It's early days for the 2015 Canada Winter Games but there's a place in Prince George where athletes and supporters alike can look beyond the big plays, times, scores and cheers.
Canada Games Plaza hosted the official opening of the Northern B.C. Career Zone Saturday. Organizations including WorkBC, the Industry Training Authority, the College of New Caledonia, UNBC and Move Up PG teamed up on the interactive showcase focused on highlighting the work, living and training opportunities in northern B.C.
It's advice and help that Kelsey Serwa can appreciate. Serwa, the honourary captain of Team B.C., has enjoyed much athletic success including : a silver medal in sk icross at the 2014 Winter Olympics; a gold medal in alpine skiing at the 2007 Canada Winter Games in Whitehorse; a World Cup Championship; and an X-Games gold medal. The Kelowna native is now attending UBC Okanagan as full-time student and hopes to one day become a physiotherapist - testimony to her mother's advice of always having a Plan B.
"It's always best to be prepared and we're fortunate as athletes, we're making great connections through our lives," said Serwa, who is taking a year away from sports. "Once the time comes when... we want to make decide what we want to do with the rest of our lives, it's great to have that plan so we know where we're going."
The idea of an athlete having a Plan B resonated with Shirley Bond, B.C.'s jobs minister and MLA for Prince George-Valemount, who was on hand for the opening. She said the career zone offered a number of tools and opportunities to those interested in a future of work and learning in northern B.C.
"We have great partners who are helping people find jobs," said Bond. "We thought, that while we're showcasing our geography, we should also showcase the other assets we have here."
Many of those tools are available at workbc.ca, including: CareerTrek, a selection of videos highlight jobs throughout B.C.; job search; the Labour Market Navigator, which offers a look at careers in demand by region; My Blueprint Builder, which sketches out a personal plan for a prospective career; and the Career Compass, a quiz geared more toward youth that can help point toward a particular career.
WorkBC also has an Employment Services Centre in Prince George.
According to the province, B.C. is expecting one million job openings to be created by retirements and economic growth by 2022. The government is also forecasting 78 per cent of jobs will require some form of post-secondary education and 44 per cent will require skilled trades and technical training.
In that vein, Bond was impressed by UNBC's efforts to recruit students both from within the province and beyond. She highlighted the university's student for a day program that offered $500 to prospective students in B.C. and $1,000 for those outside of B.C. for help with travel expenses in getting to Prince George and taking a tour of UNBC.
She was similiarly enthused by UNBC's offer a $2,500 tuition credit to Games athletes and officials who end up attending the institution. Both programs can be accessed in the career zone during the Games.
"I love the fact they're putting some money on the table to actually bring students back, to say 'Come see our campus,'" said Bond. "We know once we get them here, we're going to hook them. We've all heard the stories of how you come (to Prince George) for a year or two and you stay for 25."
Kelsey Serwa
-my mom always told me it's always important to have a Plan B because as an athlete our careers are our careers are so... you don't know what's going to happen day-to-day - there's injury, there's... - it's always best to be prepared and we're fortunate as athletes, we make great connections throughout our lives - and once the time
