Murray Wood: Will style ever be in style again?
A long-time dry cleaning business just closed in Regina. Its owner says business dropped because people don't dress up a...
In busy classrooms buzzing with conversation, humming computers and the sounds of tools at work, students at the Regina Trades and Skills Centre are building more than new careers.
For some, they’re getting a second chance at careers they left behind.
Read more:
- One wall at a time: Volunteers help Denare Beach families rebuild after devastating wildfire
- WATCH: Winter Olympics brings inspiration to young Saskatchewan speed skaters
- Sask. speech pathologist faces shortage, but new local program offers hope
The free training programs at centre are opening doors for people looking to enter the workforce while also helping newcomers reconnect with careers they’ve always dreamed of returning to.
Listen to the story on Behind the Headlines:
For Shilpa Patel, that dream has always been teaching.
Patel worked as a teacher in India before moving to Canada more than three years ago, but starting over meant leaving her career behind. Now, after completing centre’s instructional assistant program, she’s one step closer to getting back into the classroom.
“I built a lot of confidence here. Now, I’m speaking in front of you because of this training, because they give lots of presentation chances, teamwork and everything,” she said.
Shilpa Patel sitting in a classroom at the Regina Trades and Skills Centre on her last day of class before going to work as an instructional assistant with Regina Catholic Schools. (Abby Zieverink/980 CJME)
She admitted that adjusting to Canada’s education system hasn’t been easy, but every challenge has brought her closer to her goal.
“The teaching system is a little bit different, so I also want to learn that. My journey was a little bit of a struggle, but I did it,” she chuckled.
That perseverance has her looking ahead to the future.
“I’m very excited,” exclaimed Patel. “I just want to improve my language a little bit, and then I will restart my career.”
Down the hall, the sounds of drills and hammers echoed through a workshop where electrical students were weaving wires through rough-framed walls, turning classrooms into simulated job sites.
Jacob Picard came to Regina from Ontario several years ago and enrolled in the centre’s electrical program with only a small amount of experience.
“Before coming here, I’ve done little projects in my house,” he said.
“I had no idea what exactly to expect to learn here, but it has exceeded my expectations. I’ve learned things I didn’t even know were things, how to wire things that I didn’t even know could be done. My experience has grown tenfold since being here.”
For Picard, the hands-on learning has made all the difference.
Jacob Picard says he’s eager to continue pursuing a career as a journeyman electrician after finishing up the program at the Regina Trades and Skills Centre. (Abby Zieverink/980 CJME)
“We went into a framing class and got to experience working with a finished wall,” he explained. “We also went into a garage package room where other students put up a garage, and we got to wire that up.”
Now, Picard said he is looking beyond the classroom.
“We get put on a two-week work placement, hopefully with the goal of getting hired on afterwards full time, and then I will continue to get more hours and then go to school and continue to level up my apprentice program and eventually become a journeyman,” he said.
In another shop, Parwiz Mohammad was underneath a vehicle, finishing an oil change with the confidence of someone who’s found exactly where he belongs.
Parwiz Mohammad found a passion for working on vehicles, and plans to use the tire and lube program at the Regina Trades and Skills Centre to get his boot in the door and eventually become a journeyman mechanic. (Abby Zieverink/980 CJME)
He’s enrolled in the Regina Trades and Skills Centre’s tire and lube program, but said his passion for working on vehicles started years ago.
“This is the only thing I’m good at, and I see myself here in the same trade for the next 25 years,” Mohammad explained.
Mohammad says helping his stepfather repair his mom’s vehicle sparked a passion that only grew stronger over time.
“Originally, when I first started helping my stepdad work on my mom’s vehicle, I realized it was something I could do very easily and stuff that comes to me pretty easily just by looking at it,” he said.
“The more I did it, the more I got better at it. It’s my happy place.”
Parwiz Mohammad finishes up an oil change in the tire and lube program at the Regina Trades and Skills Centre. (Abby Zieverink/980 CJME)
Wiping his hands on a shop rag after finishing the job, Mohammad said he’s eager for what’s next.
“I’m actually very excited that we got our job placements and I have an opportunity to go to school for free now, so I’m looking forward to that,” he said.
Whether they’re returning to a lifelong calling or discovering a new one, these students are proving the skills they’re learning at te Regina Trades and Skills Centre go far beyond the classroom.
