Working with the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP) team, GBC is preparing the next generation of skilled tradespeople. The college delivered the safety training portion of the Construction Quick Start program. The training ran from February 20 to March 1 and was geared specifically to building and concrete restoration — a field facing critical worker shortages.
The Building and Concrete Restoration Association of Ontario (B&CRAO) is providing $25-an-hour-co-op placements to high school students as part of the program to attract young people to the field. The B&CRAO provided the students with all the safety equipment required and also covered the cost of the training program. The goal is for students who complete the program in June to find permanent employment with B&CRAO member companies.
The program attracted a lot of interest, with 120 TDSB students applying for 44 available spots.
“We are so proud to welcome TDSB students to George Brown College and show them everything that this sector has to offer,” said Dr. Adel Esayed, Dean of the Centre for Construction and Engineering Technologies. “The high demand for this pilot program is encouraging and shows that young people are eager to explore opportunities in the skilled trades at a time when the sector needs them more than ever.”
High school student training developed by GBC
Job Coach Gianni Rotondo and Program Manager Suzanne De Freitas, both from GBC’s Augmented Education department, developed the safety training. Students learned basic tool identification and operation, scaffolding set up and tear down, how to build a basic concrete form, and construction site safety guidelines and regulations. The training sets them up for a successful co-op placement and for a future in the industry as a construction craft worker.
Grace Whang, GBC's Community Engagement Manager, and Shelagh Taber Walsh, the School College Work Initiative (SCWI) Program Co-ordinator in GBC’s Community Partnerships Office, organized the effort and worked with the partner organizations to make it happen.
“There is so much opportunity for young people in the skilled trades sector. George Brown College is proud to play a role in training local high school students for invaluable real-world learning opportunities," Whang said. "Suzanne and Gianni were instrumental in bringing the curriculum to life. We are grateful to have partnered with Augmented Education to offer this training program.”
“Practical and paid learning opportunities like these can lead to great career options, exciting futures, and further education down the road for these students," Taber Walsh said. "This could not have happened without the Augmented Education team!”
Learn about full-time programs at the Centre for Construction and Engineering Technologies.
