May 3, 2023—Congratulations to Ian Ketcheson, Grade 11 student at Bayside Secondary School, for his second Gold Medal at the Skills Ontario Competition in Welding.
Ian Ketcheson will be competing in the national Skills Canada Competition Welding competition in Winnipeg later this month, where he will go up against students from across Canada to be crowned National Champion in this sector. He qualified for the National Final in 2022 as well, however was unable to travel to Vancouver for the competition due to the pandemic.
“I qualified again for the National Competition at the Regional Final held in Toronto,” said Ketcheson. “The hard work and extra practice finally paid off and I get to do what I set out to do."
Ian has had an interest in welding from a young age.
“It is my passion to weld and I also like working on heavy equipment,” he said. “I know one day I will take over my family’s farm. Pursuing a career in the skilled trades like welding or being an agricultural technician will set me up really well for my future so I am able to properly repair my own farming equipment."
On May 25 and 26, over 550 students from all regions of Canada will participate in over 40 skilled trade and technology competitions. The event is the only national, multi-trade and technology competition for students and apprentices in the country.
By providing a forum where young Canadians can compete, the national competition provides hands-on work experience related to skilled trade and technology careers, something that is important to the future of work in Canada. According to RBC’s ‘Powering Up’ report, which studied the current state of Canada’s Skilled trades industry, Canada will face a shortage of at least 10,000 workers in nationally recognized Red Seal trades over the next three years.
Competitors competing in the National Final will also have the opportunity to win a RBC ‘Best of Region’ Award, which will award $1,500 to one competitor from each region at the closing ceremonies.
“Winning this award would provide many job opportunities in my future,” said Ketcheson. “Having this achievement on my resume would let employers know I am a hard worker and I have previous experience in the welding industry. As for the monetary award, I would donate it to my school’s manufacturing program so we can buy more tools and materials so we can better our learning experiences."
Other members of Team Bayside had an experience they will remember for years to come.
- Carpentry, Team of 2: Joselyn Reynolds, Grade 12 and Lauren Krstevsky, Grade 11
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Prepared Speech: Cien Nolan, Grade 11
- Precision Machining: Jake Hamstra, Grade 12
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Photography Kidan Singer, Grade 12
Graphic Design, Presentation: Isabel Yome, Grade 12
- TV and Video Production, Team of 2: Max Archer, Grade 12 and Kaylin McVeigh, Grade 10
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Welding: Marshal Tebworth, Grade 12
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Welding: Ian Ketcheson, Grade 11
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2D Character Animation, Team of 2: Addysen Stewart, Grade 11 and Keira O'Leary, Grade 9