Page 86 - Southern Oregon Magazine Summer 2021

feature | education

Almeda Fire destoyed more that 2,500 homes in Phoenix and Talent

Education is the key to unlocking the world,

a passport to freedom.

high school diploma or GED, and meet other academic requirements. -Oprah Winfrey
Through the Medford pre-apprenticeship program, high school seniors
can graduate with the trades experience needed to successfully apply
for paid apprenticeships. Those not yet 18 can learn skills such as wir-
ing, running conduit, etc. They discover if that trade is for them, and if
so, the program prepares them for transition to a paid apprenticeship or students were able to participate in several off–campus build-
construction employment as they approach graduation. ing site and training center experiences. With last year’s Almeda
fire destroying more than 2,500 residences, the area’s need for
Plumbers and Fitters Local 290 is in a holding pattern, as COVID closed affordable, new residential construction is critical. Construction
their hands-on training center, according to Drew Waits, Business trades CTE programs will help prepare the next generation of
Agent/Organizer. They have, however, done a few field trips and hosted skilled trades people to meet this challenge. The Medford School
a ZOOM presentation at the center. The plumbing field has long had District, in partnership with the Medford Urban Renewal Agency,
an apprenticeship program, meeting the state requirement of 1,080 is in the process of transforming a vacant 20,000-square-foot
hours of schooling and 8,000 hours on-the-job experience before being warehouse into a construction trades education center in which
licensed. And you have to be 18. “I would like to see a pre-apprenticeship regional high school students can gain the skills needed to enter
program for these students where the training and experience hours the skilled trades workforce.
would count toward licensing,” says Waits. It might take a young man or
woman only 20 minutes to determine if this will be their career, some- Looking at the various components, a familiar phrase comes to
thing good to know before entering a formal apprenticeship. Students mind: “It takes a village…” In this case, the village consists of
would also learn the scope of opportunity in the plumbing field. educational institutions, community employers, and apprentice-
ship programs working together to build and rebuild our com-
During the 2020-21 school year, despite COVID closures, MPACT munity—our “village.”

84 www.southernoregonmagazine.com | summer 2021