Trades education program geared to indigenous students gets boost
When Desmond Thomas entered the Trades Winds to Success program and took the first step toward becoming a journeyman pipefitter, he was, by his own account, emerging from a “dark place.”
On top of that, he was entering an industry where he didn’t know anyone and was struggling to cover the costs of the pre-apprenticeship program that would allow him to kick-start his career.
Six years later, his income supports his young family and things are looking a lot brighter. Thomas credits the program with helping him make important connections early in his education and with assistance covering costs.
On Tuesday, the Alberta government announced a $500,000 funding boost to the Trade Winds program. The pre-apprenticeship program prepares students to work in the trades as carpenters, electricians, ironworkers, plumbers or insulators, among others.
“I always thought I wanted to be in the trades, but I did not know how to enter,” he told a news conference Tuesday in northwest Edmonton.
By going through the Trade Winds program, Thomas was introduced to other pipefitters at Local 488 and made “some strong friendships.”
“The men at that hall helped get me my first job and I’ve pretty much been at the same place since,” he said.
Thomas is one of 1,191 students to graduate from the Trade Winds program and enrolment numbers are skyrocketing.
Last year, the program had 135 students and that rose to 350 for the 2016-17 academic year. Word of mouth, driven by stories like Thomas’, has been a big factor in the growing numbers of enrollees.
Joni Watchmaker, from Keheewin, signed up last year and now works as an administrative assistant for the program.
Graduates from the program have already built a “tiny home” — a 468-square-foot house — in her community.
Watchmaker has already convinced her son to enrol this year and her son-in-law to enrol at the end of the month.
“It’s showing them ‘I did it, you can do it,’ ” she said.
Watchmaker said the program has elders who act as mentors and students do daily smudge ceremonies. It’s handy for students because it can often be tough to find the smudge fungus or sage in the city, making it harder to maintain those cultural ties, she said.
“I loved it. They are very approachable people, very supportive,” said Watchmaker.
The government’s $500,000 grant goes toward the Trade Winds to Success Training Society’s 16week pre-apprenticeship program, which runs in Edmonton, Calgary and throughout indigenous communities in the province.