High school helps bridge the skills gap
August 21, 2008
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Jennifer Brown
SPECIAL TO THE STAR
He has only golfed four times in his life, but Tyler Delaney feels right at home on the course.
Instead of swinging the clubs, Delaney has spent his summer swinging a hammer and making sure the bunkers and facilities are in top form at the Bradford Highlands Golf Club.
He also thinks he may have found his future career path.
It's a big change from a year ago, when the 18-year-old Bradford District High School student was close to dropping out. Now, thanks to a program that provides training in the construction trade, he's considering college.
Delaney acquired the skills necessary to land the job through the Specialist High Skills Major program (SHSM), which helps students prepare for the transition to apprenticeship training, college, university or employment while earning their high school diploma.
Programs are offered in arts and culture, transportation and construction – the program Delaney chose so he could earn his Level 1 construction apprenticeship.
The Grade 11 and 12 credit courses include construction, English, math, co-op and science. Students must also earn certification in CPR and First Aid.
Delaney earned his co-op credits by working with local contractors, in co-operation with Local 183 of the Universal Workers Union – the Vaughan-based union that represents basic labourers at area construction sites.
He heard about the program through a friend who was already in it.
"I struggled through high school and I thought working with my hands would be better for me," says Delaney. "I probably wouldn't even be in school if it wasn't for this program."
His mom, Terri, figures the opportunity came just in time. She says her son is not a "sit-in-classroom kind of student," and was on the verge of dropping out.
"I'm pretty proud of him. He came home from school one day and told me about the program. I said, `If it helps to keep you going to school, of course you should do it.'"
When it comes to landing a co-op placement, the students are required to do some of the legwork, but teachers often help.
Jonathan Sweeny, a co-op teacher with Bradford High's SHSM construction program, says he finds about 80 per cent of the jobs for the 14 students in the program.
Once the students are working, employers have the option of paying them.
"I got paid the second day on the job," Delaney says proudly.
He has a year and a half left in the program before he graduates, but he's already thinking about going to Georgian College to pursue golf course management.
He has seen first hand how the skills he learned in SHSM have translated to his current workplace.
"When trucks come through, I use my site safety traffic control that I got through Local 183. I drove a few machines at 183, too, and drive some of those at the golf course now."
Buddy McGrath is the first graduate of the Bradford High program. He received his diploma last year, as well as his Level 1 in-school curriculum for the construction craft worker trade, earning a red seal on his diploma.
He is planning to take environmental technology at Georgian this fall.
"I knew I didn't want to be doing something after school that involved sitting in an office – I wanted to be working outside. This sounded like it was perfect for me," says McGrath, 17.
He landed a job placement with construction firm Aecon Utilities in Barrie and, after three weeks, the company put him on the payroll.
This summer, he made $12 an hour doing various jobs for the company.
Aecon requires all union members to have a set of certifications, and because McGrath had been through the Local 183 program, the company knew he was prepared.
"We have summer students who work in the office or the yards, but most aren't ready to work with a crew like Buddy was," says George LaFave, superintendent with Aecon in Barrie.
He says the program is something the industry needs. "I think it's great; he's done a good job for us."
Bradford High principal Dana Barakauskas has spoken with several contractors and tradespeople who are surprised by the number of certifications the SHSM students obtain. "They often see young people come to the trades with little or no exposure to these certifications."
Students receive training and certification in fall arrest/fall protection, WHMIS (Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System), forklift operation and propane safety.
"I'm a huge proponent of safety," Sweeny says.
A registered builder with 26 years in the industry, Sweeny tries to apply his real-life construction experience to his job as a co-op teacher.
For example, rather than having students read a typical Grade 12 novel, he gives them an article on the failure of a bridge in Quebec City. "Then we tell them to do some research to determine why the bridge failed."
When they do math, students are told they are building a house and have to figure out the volume of concrete needed, how thick the footing has to be, etc.
"It introduces the students to the fact that it's not just hammering nails and wood together, there's a lot more to it – the business aspect of it, and the importance of math skills – knowing areas and volumes, dimensions," he says.
The practical learning continues with the co-op component, which Sweeney says is getting easier to arrange as word gets out that the students who have taken the SHSM program have a skills edge.
"The average age of an apprentice is 24 to 30 years old. I'm trying to get these students in at 15, 16, 17 years old," he says.
"But I just ask the employers to give them an opportunity, given that we've equipped them with specific training."
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