Huntsville High School (HHS) was already providing its manufacturing students with a head start on their future welding careers. Now, thanks to a $20,000 grant from the Canadian Welding Association (CWA) Foundation, they will be even better prepared.
Teacher Jim Milne had been in contact with the CWA to arrange training for the welding instructors within the school board to create a stronger link between the high schools and colleges. When the CWA learned that some of the training equipment in the HHS shop was 10 to 12 years old, they suggested he apply for a grant. A mere four weeks later he learned the application had been approved – the shop is already a test centre for students in the Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM) program, which helped to fast-track the application.
The $20,000 grant allowed for the purchase of eight, three-in-one welding machines, four of which have arrived in the shop already, with the remainder to arrive next week.
“It brought the welding side of the shop right up to date to machines that are current technology,” said Milne. “It means more hands-on time on the equipment instead of students rotating through one machine.”
That will have a direct impact on the approximately 160 students in grades nine through 12 that will take manufacturing classes this school year.
It will also improve the school’s testing ability for students (it doesn’t provide testing for people outside the SHSM program). “During the CWB level 1 flat welding exam, we used to only be able to run six at a time, now we can run eight. We’ll be able to have more students in the same amount of time take the exam.” That exam is one of six certifications paid for by the Ministry that students complete as part of the SHSM program.
Last year, six students passed the CWB level 1 flat welding exam – which many colleges only offer after one year of study – the highest ever at HHS.
HHS Manufacturing student Blake Schmitz shows off one of the first welds made with the new equipment (Photo: Jim Milne)
“Usually by the time we have the students prepared, it’s late in the semester but we started earlier last year,” said Milne, noting that the first-time failure rate on the exam is high everywhere, including at the college and employment levels. Half of the twelve students who took the exam last year passed.
The CWA Foundation was created in May of 2013 primarily to address the shortage of welding professionals which it says stems from “an aging Canadian population, a lack of young people being attracted to the skilled trades, and historical decisions of secondary and post-secondary educational institutions to reduce their focus on skilled trades training.”
In the last two years, the HHS Manufacturing program has also received a class set of welding helmets through a grant from the foundation.
This year’s students are already working with the new equipment and will soon begin projects designed to give them a taste of what a future career could look like. Milne’s goal is for his students to have real-world skills by the time they graduate, so that when they leave HHS they are ready to go on a first-year apprenticeship.
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