What happens when Canada doesn't have enough trained workers to care for its aging population — and what role do career colleges play in closing that gap? In this episode of the EdUp Canada podcast, host Michael Sangster sits down with Tiara Sisson, President of Life and Death Matters, an organization that has partnered with career colleges across Canada for over 15 years to train personal support workers, healthcare aides, and continuing care professionals in palliative care.

Tiara brings a remarkable personal history — from special education to legal work to directing administration at one of North America's largest correctional facilities — all leading to her current mission: ensuring that the men and women entering Canada's long-term care and hospice sector leave their training not just with technical competence, but with the emotional intelligence, resilience, and palliative approach that defines truly excellent care.

This is a conversation about the value of skills-based training, the very real funding pressures facing Canada's career college sector, and why the stakes have never been higher for getting palliative care education right.

[00:02:00] — From special education to law to running one of North America's largest correctional facilities — the unlikely path that led to palliative care.

[00:06:00] — Government funding cuts, visa caps, and what the current climate really means for career colleges and their partners.

[00:07:00] — Why module nine is the most powerful moment in PSW training — and what a palliative lens actually changes for students.

[00:09:00] — The single most important skill in long-term care, and why it has nothing to do with clinical technique.

[00:11:00] — The emotional reality of losing patients — and why the best programs build caregiver resilience into the curriculum from day one.

[00:12:00] — What managing 10,000 inmates teaches you about showing up for people on their hardest days.

[00:16:00] — The one question that has guided every major career decision: "What do I need to do to create the future I want?"

[00:20:00] — A closing call to stay informed — because when it comes to palliative care, it's going to happen to all of us.

Read the full transcript here: https://share.descript.com/view/0pKfXPozxpA

Listen to past episodes here: https://www.edupcanada.ca/

What happens when the country with one of the world's strongest education brands spends two years changing the rules — 16, 17, 18 times? You get instability. Perception damage. And students looking elsewhere.

In this episode, Michael Sangster sits down with Larissa Bezo, President & CEO of the Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE), for a candid, wide-ranging conversation about the state of Canada's education system — where it broke, what it's costing us, and what it will take to rebuild.

Larissa doesn't pull punches. She explains why Canada's next decade must be defined by trust rather than growth, reveals that a startling 3% of Canadian post-secondary students study abroad (compared to far higher rates in Europe), and makes the case that every part of Canada's education ecosystem — from career colleges training personal support workers to research-intensive universities — has a unique and vital role to play.

She also shares the story of the mentor who helped build Medicare under Tommy Douglas, and how his belief in thinking decades ahead rather than in election cycles shaped her own approach to public service.

What to Expect: Episode Timestamps

[00:03] — International Education at a Genuine Inflection Point

[00:07] — The Brand Damage Report: 16 Policy Changes in 2 Years

[00:09] — "Countries That Treat Students Transactionally Will Lose Them Relationally"

[00:12] — The 7-to-2 Warning: Canada's Workforce Cliff

[00:13] — A Career College Training Personal Support Workers in Kenya

[00:18] — The Mentor Who Helped Build Medicare

[00:27] — The 3% Wake-Up Call

[00:29] — What Policy Stability Would Actually Unlock

What does it actually take to change a family’s trajectory? In this episode of EdUp Canada, host Michael Sangster sits down with Dylan Matter, Chief Operating Officer of Cambria College in British Columbia — a leader with 18 years in the career college sector who has quietly become one of its most respected voices.

Dylan opens up about his unlikely entry into education (hint: it started behind a coffee bar), what it means to watch a first-generation graduate walk across a stage surrounded by 15 proud family members, and how Cambria trained 250 mental health support workers in a single year — not because the government asked, but because the community needed it.

Together, Dylan and Michael dig into the layers of regulation most people never see, why the location of a career college in a strip mall or above a restaurant is a deliberate strategy — not a compromise — and what it really means when a school’s survival depends entirely on whether its graduates find jobs. This is an honest, grounded conversation about what skills training looks like from the inside.

[00:02:00] — From lattes to leadership Dylan’s unlikely origin story — how a Starbucks regular changed the direction of his career.

[00:04:00] — 15 guests at graduation What it really means when a first-generation family fills the seats — and why it hits differently than a university convocation.

[00:08:00] — 250 students, 15 cohorts, one year The mental health support worker program that grew with unexpected momentum and what it reveals about community-driven skills demand.

[00:11:00] — “Our survival is based on your success” The outcomes-first accountability model at the heart of career college education — in Dylan’s own words.

[00:12:00] — More regulated than you think The layers of oversight behind a single program: provincial approval, industry accreditation, practicum agreements with health authorities.

[00:16:00] — Why being above a Cactus Club is a strategy The case for accessible, community-embedded campuses — and why the ‘impulse visit’ student is exactly who they’re designed to serve.

[00:20:00] — “Make people your cheerleaders” The graduation speech advice Dylan has given for 15 years — and the story of how his last three jobs all came through referral.

[00:26:00] — The receptionist is the heart Who really holds a career college together — and why the front desk may be the most important role in the building.

Read the full transcript here: https://share.descript.com/view/eRxaNez2XnB

Listen to past episodes here: www.edupcanada.ca