Press release
The Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal's Operation Back to School 2008 Business people continue to encourage youth to stay in school
Montréal, May 8, 2008 It is with great pride and satisfaction that the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal has reviewed the 12th edition of Operation Back to School, which came to an end on May 2nd. Since March 31st, over 300 people who truly care about the development of our next generation our talent of tomorrow visited close to 11,000 young students in their 3rd, 4th, and 5th years of high school.
This annual initiative aims to increase young people's awareness about the importance of staying in school and receiving their high school diploma. Business people and other Board of Trade partners, notably from various levels of government, each conveyed in their own way their passion for the job market, their successes, and also their failures.
Young people must also realize that to achieve their dreams and be successful, they must take risks. To outdo oneself, one must therefore forge ahead. This is also what Operation Back to School is about: telling youth to move forward and follow their passion, their heart, and that it is normal to come up against certain obstacles, in the same way that business leaders do. This is all part of learning and of succeeding, stated the President and CEO of the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal, Isabelle Hudon.
Once again this year, young people had the privilege of hearing the testimonials of speakers from several very different milieus, such as Mr. L. Jacques Ménard, Chairman of BMO Nesbitt Burns and President of BMO Financial Group, Quebec; Mr. Guy Mc Kenzie, Deputy Minister/President of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec; Mr. Yannis Mallat, President and General Director of Ubisoft's Montréal Studio; and Mr. Alain Giguère, President of the research firm CROP inc. I would therefore like to sincerely thank these almost 300 individuals who contributed their valuable time to come meet with close to 11,000 young people, speak to them about the importance of staying in school, and respond to their concerns to the best of their abilities, emphasized Isabelle Hudon.
Operation Back to School is made possible through the contribution of Fonds Ville-Marie. The Board of Trade also thanks the Comptables agréés de Montréal for offering a study grant to one of the students visited as part of this activity.
The Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal has some 7,000 members. Its primary mission is to represent the interests of the business community of Greater Montreal and to provide individuals, merchants, and local businesses of all sizes with a variety of specialized services to help them achieve their full potential in terms of innovation, productivity and competitiveness. The Board of Trade is Quebec's leading private economic development organization.
-30-
Source:
Sylvie Paquette
Coordinator, Media relations
Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal
Tel.: 514 871-4000, ext. 4015
sylvie.paquette@ccmm.qc.ca