Skills for Change



SfCeNews
March 31, 2004
Volume 5  Issue 03

Skills for Change (SfC) is a non-profit agency based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Our mandate is to provide learning and training opportunities for immigrants and refugees so that they can participate in the workplace and wider community.

In this edition...

New Pioneers Awards Gala
Bridge to Success for Trades - Phase II
TechSkills Course Calendar
Staff Training Workshop Held
Employment Resource Centre News
Programs and Services Update

Photos
 

The 2004 New Pioneers Awards was presented on Thursday, March 25 at the Westin Harbour Castle. Once again the gala evening was sold out. Attending guests were inspired by the stories of the six Award recipients. Skills for Change presents the annual New Pioneers Awards to raise public awareness about the achievements made by immigrants and refugees. If you are interested in sponsoring this awards program or wish to nominate exceptional immigrants and refugees for next year's New Pioneers Awards, please contact Karobi Ray at 416-658-3101 ext. 231 or by email.  More about the New Pioneers Awards here.

 

Award Winners

An-lun Huang (Arts) Born in mainland China to a musical family, An-lun Huang was prevented from pursuing his undergraduate studies in music by the Cultural Revolution in his native country. Undeterred, he educated himself and was appointed resident composer and assistant conductor at the Central Opera House of China in Beijing. John Fraser, Master of Massey College, helped An-lun to come to Canada in 1980 to study music at the University of Toronto. [More]	Article
George Sefa Dei (Community Service) George Sefa Dei came to Canada from Ghana in 1979 to pursue higher education, completing his Ph.D. at the University of Toronto and a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Windsor. In 1991, he joined the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) at the University of Toronto and is currently full Professor and Chair of the Department of Sociology and Equity Studies. He was the first Director and a founding member of the Centre for Integrative Anti-Racism Studies at OISE. [More]	Article
Mahesh Agarwal (Entrepreneurship) Born in India, Mahesh Agarwal arrived in Canada in 1968 on a scholarship to study for a Master’s degree in Engineering at the University of New Brunswick. Upon completion of his studies, Mahesh faced great difficulties in finding a job and in 1976, started a home-based business designing home dialysis machines. During the initial stages of his business, Mahesh risked his personal savings for the research, development and production of the machines, as bank financing was gradual with stringent covenants and collaterals. [More]	Article
Andreas Mandelis (Science & Technology) Born in Corfu, Greece, Andreas Mandelis fled military rule and came to Canada in 1979 via the United States. He has been a faculty member at the University of Toronto since 1982 and was appointed a full Professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering and Electrical and Computer Engineering in 1990. He is the Director of the Centre for Advanced Diffusion-Wave Technologies (CADIFT). [More]	Article
Julius Zombori (SfC Graduate) Julius Zombori has a Ph.D. and a Chartered Accountant designation from his home country, Hungary. With several years of senior managerial experience in taxation and accounting, employment with leading organizations in his home country, served as a senior faculty member of Hungary’s premier university and a research fellow at Yale University in the U.S., he hoped to find employment quickly in Toronto. [More]	Article
Shirley Zeng (Youth) In the summer of 1997, Shirley Zeng arrived in Canada with her mother. Not having any knowledge of either English or French, eleven year old Shirley faced the daunting task of learning both languages simultaneously and within a couple of years excelled in high school French earning ‘As’ without ever being tutored. She now speaks Mandarin, English, Cantonese, Spanish and French and is a Spanish tutor in her school and the President of the Hispanic Club. [More]	Article

Sponsors
Skills for Change gratefully acknowledges the generous support of our Sponsors.

Silent Auction

Thank you to the following individuals, companies and organizations who donated goods or services to our New Pioneers Awards Silent Auction:
 

97.3fm Anna Bassovets Anonymous Art Gallery of Ontario Astley-Gilbert Reproductions Audiolab Recording Company Brandfusion Ltd. BTF Canada Corporation Canon Canada Casa Loma Toronto Cecilia Segura Château des Charmes Cineplex Odeon City of Toronto Citytv CN Tower Councillor Joe Mihevc Danceworks Domaine Pinnacle Dufflet Pastries Elemental Embrace - The Wellness Spa Retreat Enjoy Not Cooking Inc. Factory Theatre Finch Centre Jewellers Greyhound Canada Transportation Corp. Harbourfront Centre Instatel Communications Johnson's Unique Sign-A-Gram Johnvince Foods Joseph Anthony Fine Jewellers Jostens Labatt Blue LCBO Loblaws Forest Hill Market Luis Poot MeMeMe Inc. M & F Linen Bazaar Madras Dosa Hut Magnotta Mainline Services Inc. Manulife Financial Mariposa Cruise Line MasterCard Canada Inc. Music Toronto National Jewellers - Niagara Falls Nienkämper Nouvelle Maria Spa and Salon Olga Grupp-Boland Ontario Place Ontario Science Centre Paramount Canada's Wonderland Persian & Oriental Rug Centre Pike Lake Golf & Country Club Planet Hollywood Planters Peanuts Canada PNPhotography Princess Nail Spa Rubbermaid Canada Royal Ontario Museum Sony of Canada Ltd. Sun Life Financial Tafelmusik Tanya's Gifts Tarragon Theatre The Body Shop (Sherway Gardens) The Hannaford Street Silver Band The Keg Steakhouse & Bar The National Ballet of Canada The Tasting Rooms The Westin Harbour Castle Tim Hortons Toronto Blue Jays Toronto Maple Leafs Toronto Roadrunners Toronto Star Toronto Symphony Orchestra Toronto Zoo Trade Secrets Beauty Shops (Square One) Via Rail Canada Vincor International Inc. Vipond Fire Protection Inc. Yolessa Lawrinnce

 

Bridge to Success for Trades - Phase II

Skills for Change, in partnership with Electromechanical School Inc., is launching Phase II of the bridging pilot project for Internationally Trained Trades persons.

Phase II of the project centers on Construction and Maintenance Electricians and is set to start on May 17, 2004. There is great excitement about this new 12 week initiative funded by the Ministry of Training, Universities and Colleges.

Please call our information line from Monday to Friday, 1:00 – 3:00 pm at 416-658-7090 to register for one of our six April orientation sessions to find out more.

Phase I of this project, training Industrial Electricians, is in progress with some individuals already successfully writing and passing their Certification of Qualifications examination for Industrial Electricians. The graduation for Phase I will occur on May 7, 2004.

There is a known need for industry-specific services that support internationally-trained tradespeople in preparing themselves for certification and for successful integration into the labour market as journeypersons.

This pilot phase takes 20 Tradespeople through the development and testing of tools, materials and procedures as well as the employment preparation needed to connect with employers, union and trainers. This model will then be ready for training other trades and a group of 20 Millwrights will commence their training on August 23, 2004.

Check out the Skills for Change website for our flyer, email us at trades@skillsforchange.org or call our information line at 416-658-7090 for our next orientation session.

To register, call 416 658-3101 ext. 218, or,
register on-line with your Visa or MasterCard

Download application form in pdf format
 

Staff Training Workshop Held

Ramsay Kane, Coordinator of the STIC program, organized a one-day staff training workshop on March 10, 2004. The workshop forcussed on Conflict Management and Dispute Resolution utilizing the Adult Education Model.

The workshop was a highly dynamic and interactive and drew on the active interaction of SfC Managers, Coordinators and staff alike. There were some 20 participants. Roland Rhooms and Beth Eccles led the representatives from the management side while staff participation came from STIC, CES, IAT and the Mentoring Program.

Acronym Soup

Confused? Don't be. Here's a list of our agency acronyms, what they mean and (where applicable) a link to the program web page.
 

CES	Clerical Employment Services
CIS	Cultural Interpreting Service
EAS	Employment Assistance Services
EPRS	Employment for Retail Services
ERC	Employment Resource Centre
FOAP	Finance & Office Assistant Program
IAT	Intake, Assessment and Training
ITAB	Internationally Trained Accountants and Bookkeepers
JSC	Job Search Centre
JSW	Job Search Workshop
LINC	Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada
ONIP	Ontario Network for Internationally-training Professionals Online
NPA	New Pioneers Awards
STIC	Sector Terminology Information & Counselling

Acronym Soup

Confused? Don't be. Here's a list of our agency acronyms, what they mean and (where applicable) a link to the program web page.
 

CES - Clerical Employment Services
CIS - Cultural Interpreting Service

EAS - Employment Assistance Services

EPRS - Employment for Retail Services

ERC - Employment Resource Centre

FOAP - Finance & Office Assistant Program

IAT - Intake, Assessment and Training

JSC - Job Search Centre

JSW - Job Search Workshop

LINC - Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada

NPA - New Pioneers Awards

STIC - Sector Terminology Information & Counselling

Comments

If you have a comment or suggestion,
we would like to hear from you. More>

 

Subscribe/Unsubscribe

More>

Newsletter Archive