It’s been a long process for the stakeholders involved in the Australia Agriculture College, after they bought the old Sacred Heart Hospital site  (also known as Mercy Care Hospital) - saving it from potential demolition - last year.  

Chairperson for the college and agricultural scientist John Troughton said he was excited to launch the college after a long process and a few setbacks along the way.

He thinks the college will help make Young a centre of agricultural education. 

“This is a great day for agriculture, for agriculture education and a great day for Young,” he said.  

“It’s a new era for agricultural education.”

He said the investors - who remain anonymous - were based in Australia.

Dr Troughton thinks the teaching of agriculture in universities is being diluted, with degrees becoming too generalist. 

He said the new college will focus on new ideas, innovation and entrepreneurship in agriculture. 

“The universities, they’ve lost sight of the fact that agriculture is about getting out there and getting on the farm,” Dr Troughton said. 

“We are an organisation using agricultural education by the farmers for the farmers.

“We’re very conscious that there are a lot of family farmers...who want to make sure their sons and daughters can get access to this sort of education and create the next generation.”

While initially the college will be offering short courses, there are plans to eventually offer full degree programs. 

The college will focus on local links but also look to the international student market. 

“We’ve got to understand how different people live and work to develop products for those markets,” Dr Troughton said.

“In terms of understanding different cultures, having people from around the world here will help with that.”

And there are hopes the college will not only bring new people to Young but provide job opportunities for locals. 

“There will be jobs created as soon as the college becomes active,” Dr Troughton said.

“Where possible we will draw from the local community and work with local community groups.”

It was Young’s close proximity to Canberra, access to industry and of course the availability of a suitable building - the Old Mercy Care Hospital - that led the group to Young.

“The beauty of Young is that it’s close enough to Canberra...we can bring them (politicians) down and take them away from that parliament place and have the time to talk things through,” Dr Troughton said. 

Young’s mayor John Walker said he was thrilled the college was finally going ahead. 

“It will be very good for the town and hopefully will continue to grow over the years,” he said.

“We will help wherever we can, it’s good news, we’ve been wondering for quite a while where it was going.

Dr Troughton said he hoped the college would be active within the next few months. 

“The next two or three months there will only be very short courses.

“We’ll probably have some sort of launch in Albury in July. In Young we’ll come down and have an opening maybe.

“We want to make sure the public and whole world know what we’re on about.”