It is another successful year for Cambrian College at Skills Ontario.
Cambrian students won three medals at Skills Ontario earlier this month, Canada’s largest skilled trades and technology competition for post-secondary students.
Sudbury’s Mathieu Dupuis won silver in the Automation and Controls category. His next competition will be in Vancouver to earn a spot at the World Skills event in China in October. Dupuis graduated this spring from Cambrian’s Electrical Engineering Technology program and will be starting a co-op program this summer at mining company Vale in Sudbury.
“Winning a medal at Skills Ontario feels truly rewarding after all the time and effort I have put into preparing for this competition, and throughout my three years at Cambrian College,” said Dupuis. “I plan to pursue a career in the field as an electrician and look forward to competing in
Vancouver to put my skills to the test.”
Sudbury’s Cierra St-Germain also captured a silver medal, in Metal Fabricator Fitter. She just completed Cambrian’s two-year Welding and Fabrication Technician program. Immediately upon completing her studies, St-Germain was hired full-time by Bristol Machine Works in Sudbury.
“When I toured Cambrian College for the first time before making my final post-secondary choice, I saw the banners hanging on the wall from previous winners and said that one day my name would be on a banner,” said St-Germain. “When I was watching the closing ceremony and saw my name, I shouted ‘I did it.’ I was so overjoyed and felt so accomplished. Skills Ontario
helped confirm my chosen career path and reassures me that I do possess the skills needed to continue thriving in my work environment.”
Hagersville’s Cole van Donkersgoed took home the bronze medal in Heavy Equipment Service. He just completed his first year of the Heavy Equipment Technician program.
“It is an honor placing third in the skills competition as a first-year student for Cambrian and I am looking forward to coming back next year and doing it again,” said van Donkersgoed. “I look forward to taking advantage of the opportunities that comes out of this for my future career.”
Since 2005, Cambrian College has won approximately 56 medals at Skills Ontario, with another 11 medals at Skills Canada.
“Our students do so well at Skills Ontario and Skills Canada because we have a terrific line-up of faculty who know their stuff and do a wonderful job of preparing our students for competition,” says Tom Fahey, one of the coaches for Team Cambrian and a coordinator in the Electrical Engineering Technology program. “In our third-year electrical program we focus on developing critical thinking skills. I believe that is what make Cambrian students stand out. Skilled trades are in high demand and the fact our students do so well makes them highly prized by companies looking to hire new talent.”
