australia).
The Andrews Labor Government has made a record $3.2 billion investment to rebuild TAFE and support universities and higher education to ensure Victorians have access to high quality education and rewarding career pathways.
The Victorian Budget 2021/22 includes a $383.8 million investment in the sector to ensure more Victorians get the training they need for in-demand jobs.
Winners of the Victorian Training Awards will be announced at a gala event on Saturday, 16 October 2021. Find out more at .
Quotes attributable to Minister for Training and Skills Gayle Tierney
“The Victorian Training Awards are a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the achievements of our apprentices, students, teachers, trainers and employers.”
“We had a record number of nominations for this year’s event – which goes to show successful the Victorian TAFE and training sector is.”
Reviewed 16 August 2021