Thinking of a future in skilled trades? A community trades training and career dialogue hosted by the Industry Training Authority (ITA) will be held at VIU’s Nanaimo campus on Jan. 15. This free event is open to all members of the community and will cover topics from youth engagement in trades, apprenticeship, and skilled trades career options.
The event is an opportunity for both local business leaders and community members to ask questions, provide input, and find out more about trades training programs on Vancouver Island, and their connection to the community’s future prosperity. This public dialogue will also be an opportunity for residents to speak to VIU trades instructors, current students, and Kevin Evans, CEO of ITA.
“The Dialogue at VIU is about providing opportunity for folks in the Nanaimo area to tell ITA’s senior management and Board of Directors what needs to be done to make sure B.C’.s apprenticeship and trades training system is ready for the skills shortages that are coming at us,” says Evans. “Plus, a dialogue being a two-way conversation, employers, apprentices, training providers, parents, and career-seekers will have a chance to hear why the perception of trades careers is changing and the opportunities have never been greater.”
The community dialogue will also be an opportunity for current and prospective trades students to learn more about VIU’s diverse trades programs, and the wide and range of rewarding careers available from post-secondary education in skilled trades. A tour of the VIU trades training facilities will follow the dialogue session.
The event will be held from 7p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in bldg. 200, rm. 203, 900 Fifth St., Nanaimo. Participants can register at <nanaimo-dialogue@itabc.ca> or call 778-785-2410.
For more information on ITA, visit their website at <www.itabc.ca>.