Adam Prudhomme
Editor
NDSS students past and present made their mark at the 2024 Skills Canada National Competition, held in Quebec City.
NDSS graduate Liam Alford, now attending Mohawk College, earned a silver medal in collision repair while current Hawks Alisha Haaksman and Jeremy Gardiner earned fourth place in car painting and outdoor power and recreation equipment, respectively.
To qualify for the national event, each student had to place first at the provincial level. Made up of 40 different categories, each competitor in their respective division is presented with the same challenge that demonstrates their skilled trade. A panel of judges selects the winner.
Alford, who has competed at the high school level in previous years and has continued into post secondary, had to showcase his ability to repair a dent, replace a door skin and measure a car’s frame and make sure it’s straight. He was also tasked with replacing a quarter panel of a car.
Prior to earning silver this year, he captured a second in 2018 while at NDSS as well as a bronze in 2019.
“There’s not very many high schools that does auto body anymore,” said Alford, who is recently completed his Level 3 Auto-body Apprentice Program at Mohawk College. “Back when I did it there was a couple, but I think it’s even less now.”
NDSS is one of a select few high schools between Toronto and Ottawa with an automotive repair course.
“It was a really good head start for me,” said Alford. “Once I got out and into my apprenticeship I already had a really good grasp on what I was supposed to be doing and how all the machines work and the different steps and processes of auto-body repair that needs to be done to have a smooth and consistent finish. If I didn’t have the high school program it would be starting from scratch and just not really knowing anything going into the trades. It definitely helped.”
Both Haaksman and Gardiner are winding down their Grade 12 year under the instruction of teacher Logan Williams.
Haaksman already has an apprenticeship at Revell Ford lined up.
For her skills competition she had to polish, put a decal on and paint and prep a panel. All skills she had practiced in class.
“It was exciting to be meeting other people and seeing what they have skills and seeing Quebec City and all the cool buildings,” said Haaksman of the competition, noting they had a chance to explore the city as part of the trip. “It was very Italy kind of vibe, it was really cool.”
In her Grade 11 year she placed fourth at the provincial level, just missing out at the chance to compete at nationals. This time around, in her senior year, she placed first and wound up fourth in the country.
Gardiner’s category saw him take apart a lawn tractor motor, disassemble a two stroke snowmobile motor and service the deck of a lawn mower. Another portion involved electrical work where a judge would tamper with a circuit and it was up to Gardiner to figure out what was wrong and explain the impact it would have on the circuit. Last bit not least, he had to service a motorcycle.
“I had never services a lawnmower deck before,” recalled Gardiner. “I expected to see a lawnmower there because it’s an outdoor power equipment competition, but I didn’t expect to work on the deck of one.”
Working in a shop is much different than competing in a skills competition while racing against the clock to finish the task on time.
“There was a lot of pressure because it was completion for all of Canada so you have not idea what you’re up against,” said Gardiner. “There’s all the judges standing around. There’s a lot of pressure but everyone’s pretty cool. They know the kids are going to be stressed out about the competition so they try to keep it pretty light hearted.”
All three students credit the program at NDSS for helping them get their start. With apprenticeships lined up-and with some skills competition hardware on their resume-they’re well on their way to a career that is in demand that requires a very technical skillset.
The goal of the Skills Canada National Competition is to engage Canadian youth and promote all of the rewarding and lucrative careers that are available to them in the skilled trades and technologies. It is the only national multi-trade and technology event of its kind for young students and apprentices in the country.