Trades for ME Presque Isle Conference Will Introduce Girls to Trades Professions
The event, formally named Totally Trades!, has not taken place on NMCC campus since 2019. Pictured above, attendees explore the welding lab on NMCC campus.
PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Registration is open for the Trades for ME (formerly Totally Trades!) Presque Isle conference to be held Wednesday, October 25, 2023. The conference will be hosted by New Ventures Maine (NVME) at Northern Maine Community College (NMCC) from 9:00 AM – 1:30 PM.
The conference is offered at no cost and is designed to encourage students in grades 8-12 to consider careers in which women are traditionally underrepresented.
The conference will feature sessions ranging from heavy equipment operation to water treatment to welding, all providing an opportunity for youth in 8th grade through high school to experience trade professions through hands-on activities.
“We want attendees to remove the potential barrier of gender when considering careers for the future,” said Suzanne Senechal-Jandreau, NVME Workforce Development Manager and Trades for ME organizer.
The conference is generously supported by the NMCC campus community, which serves as the host site for the event. “We are excited to welcome participants to campus to explore a diverse range of career paths,” said Cassie Rogeski, Student Support Career Specialist at NMCC. “NMCC faculty, staff, and students will collaborate with several community volunteers to create an engaging day for all students.”
The Trades for ME website (tradesforme.org) also features on-demand virtual sessions that highlight nontraditional careers for students in Grades 8-12. The 15-minute video sessions focus on high-wage, high-demand careers in trade and technical fields. Automotive, Criminal Justice, Carpentry, Solar Installation, Firefighting, Software Engineering, and other trade careers are featured in the series as well as an “Earn While You Learn” session on internships, apprenticeships and on-the-job training.
After sharing videos with students last spring, one school staff person remarked, “What I enjoyed the most was the accessibility of the videos; they helped to motivate the kids, and the videos were easy to follow and understand.”
Funding for Trades for ME is provided by Maine Career and Technical Education/MaineDOE (utilizing federal Carl D. Perkins funds) and the Maine Department of Transportation. Additional support and in-kind contributions are provided by businesses and community partners, including Charter Communications, Darling’s, Oxford Federal Credit Union and LP Building Solutions.
For more information visit the Trades for ME website at tradesforme.org or contact Suzanne Senechal-Jandreau at 207-768-9635 or senechal@maine.edu.
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About New Ventures Maine: New Ventures Maine (NVME) is a statewide program of the University of Maine at Augusta, University of Maine System, an equal opportunity/affirmative action institution. The NVME mission is to help Maine people succeed in the changing economy and achieve economic security for themselves and their families. New Ventures Maine creates an empowering environment for Maine people to define and achieve their career, financial, and small business goals. For more information, visit newventuresmaine.org.
About Northern Maine Community College: Founded in 1961, NMCC is an accredited two-year public community college located in Presque Isle, Maine. The College is committed to excellence in learning and offers over 30 innovative associate degree and certificate-level programs both online and in-person. NMCC is one of seven colleges in the Maine Community College System. To learn more: visit www.nmcc.edu or call NMCC Admissions at 207-768-2785.