Articles tagged "Women in Trades Training"
Saying farewell to Dean of Trades and Apprenticeship, Stephen Speers
June 23, 2025
After more than four years of energetic leadership, 91Ƭ is bidding farewell to Stephen Speers, Dean of Trades and Apprenticeship, as he embarks on retirement. Since taking on the helm in Trades and Apprenticeship at OC in April 2021, Speers has been a strong advocate for trades education and student success. He has bolstered college-industry partnerships, led improvements to program performance and supported diversity and inclusion across the portfolio. OC currently leads provincial performance (SkilledTrades...
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OC’s Jill of All Trades event inspires the next generation of female skilled trades professionals in the Okanagan
May 23, 2025
They sanded. They torqued. They welded.From automotive service and collision repair to carpentry, plumbing and aircraft maintenance, over 130 middle and high school students rolled up their sleeves and stepped into the world of skilled trades at Jill of All Trades, hosted at 91Ƭ’s Kelowna campus on May 22.Designed to spark curiosity and confidence in young women, Jill of All Trades events offer a full day of hands-on workshops led by experienced skilled trades instructors and mentors —many of whom are industry prof...
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The ACTION Project provides support for female apprentices
May 2, 2025
With the recent celebration of Construction and Skilled Trades Month, 91Ƭ is pleased to announce it has launched a new web page dedicated to supporting the retention of apprentices in the skilled trades, as part of its ongoing efforts to increase the number of people entering the skilled trades.The ACTION Project website at okanagan.bc.ca/action is a dedicated online platform designed to connect female and gender-diverse apprentices in BC’s construction and manufacturing trades with critical supports and opportunities, ...
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91Ƭ takes ACTION to support women in trades
March 7, 2025
91Ƭ (OC) and the Government of Canada have partnered to support female apprentices with a new mentorship and education program aimed at increasing opportunities for females to enter the trades and complete their Red Seal certification.91Ƭ is receiving $873,000 over three years from the Government of Canada to support women in the skilled trades through the ACTION project: Apprenticeship Completion and Networking.The project will support retention and progression of female apprentices in construction and man...
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Women leaders the focus of trades and construction technology event at OC Penticton
March 6, 2025
As president of the Canadian Home Builders Association, a Red Seal carpenter, project manager, interior designer and president of her own design and building company, Krista Paine knows first-hand how to thrive in the construction industry.Paine will share her story and join other women professionals at the Women in Architecture, Construction and Engineering Summit at 91Ƭ’s Penticton campus this Friday (Mar. 7), in celebration of International Women’s Day.Hard work and determination combined with good training have allo...
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91Ƭ partners with WeBC to empower women entrepreneurs in the beverage and construction industries
January 30, 2025
91Ƭ (OC), OC’s BC BTAC (BC Beverage Technology Access Centre) and WeBC (Women’s Enterprise Centre) know that when women entrepreneurs come together, their collective strength and innovation can transform industries.Recognizing this, the organizations have partnered to launch two new peer mentorship programs designed to empower women in the beverage and construction sectors as part of the Growing Women Entrepreneurs project. This initiative aims to increase opportunities for women entrepreneurs in the beve...
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Women of Steel™: Forging Forward Program comes to Okanagan in partnership with 91Ƭ and CWB Welding Foundation
January 16, 2023
91Ƭ is launching a new program designed specifically to encourage women to consider a career in welding this winter/spring. The Women of Steel™: Forging Forward Program, supported by the CWB Welding Foundation, is being offered in just 14 locations across Canada. As one of the host sites, students who choose OC will not only gain skills related to welding, but will also have opportunities that foster education, personal growth, confidence, and experiential learning. “We continue to look for new opportunities t...
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Prospera gives big in support of Women in Trades at 91Ƭ
November 28, 2022
More women will get a chance to lace up their work boots and take the first step in a career in trades, thanks to a recent $79,660 gift from Prospera to a program at 91Ƭ that has already trained over 1,300 women since it was founded. The Women in Trades Training program was created to remove barriers for women interested in pursuing trades education and help meet the community’s surging need for skilled trades professionals. “These bursaries and added equipment provide opportunities for women to pursue t...
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New ‘Step into Steel Toes’ course invites women to try carpentry
August 29, 2022
Home renovations on your to-do list? Curious about power tools and considering a project? 91Ƭ is launching a new trades exploratory program this fall – exclusively for women. “More and more women are expressing an interest in learning skills related to carpentry, electrical, plumbing, automotive and sheet metal projects,” says Teresa Kisilevich, associate dean, Trades and Apprenticeship at 91Ƭ. “Step into Steel Toes is designed to make it easier for women of all ages to feel comfortable trying out vario...
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FortisBC powers up support for women and Indigenous students
September 24, 2021
New awards and opportunities for mentorship with FortisBC are making it easier for female and female Indigenous students to be successful with their trades education. FortisBC recently set up three scholarships for women in trades with a focus on supporting female students who are at the mid-point in their education. The scholarship comes with the potential for the student to meet with FortisBC representatives and connect with someone working in a role they may be interested in pursuing in the future. "We wanted to support student...
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Edible garden project at OC’s Penticton campus to feed students, community members
June 29, 2021
A partnership between 91Ƭ's Penticton campus and the Medical Arts Research Group is helping to root out food insecurity amongst students and local families. An edible garden program is being established on the north end of the Penticton campus, with the aim to provide fresh vegetables to OC students and food bank patrons in the community. Medical Arts Research Group donated the wood and fence material for the project. Raised garden beds were built in May by students in the Women in Trades Training program, and install...
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Meet Cemone Bredeson, Plumbing and Pipefitting instructor
November 25, 2020
Q: What is your education and background? A: I completed my trades training at BCIT to obtain my Red Seal certificate in the steamfitting and pipefitting trade. I’ve got a B Gas ticket for the Province of British Columbia. I’m also Red Seal-certified in Plumbing and am currently working on obtaining my Provincial Instructors Diploma at VCC. Q: What is your area of interest? A: I am intrigued by how the brain works to process information. I want to know more ab...
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Making mentors: OC Women in Trades and Willowstone Academy students learn and build together
March 6, 2020
Sometimes a finished carpentry project turns out to be far more than the sum of its parts, when the tools, techniques and materials combine to create something unforgettable and transformative. The same goes for educational experiences, as demonstrated by a recent event that brought together students from Willowstone Academy and 91Ƭ’s Women in Trades Training (WITT) program, with support from the Industry Training Authority (ITA). On Thursday, March 5 a class of WITT students arrived in the early hours of the morning ...
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College powers up new welding building in Penticton
August 20, 2018
Welders training in the South Okanagan now have a state-of-the-art new shop in which to spark their torches and test their metal. 91Ƭ officials, students, industry partners and community members gathered at the Penticton campus today to mark the opening of the College’s new $2.2-million, 465-square-metre (5,000 square ft.), welding facility. Among them was a class of 16 Welder Foundation students, who, under the tutelage of instructor Mark Stathers, will be the first to train in the facility. The shop they’ll soon ste...
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College opens new Trades Training Centre in Vernon
August 7, 2018
A class of Plumbing and Piping Foundation trades students were the first to step through the doors of the newly completed Trades Training Centre at 91Ƭ’s Vernon campus at 7 a.m. this morning. A few hours later, they helped to officially open the space where they will hone their trade. Stephen Fuhr, Member of Parliament for Kelowna - Lake Country and The Hon. Melanie Mark, Minister of Advanced Education, Skills and Training joined 91Ƭ President Jim Hamilton and other College officials, donors, industr...
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