20 days until the Opening Ceremony!

2012 AWARDS CEREMONY LIVE ONLINE
Mark your calendar to watch the Provincial Skills Canada Competition at SkillsAlberta.com 5:30pm May 11, 2012 Skills Canada National Competional at SkillsCanada.com 10am May 16, 2012 Missed the 2011 Provincial Skills Canada Competition Awards Ceremony? Relive the excitement online!

2012 SCA PARTNERS
Government Partners Skills Champion Platinum Partner Elite Partners Gold Partners

FOLLOW US

Skills Canada Alberta
Update

AT THE SKILLS OFFICE...

In just over 20 days, the largest Provincial Skills Canada Competition we've ever hosted begins!

In this our 20th anniversary year it is fitting that we've grown our regional and provincial events hosting hundreds of additional students and new competitions. We are also proud that the 2012 Skills Canada National Competition will also be hosted in Alberta.

Best of luck to all competitors participating in the Regional Skills Canada Competitions today and over the coming week.

The stakes are high this year with Team Canada WorldSkills Leipzig 2013, being selected at the Skills Canada National Competition.

Good luck to our competitors vying for a spot on the international stage.

Hope to see you in May!

SCHOOL TOUR SUBSIDIES

Mobilize Alberta to Attend the Provincial and National Skills Canada Competition on a Fieldtrip

Through a partnership with Edmonton Economic Development Corporation, Skills Canada Alberta is pleased to fully fund the travel costs of Edmonton area schools attending the Provincial and National Skills Canada Competitions on an interactive fieldtrip, May 10-11 & May 14-15.

Schools outside of the Edmonton area are eligible for a $500 travel subsidy.

Students will take part in dozens of Try-A-Trades®, meet with industry experts to learn more about their career opportunities, and connect with post-secondary institutes offering information on hundreds of career opportunities.

We encourage all schools to send their junior and senior high schools to attend the event!

Some schools send all their junior high students or a particular grade. Other schools send students to cheer on their peers that are competing, or students that are enrolled in trade and technology courses and need inspiration on their career opportunities.

Information on a school tour...

Teacher Referral

This May schools have double the opportunity to attend a Skills Canada Competition, during the Provincial and National Skills Canada Competitions May 10-11 and May 14-15, 2012, Edmonton Expo Centre.

There are four days

to choose from, with the same exciting Skill City and Try-A-Trades® hosted at the competitions.

In addition to the travel subsidy, teachers that refer another teacher that has not

brought students on a field trip before, will receive a $50 gas gift card.

Spread the word about the Skills Canada Competition fieldtrip opportunities and we will send you a gas card as a thank you.

Click here to register a group on a fieldtrip.

CTS CONFERENCE
We'll see many Skills Champions at the annual Career and Technology Studies Conference at the River Cree in Edmonton on April 19-21, 2012. Join our experts for hands-on sessions and expand your skills in the classroom. Visit the CTS Conference website for details or register onsite today and tomorrow. It isn't too late to make plans to attend!

BRING SKILLS TO YOUR CLASSROOM IN MAY AND JUNE

Demand is high for our Education Coordinator, Drew Ziprick, to do in-class presentations across Alberta. He is fully booked to do presentations until after our competitions finish.

He will be available to do presentations after May 23 until the end of the school year. Year round schools can also request to host a presentations over the summer.

This is a great way of getting your students excited about upcoming competitions and career paths. Share the excitement of the Skills Movement with your administration and encourage your school to support the talented students that participate in our Regional and Provincial Skills Canada Competitions.

More details...

ENCANA EQUIPMENT GRANTS

Thank you to the 39 schools that applied for the Skills Canada Alberta Encana Equipment Enhancement Grants. We appreciate the time and effort required to complete the application and encourage schools to reapply in February of 2013.

Thanks to a partnership with Encana Corporation the following schools will receive $10,000 to develop their Career and Technology Studies (CTS) programs:

Barrhead Composite High School - Barrhead
The automotive alignment equipment will support high school
students to prepare for their first period auto service apprenticeship examination.

Chestermere High School - Chestermere
The grant will allow the school to purchase an Engine Lathe to enhance their Machinist/Millwright Development Program.

Grande Cache Community High School - Grande
Cache
The purchase of a CNC Router will provide students with industry standard equipment. Students will produce goods for sale, learning the fundamentals of starting a small business.

J.R. Robson High School - Vermilion

The equipment will replace outdated carpentry equipment and launch a new electrical program.

These equipment grants will provide resources to classrooms, removing barriers and providing additional tools for skill development.

Additional grant details...

SKILLS COMPETITIONS HELP LIGHT THE WAY FOR ELECTRICIAN APPRENTICE

When Teegan Davies competed in her first Skills Canada Competition at the age of 16, she did not have the same confidence she has today.

She spent several summers working alongside her father in the electrical trade, and at 15, she signed on as a Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP) student through her high school - but it wasn't until she entered a Skills Competition that she says she truly began to believe in herself.

"The encouragement I have been given through Skills Competitions has been a tremendous benefit, especially in those first years when I was often the youngest person on site, and the only girl," said Teegan, who is now 19 and about to begin the third year of her electrician apprenticeship program at Red Deer College. "Skills Canada gave me confidence. They believed in me and made me believe in myself."

May 2012 will be Teegan's first time competing in a Skills Competition at the post-secondary level. In previous years, as a high school student, she won silver and gold medals at the provincial level, and placed 5th at the national level.

"I feel much more prepared this year," said Teegan. "Since the last time I competed, I've dipped into the industrial field and will have one more year of electrical training completed. I think more experience and education is a great way to meet the challenges presented during the competition."

Full article...