CEDTP Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

The following section should address most questions about our Community Economic Development Training Program.

1.     What is CEDTP training?

Community economic development is the practice of creating an environment where businesses thrive and grow.  Finding ways to make build stable, resilient communities can be complex. Regardless of the size of your budget or region, using best practices and well established tools can help you achieve success in growing and expanding a diverse, resilient community.

EDA’s CEDTP sessions provide practical information that can be directly applied to your unique community.  Our CEDTP courses:

• Provide clearly defined community economic development functions, including roles of elected officials, staff and volunteers;
  
• Identify core strategies on how to ‘do’ economic development;
  
• Focus on using human and financial resources more effectively and efficiently;
  
• Outline engagement processes to promote community-wide participation in future planning;
  
• Encourage closer working relationships between federal, provincial, regional and municipal agencies;
  
• Help you eliminate barriers between towns and rural jurisdictions;
  
• Provide an interactive setting to learn new tools and practices, and hear from other practitioners about opportunities and challenges they face in their role.
  

2.     What courses does EDA offer?

EDA is pleased to offer the following CEDTP courses on a regular basis- both online and in-person:

Economic Development–Establishing the Foundation (ETF): Learn the principles, theories and fundamentals of economic development that form the basic foundation of every community.

Business Retention and Expansion (BR&E): Integrate effective assessment and planning tools in order to help you build and retain a strong business community.

Business and Investment Attraction (BI&A): Discover the important role business and investment attraction plays in advancing your economic development strategy.

In addition, we offer the following courses in-person and online:

Economic Development for Elected Officials- This course provides this unique group of community leader’s specialized information on the role of government in economic development, including core strategies, tools, and resources needed to help their communities thrive. It delivers information on issues such as:

• The role and function of community economic development.
• Issues and best practice examples in areas like: business investment, tourism development, industrial development, and leveraging public and private partnerships.
• How to manage the process. Bringing the whole community to the table.
• How to create effective outcomes for your community.

Economic Disaster Resilience and Recovery  Course for Community and Regional Leaders- This is an intensive, in-person one day boot camp course to help prepare local elected officials, emergency operations personnel, community leaders and economic development leadership to support economic development, disaster resilience and economic recovery activities in their community. This course is also offered online.

The in person one day version provides a great introduction to our resilience training program, and includes the following modules:

• Introduction to community economic resilience
• Phases of a disaster
• The federal government response after a disaster
• Business assistance before and after a crisis
• Creative financing to support businesses
• Crisis communications
• Economic resilience and diversification strategies after a disaster
• Economic revitalization post disaster

3.     What is the cost ?

ETF, BI&A, BR&E, Resilience Course (in-person):

1-day course= $1750 + GST + Trainer expenses

Trainer Expenses

Note: We try to provide the Trainer closest to the course location in order to reduce expenses as much as possible. The following out-of-pocket travel expenses will be reimbursed when applicable:

a.     Meal costs based on paid receipts (to a maximum of the daily provincially rated allowances*)

b.     Hotels

c.     Airline tickets

d.     A per kilometre rate* when using personal vehicle to travel to locations

e.     Daily personal expense allowance* 

* Travel rates are based on current rates set by the Province of Alberta.  Rates as of November 18, 2015 are as follows:

• Per kilometer rate for personal vehicle - $.505. Any travel over 2 hours is also reimbursed $25/hour from EDA and $25 from host community.
• Meal Allowances:  Breakfast - $9.20; Lunch - $11:60; Dinner - $20.75
• Personal Expense Daily Allowance - $7.35

ETF, BI&A or BR&E (online):

Three of our CEDTP courses are also available online through the University of Calgary. You can find all course information and registration information on the EDA website.

Each course is offered twice a year, at a cost of $395 +GST.

Economic Development for Elected Officials Course (in-person):

This is a one day course, and the cost varies, depending on number of participants. Pricing is outlined below, plus Trainer expenses, and $30/manual for groups over 10.

• Up to 10 participants= $1750 +GST
• 11-15 participants=$2475 +GST
• 16-20 participants= $3000 +GST
• 21-25 participants=$3500 +GST
• 26-30 participants= $3900 +GST

Trainer Expenses

Note: We try to provide the Trainer closest to the course location in order to reduce expenses as much as possible. The following out-of-pocket travel expenses will be reimbursed when applicable:

o   Meal costs based on paid receipts (to a maximum of the daily provincially rated allowances*)

o   Hotels

o   Airline tickets

o   A per kilometre rate* when using personal vehicle to travel to locations

o   Daily personal expense allowance* 

* Travel rates are based on current rates set by the Province of Alberta.  Rates as of November 18, 2015 are as follows:

• Per kilometer rate for personal vehicle - $.505. Any travel over 2 hours is also reimbursed $25/hour from EDA and $25 from host community.
  
• Meal Allowances:  Breakfast - $9.20; Lunch - $11:60; Dinner - $20.75
  
• Personal Expense Daily Allowance - $7.35
  

4.     What does the cost include?

Generally speaking, the cost of the course includes: course delivery by professional Trainer(s), course manuals delivered to the Host Community, course evaluation sheets, mailed certificates of completion to course participants.

5.     Can participants receive credits from these courses towards their Ec.D. designation?

The awarding of EDAC accreditation points towards an Ec.D. designation is as follows: 5 credits per course (ETF, BIA, BRE, Resilience and EO).

If you wish to obtain the EDAC credits for this course, the fee is $30.00 + GST for the Basic Program and $30+GST for each of the additional Advanced Courses. Cheques are to be made payable to and mailed to Economic Developers Alberta. Participants must ensure they include a copy of their completion certificate(s) and correct mailing address.

The courses can also be applied to EDA’s Professional Management Certificate Economic Developers through the University of Calgary.

6.     Who can book a course?

Communities, regions and organizations interested in hosting community economic development courses in their region are the best candidates to book courses as they have the ability to market the program in their local area, and benefit from the skills derived from the training.

7.     Where do the courses take place?

For in-person courses, the Host is responsible for selecting the course location. Generally, it is in a meeting room that holds approximately 20-30 people comfortably, depending on the size of group expected.

8.     Where can I find a listing of upcoming courses?

EDA lists courses on their website (www.edaalberta.ca) so our members and the general public can view the upcoming course dates and locations.  

9.      How much time do the courses take?

Generally the courses run 9:00-4:00 PM. The Host needs to decide whether they wish to provide lunch and/or coffee service during the course.

10. How do I book a course?

• Communities interested in hosting an in-person course should call the EDA office or send an email to admin@edaalberta.ca in order to propose the course name, possible date/s, time and location. 
• EDA contacts the Trainer closest to the proposed location to determine their availability. If available, EDA confirms date and time (usually 9:00 AM-4:00 PM) with the Host.
  
• Once the date/s are agreed upon, two agreements are completed and signed: one by the Host and the other by the Trainer. 
  
• The Host has up to two weeks to cancel and the Cancellation Policy is stated on the signed agreement.
  
• The Host books a meeting space for the course, and promotes the course to interested participants. You can have a maximum of 20 participants in the ETF, BRE and BIA in-person courses. Up to 30 for the Resilience and Elected Official course.
  
• Approximately two weeks before the course takes place, EDA arranges to ship course manuals, sign-in sheets and evaluation forms to the Host. The Host advises EDA in advance where course manuals are to be shipped.
  
• On course day, the EDA Trainer facilitates the course utilizing the manuals provided. The course has been designed to be somewhat interactive.
  
• Participants fill out evaluation forms at the end of the course
  
• Host mails the evaluation forms back to the EDA office
  
• EDA invoices the Host for the cost of the course + GST + Trainer expenses.