Menu

Navy

confed navy

Confederation College signs MOA with navy

, ,

Confederation College is partnering with the Royal Canadian Navy to educate future sailors.

Through their Non-Commissioned Member Subsidized Training and Education Plan (NCMSTEP), the navy will cover tuition and pay an annual salary to eligible students looking to join the military after graduation. Military-related programs like Aviation Technician, Engineering Technician and Electrical Engineering qualify for the subsidy.

Students will likely need to attain Basic Military Qualification and pursue military training in the summer to fulfill the program.

Naval officers and college administrators gathered Tuesday for a signing ceremony to formalize the partnership.

Lieutenant Navy/Thunder Bay Catholic School Board teacher Joel Biesenthal (Jacob Henriksen-Willis/March 10 2026)

“We are short personnel currently to meet our operational needs, but we’re doing what we can with what we have,” said Lieutenant Navy Joel Biesenthal. “We are working on a major recruiting blitz to get more people to enroll. This is one of those avenues.”

Biesenthal, who is also a teacher with the Thunder Bay Catholic School Board, says he’s happy this program provides opportunities for his past students considering college.

“After I graduated high school, I did not have financial means to go to university. When I enrolled in the navy, it allowed me to get that employment experience and also the financial support to achieve my goals in education,” Biesenthal said.

Confederation Vice President Academic Aaron Skillen says the school is proud to partner with the Canadian Armed Forces. He emphasized the financial benefit of enrollment for potential recruits.

“It’s a wonderful financial aid opportunity,” Skillen said. “There’s a real component there of being supported both financially in your post-secondary studies as well as employment security and stability upon time of graduation.”

Basic Military Training Coordinator Adam Beverly speaks at Tuesday’s ceremony (Jacob Henriksen-Willis/March 10 2026)

Basic Military Training Coordinator and recent Confederation graduate Adam Beverly says joining the navy has been an adventure.

“Basically, if you want to travel, meet new people and gain a lot of overall life experience, it’s a great way to pursue that. And it’s great money to pay for college,” Beverly said.

Commander and Commanding Officer aboard HMCS Margaret Brooke - Teri Share

Royal Canadian Navy offering tours aboard HMCS Margaret Brooke in Thunder Bay

The Royal Canadian Navy is giving residents in the Thunder Bay area an opportunity to see what serving in the navy is all about.

The HMCS Margaret Brooke is in Thunder Bay offering Tours.

On Friday, the ship welcomed high school students from the city, and on Saturday and Sunday, all residents are welcome to visit the ship.

The Tours are being held from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and free shuttles are available at the Community Auditorium with the first bus leaving at 10:30 a.m. and the last bus leaving at 4:00 p.m.

“I mean really the first thing and to put it really, really simply, we’re here to bring the Navy to Canadians and to help create these relationships with specifically Thunder Bay for this port visit, and really just to showcase what the Navy can bring to people and share our experiences because we have a whole whack of stories that we can’t wait to tell everybody,” explained Commander and Commanding Officer aboard HMCS Margaret Brooke, Teri Share.

“So right now, really, we’re in a personal crisis with respect to the Royal Canadian Navy, and we need to recruit people into the service, and so what we’re trying to do is show all the great things that the Navy can do.”

“All the great experiences that it can help provide; I think the really best way to put it is really just to showcase how awesome the Navy is.”

HMCS Margaret Brooke was commissioned in 2022 and, since then, the ship has served as the first navy ship to travel to Antarctica, while also travelling in the Arctic Circle.

“It’s conducted a lot of operations in the Caribbean, and so we’ve done everything from helping to support scientific exploration for sovereignty up in our north and in our areas and the Canadian waters, and also anti-narcotic and anti-drug operations in the Caribbean,” added Share.

The visit to Thunder Bay is a Great Lakes Deployment while also being a part of the Maritime Career Expo.

The HMCS Margaret Brooke is also making stops in Sault Ste. Marie, Owen Sound, Windsor, and Toronto.