Starting this fall, the next era of plumbers could be able to begin the long adventure on their favored professional course. Thanks to a collaborative attempt between the Region Two Career and Technical Education Center in Houlton and Harbison Plumbing, Heating, and Air Conditioning, a brand new mechanical services path can be offered to place an excessive number of college students.
Region Two Director Dave Keaton said he wanted to add a plumbing and heating route on the career middle in Houlton for multiple years. As fate might have it, he became approached by a neighborhood businessman, David Harbison, Jr., owner of Harbison Plumbing, Heating, and Air Conditioning of Houlton, with approximately the opportunity of joining forces.
“Dave came in pretty much the time I changed into on the brink of the survey of the students as to what programs they are interested in,” Keaton said. “The timing surely changed into uncanny because this became something I had been thinking about for a while.”
“I suppose it is a fair declaration to make that all of us who own or work within the trades industry of any kind is aware of how hard it’s miles to discover, not simplest certified workers, but any workers in any respect which are interested in being employed inside the trades,” Harbison said in his written notion to Region Two. “I agree that the fast and long-term answers to this hassle begin on the excessive college stage. It is of extreme importance to introduce these trades in our neighborhood Regional School of Applied Technology.”
However, the problem of the area became a trouble that saved routine whenever Keaton started to think about a way to include a brand new mechanical services software at the college. “We have run out of the area in this building,” he said.
Harbison supplied an answer — web hosting the elegance at his commercial enterprise, located at 98 Bangor St. The path may be the best application provided north of Bangor. “I, in my opinion, the sense that this is an excellent possibility for industry and schooling to community collectively to repair a challenging hassle we all face — a loss of to be had the workforce,” Harbison said. “It is also my opinion that the next pool of to-be tradespeople are currently learners in excessive faculty. That’s a way away, but we want to start this effort now.”
Interest in the new offering already appears high with students from Houlton Middle-High, Hodgdon Middle-High, East Grand, Southern Aroostook, and Katahdin faculties. “Every yr, we do new application surveys to decide if there are different programs we can offer,” Keaton said. “We determined 39 children that had been without a doubt interested in this direction.”
Unfortunately, Keaton stated that 60 percent of the scholar populace needed to express interest in the application to receive country investment for a new direction. The 39 college students who had been fascinated only make up 12.38 percent.
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