Two Wellington County students will be joining an elite group beginning post secondary education before they’ve even graduated high school.
Noah Major of Drayton and Gavyn Meyer of Rockwood, both 17, are joining six other high school students from Guelph in the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program Level 1 Auto Service Technician Dual Credit Program.
Usually students entering the apprenticeship program have more experience.
“Essentially you’re sitting in a place where someone a year and a half out of graduation has been working in a shop for about a year, a year and a half is,” said Derek Ethier, employment and training consultant for the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development.
“And here you are still in high school and having that type of opportunity.”
The program will take place at the Guelph campus of Conestoga College.
“Basically it gives you the opportunity (as) high school students to take college programs while [you’re] still in high school,” Upper Grand District School Board dual credit lead resource teacher Joanne Harris told students at the Feb. 13 orientation.
“Hopefully everyone’s interested in automotive, I’m hoping that you’re not just kind of getting a feel for it, this is what you’re wanting to do and it gets you to sample the college experience but you’re not just left on your own.
“That’s why we’re here as your support people and there’s many people that can help you get through it.”
The high school students officially begin the program on March 6 and will earn the required credits for the in-school theory portion of the Level 1 apprenticeship while also earning two co-op credits and two dual credits that will apply to their Ontario Secondary School Diploma, Harris said.
Before even beginning the program the high school students were paired with an employer that will take them on as an apprentice once the in-school theory is complete to teach them the necessary skills to complete Level 1 training.
Ashley Major was at Conestoga College representing Dwight’s Transmission, which will be Noah’s sponsor. She said Noah would be working with them before the March 6 coursework start date.
“Making sure he gets as much as he can before he comes in March and then after making sure he can get everything possible to get him ready for that second level because it’s pretty intense when you come back as well,” she said.
Ashley is a recent graduate of the Conestoga College Automotive Service program.
“So it gives him some good insight,” she said.
Through the dual credit program the high school students will have their tuition, books and some transportation costs covered for their first year in a partnership with the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development and their employer.
However, they will be in a class with regular track adult apprentices.
“They’re actually your mentors, they’re probably more intimidated by you … you’re in that classroom setting, you’re in that academic setting, you don’t know where they’re coming from or what skill sets,” Ethier said.
For Meyer the idea of going to the college for classes isn’t intimidating because he did the college apprenticeship preparation program at Conestoga College last year.
The St. James Catholic High School student said he will be apprenticing with TNA Automotive in Rockwood.
When asked what it was about the automotive industry he likes he said, “Hands on, it’s kind of a rewarding career.
“If something comes in broken, we fix it and it goes out fixed, nothing wrong with it.”
Noah, a Norwell District Secondary School student, hopes to work on aftermarket and performance aspects of cars.
“I like just the technical part and the fact that everybody pretty much drives a car so somebody needs to be there to fix them,” he said.
Once the eight high school students in the dual credit automotive service program this year complete their in-school work and their employer deems their knowledge complete for Level 1 training they will enter Level 2 automotive training the same as any other apprentice.
Both the Upper Grand and Wellington Catholic school boards have a number of options for students to earn dual credits with a college and high school credit.
To find out more about programs available Upper Grand students can contact Joanne Harris at joanne.harris@ugdsb.on.ca and Wellington Catholic students can contact Anne Schurr at aschnurr@wellingtoncdsb.ca.
