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The complex, multi-faceted issues surrounding the tradesman crisis require action on many levels.
Local training.
There have been numerous brainstorming sessions on the issue locally, including a meeting that took place back in January at the Community Colleges of Spokane facility in Colville. About two dozen people — representing local tradesmen, Rural Resources, the schools, the college, and more — got together to discuss what needed to be done. The focus ended up being the fact that most training classes are in Spokane, which is time- and cost-prohibitive for potential employees. One of the goals that came out of this meeting was that the college would try to put together an inexpensive program at the facility here in Colville to give students an opportunity to familiarize themselves with the trades and gain a basic knowledge to bridge the gap into a local apprenticeship.
Jaclyn Jacot, the Dean of Extended Learning and Workforce Initiatives at Spokane Community College, was quick to take on the task of designing a curriculum which would include guest teachers (local tradesmen) and would cover subjects such as safety, blueprint reading, basic electrical, carpentry, plumbing, welding, HVAC, and more.
These things don’t happen overnight, of course, and there needs to be decent enough enrollment to warrant running the course. Having this type of curriculum is a huge step in the right direction, but if students don’t have interest in the trades, they won’t…
