Calgary high school students are gaining early access to trades and post-secondary pathways through a long-running partnership between the Calgary Board of Education (CBE) and the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT).
According to a March 17 CBE Board of Trustees agenda, SAIT’s Youth Initiatives team delivers 28 exploratory and dual credit programs exclusively for CBE students each year. The programs, which focus on skilled trades, career readiness, and equitable access, connect students to hands-on learning opportunities both on campus and through industry partnerships.
The board is now recognizing SAIT’s role in the partnership, nominating the institution for the Alberta School Boards Association’s Friends of Education Award.
Hundreds of students take part in the programs annually, with more than 800 CBE students participating in skilled trades-focused streams during the 2024–2025 school year alone, according to the agenda.
Programs such as Exploring Skilled Trades and Exploring Building Trades offer practical experience and a pipeline to post-secondary studies, with about 30 per cent of participants transitioning to SAIT after graduation.
“(Students have) found inspiration that kept them interested in not only doing well in high school but perhaps taking a course that they didn’t realize originally may help achieve their dreams,” said Trustee Susan Vukadinovic during the meeting.
Rozlynn Wick, Project Manager for SAIT Youth Initiatives, said the school was deeply honoured to be nominated for the award, agreeing that the partnership is highly valuable and will continue for years to come.
“At the heart of this partnership is a shared commitment to supporting youth and finding their passion and interest in helping them to navigate their future paths.”
“To be acknowledged by a partner whom we hold in such high regard and who works every day in service of young people and their futures is incredibly meaningful to our youth initiatives team,” she said.
Wick believes that all youth benefit from early, authentic exposure to post-secondary learning and possible career options. Through youth initiatives, she works to ensure that young people can access programs early and often with multiple entry and exit points, so that pathways remain flexible, she said.
Ultra-popular dual credit courses are tough to get into
Even with recent investment in programming and equipment, many dual credit programs remain strapped for placement.
Earlier this year, the CBE and SAIT offered the Calgary Trades & Technologies Collegiate (CTTC) program, with 100 spots for interested students. Nearly two weeks before the draw date for the program’s admission lottery system, the board had already received more than 200 expressions of interest.
At the time, Ken Weipert, Education Director supporting complementary curriculum and pathways for the CBE, said that CTTC, which is said to help build in-demand skills, confidence, and career clarity, preparing students for both post-secondary education and the workforce, will continue into next school year, when hopefully supply will match demand.
“We’ll have a full school year with the career life management course and moving potentially from a half-time teacher to a full-time teacher for the whole year, so we could see three to four times the numbers that we could potentially accept,” Weipert told LWC in January.
In late 2024, during a similar, limited space conversation, CBE Superintendent of School Improvement, Mike Nelson, told the CBE Board of Trustees the district is running low on dual-credit seats.
“We have lots of students that are interested, and we continue to provide more seats and opportunities. But I do have to be honest that we are not always able to meet all of the needs that students want certain pathways,” he said.
“Our team works very diligently to see what other opportunities are there for the students. We create wait lists just like we would for alternative programs and if a student moves or is no longer interested, we get the next ones involved into that program.”
Outside of SAIT, the CBE has partnerships with various post-secondary institutions, including Bow Valley College, Olds College, the University of Calgary and the University of Alberta. According to Nelson, the CBE is very fortunate to have partnerships and will continue increasing dual-credit offerings where possible.
