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Oregon Tradeswomen’s 2018 Career Fair Wrap-Up
On May 18th and 19th, Oregon Tradeswomen held our 26th Annual Career Fair and it was one of our best years ever! This enormously impactful event, graciously hosted once again by the NECA-IBEW Electrical Training Center, featured more than 100 companies and organizations representing the trades and other non-traditional career paths for women, and offered insights into the possibilities of a future in those careers to more than 2,300 students and adult career seekers.
To make the Career Fair more accessible and easier to navigate, Oregon Tradeswomen worked with event app developer Crowd Compass to create our very own application for the event. The application included an interactive map, a list of exhibitors, activity schedules, and a social feed for attendees to share about their experiences at Fair throughout the day.
Building birdhouses with Skanska!
Career Fair attendees were met with unique opportunities to not only talk to employers at exhibit tables, but also participate in hands-on activities and workshops. From using an excavator to pick up a tire with the Operating Engineers Local 701, to building a birdhouse with Skanska, the experiences offered at Oregon Tradeswomen’s Career Fair visibly stirred excitement about the construction trades among the participants.
Melinda of the IUOE Local 701 teaching a young woman how to use an excavator!
The most raucous enthusiasm came from the middle and high school girls who attended the Career Fair on Friday May 18th, School Girls’ Day. With record attendance, 75 schools came from as far south as Roseburg and as far north as Castle Rock bringing more than 1,300 students! Many of these young women had never imagined a future in the trades for themselves, but after participating in workshops and talking to tradeswomen, they began to see that their interests aligned with some of the careers introduced to them at the Career Fair. The school girls were so moved by their experiences that we heard back from several schools. A teacher from Madras said,
“We’ve been taking students for the past 12+ years and it gets better each year.”
Even the whole Pendleton School District wrote back saying,
“[We] attended the recent Career Fair for the first time ever and had an absolutely amazing time. We brought 30+ middle school and high school students who positively glowed with excitement about the experience on the ride home and are already looking forward to next year. We loved the wide range of exhibits and activities and the staff and exhibitors were so inspiring.”
School Girls Day at Oregon Tradeswomen’s 26th Annual Career Fair!
Usually, Friday’s School Girls’ Day outshines the Saturday crowd, but this year Saturday was nearly as busy as Friday with more than 1,000 people flowing in and out of the NECA-IBEW Electrical Training Center to participate in hands-on activities and speak with representatives at their exhibit booths! A few of the students from Friday returned to the Career Fair on Saturday with their friends and families to show them the workshops and careers that sparked a genuine interest!
One of the crowd favorite, and overall inspirational elements of Oregon Tradeswomen’s annual Career Fair was the Tradeswomen Fashion Show where real women working in the trades and other nontraditional careers had their moment on stage and in the spotlight, to talk about what their job entails, how they came to be tradeswomen, and why they love the work they do.
Fashion Show participants at Oregon Tradeswomen’s 26th Annual Career Fair!
Oregon Tradeswomen annual Career Fair is important because it is a place where women and girls can see other women who are successful in an industry where you don’t see very women. It was truly inspiring to see how many women of all ages discover that they, too, can pursue these careers. It all goes back to our favorite adage, “If you can see it, you can be it!”
Trades & Apprenticeship Career Class Graduation
You’re Invited!
Oregon Tradeswomen’s Trades and Apprenticeship Career Class Graduation!
Thursday, August 24, 2017
5:30 – 6:30 p.m.
PCC Metropolitan Workforce Training Center
Building 2 in the Auditorium
5600 NE 42nd Avenue
Portland, OR 97218
Click for the street address on Google Maps
Light appetizers & cake will be served!
Congratulations, Graduates!
Chris Alexander
Ursi Berliner
Heather Borgsteede
Katie Colpo
Haley DeVore
Dary Estevez
CoCo Feller
Natalie Fortune
Grace Goodman
Amy Haddox
Finch Hogue
Joanna Levy
Kelli Losli
Sarah Robertson
Lati Tuitavuki
Mac Walton
Val Wright
Rebuilding Together with Washington County
On June 24, 2017, dozens of tradeswomen and friends arrived at a manufactured home park in Beaverton, OR for a day a service with Rebuilding Together Washington County and the Labor Community Service Agency.
All of the home repair projects were coordinated and led by women. Volunteers spent the day transforming a community with projects aimed at improving the health of each homeowner as well as their safety – from preventing fire risk, restoring weatherproofing, preventing homelessness, and brightening the lives of some of our most vulnerable neighbors.
This project was especially unique, because we offered free childcare to all the volunteers. The kids made birdhouses and hand painted stones for gardens, and they also were our most helpful paint brush cleaners! Like in the construction trades, having children shouldn’t be barrier to your success-so we wanted our volunteer project to reflect that value.
Despite the temperatures well over 100 degrees, the tradeswomen showed up in full force, bringing their invaluable skills to help our community members most in need! Thank you everyone!
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OTI’s Next Executive Director: Kelly Kupcak
Kelly Kupcak (left) with Connie Ashbrook (right). Photo by Don McIntosh / NW Labor Press
Kelly Kupcak (left) with Connie Ashbrook (right). Photo by Don McIntosh / NW Labor PressThank you for all of your well-wishes, congratulations, and other kind words when we
announced OTI founder and Executive Director, Connie Ashbrook’s, forthcoming retirement last October.
We are pleased to tell you that Oregon Tradeswomen’s Board of Directors has hired OTI’s next Executive Director.
Kelly Kupcak, from Chicago Women in Trades, will take the reins of Oregon Tradeswomen on July 10, 2017. She brings more than two decades of nonprofit management experience to her new role as Executive Director of Oregon Tradeswomen.
Kelly holds a fundamental belief that economic equity and gender inclusion are critical to building strong women, strong families, and strong communities. Kelly brings considerable skills in strategic visioning, collaborative leadership, and outcomes-driven planning, and looks forward to expanding OTI’s impact in workforce development and building diversity in Oregon’s construction trades workforce.
From Left: Sharon Latson (Chicago Women in Trades), Kelly Kupcak (OTI’s Incoming Executive Director), Melissa Jennings (Volunteer), and Olivia Porter (Volunteer)
Most recently, Kelly served as the Director of Technical Assistance for the National Center for Women’s Equity in Apprenticeship and Employment at Chicago Women in Trades. She managed a highly competitive, multi-year U.S. Department of Labor ten-state regional grant-funded initiative and a U.S. Department of Labor contract, national in scope, to improve outcomes for women in nontraditional sectors through technical assistance to industry partners including employers, registered apprenticeship, workforce system, career technical system, and government entities.
Connie will continue to be involved with national policy by serving as co-chair of the Taskforce on Tradeswomen Issues and conducting training, providing technical assistance and other consulting services to help employers, apprenticeship programs, unions, and government agencies diversify their workforces, and assisting Career and Technical Education (CTE) trade programs to attract and retain more women and girls.
Kelly plans to visit the 25th Women in Trades Career Fair on May 19 and 20, 2017, and she will officially start in her new role with Oregon Tradeswomen on Monday, July 10, 2017. Kelly looks forward to meeting you soon, whether at the Women in Trades Career Fair or another event later in the year.
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Read more about Kelly from Stephanie Basalyga, Editor of the Daily Journal of Commerce:
Get Strong and Support OTI With Fulcrum Fitness!
Sign up for the Fit Life Challenge and Fulcrum Fitness will donate half the proceeds back to Oregon Tradeswomen!
Open to everyone 18 and over, the 2017 Fulcrum Fit Life Challenge is a fun and motivating way to burn fat, build muscle, and have a great time getting in shape. Join the Challenge and get six weeks of strength-building, fat-melting boot camp and small-group personal training sessions as well as the chance to win a $1,000 membership credit you can spend on any type of workouts you want!
In addition to the grand prize, we’ll also be giving away a two-month Small Group Personal Training membership runner-up prize, as well as motivating weekly prizes from our community partners, including MYZONE belts, chiropractic treatments, naturopathic services, Fulcrum gear, and more!
The Fulcrum Fit Life Challenge runs from April 3rd – May 15th and costs just $97 for new members. Registration ends April 14th, so sign up today and be sure to list Oregon Tradeswomen as your referral source:
OTI Hosts Global Women Leaders Discussion
On February 10, 2016 OTI was honored to host a group of 20 women from 20 different countries. These women were visitors to the U.S. through the State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program.
According to the Department of State, the goals for this group are to:
- Examine the U.S. political system and women’s participation at the local, state, and national levels;
- Explore programs and initiatives that encourage young women to become involved in politics, run for office, and run effective campaigns;
- Introduce the role of women’s organizations in shaping political dialogue and convey an understanding of effective interaction and support among women across various sectors;
- Gain insight to legislation and programs that promote equal pay and fair treatment for women in the workplace and promote the value of women’s contributions in the home and as primary caregivers for the young and the elderly; and
- Introduce initiatives and legislation that address women’s needs in the areas of health and education.
OTI staff Leigh McIlvaine and Tiffany Thompson really enjoyed presenting to this incredible group of women. During their hour with the group they explained construction apprenticeship, OTI’s Programs, and the larger advocacy work of both OTI and the National Taskforce on Tradeswomen’s Issues. They also covered some brief information about International Tradeswomen work including a 2015 Calendar featuring tradeswomen from across the world (our own AJ Banuelos was featured as May!), Susan Moir’s Fulbright Scholarship researching women in the trades in India, and women in the Trades and Civil Engineering in Japan.
The second half of the visit was spent in open discussion about OTI’s work and women working in the trades in other nations. These women leaders were incredible and insightful; discussion topics included from maternity leave, union political power, cultural perceptions of women working as manual laborers, and fighting myths about the value of blue collar work. Many of the women shared that this was the first time they had a chance to talk about women working in the construction industry and they were excited to think about career opportunities for women in a different way. OTI is certainly looking forward to questions from them in the future about advocating for tradeswomen in their countries!
If you are interested, you can see the full list of visitors below:
Participant List Women in Pol & Social Sectors (MRP).
2015 Outstanding Volunteers
One of the highlights of my year is when I get to recognize the hard work of OTI’s volunteers. These folks often work behind the scenes and their contributions to our mission are so often missed! This year, I am excited to highlight four volunteers who have gone above and beyond to support OTI and tradeswomen.
Outstanding Board Member
Irais Gandarilla
If her face looks familiar, but you can’t quite place it, look back to your 2015 Women in Trades Career Fair materials. Irais was the face of brand new materials that feature real tradeswomen. She also represented our Board and the organization, acting a spokeswoman . The 2015 Tradeswomen Leadership Institute would not have been the same without her this year either, she served on the planning committee and, in partnership with Annie Burton, presented a workshop Social Justice: When Diversity Isn’t Enough.
Outstanding Volunteers
Bea Jenkins
As an organizer for the Operating Engineers, Bea has been involved with OTI through presentations to TACC. However, in 2015 she decided to volunteer with us and jumped in with both feet! First, she started as a member of the Tradeswomen Leadership Institute planning committee. In January of last year, I don’t think Bea knew exactly how big of a role she would play. Ultimately, she ended up being one of the storytellers for Tradeswomen Stories. She also recruited her good friend, Merilee McCall, to be the keynote speaker for the event!
Sho is on the left.
Sho Newman
This incredible woman will sneak quietly under your radar, but she is a force to be reckoned with. Last year, Sho was holding down two jobs, one being her Carpenter’s apprenticeship and then another just to fill up those free hours on the weekend. However, she didn’t let this stop her from being a Lead on our new Volunteer Outreach Team. Sho, and her team, really moved this forward helping OTI staff represent our mission at community events. She recruited folks who had never been involved with OTI and was always bringing a friend (or two!) to social hours.
Shondra Washington
If you have met Shondra, you may not believe that she just graduated from OTI last year. Out of the gate, Shondra was representing OTI, Tree Trimmers, and workers’ right at the 2015 Summer Institute for Union Women. Of course, she didn’t stop there. Shondra regularly presents for TACC. While most people shy away from fundraising efforts, she has also advocated for OTI on this front, presenting to groups about funding OTI and being featured in our 2015 Give Guide Campaign.
I hope you can join OTI staff in recognizing these amazing volunteers. If you are friends with them on Facebook, give them some love and some kudos! Send them a sweet text. Or, best of all, come out and give them a round of applause at our Annual Meeting.
Business Membership Spotlight: Hamilton Construction
Oregon Tradeswomen, Inc. welcomes the support of the business community to help us fulfill our mission to engage more women and girls in the trades.
Hamilton Construction is one of our partners in this program and we thank them for their contribution to OTI.
Hamilton Construction has been meeting clients needs since 1939. It has grown from a small firm building concrete roads and irrigation systems in Oregon, to a corporation performing over $100 Million annually in concrete and steel construction throughout the Western states. During this time, Hamilton has met the demanding needs of both public agencies and private firms, including Oregon, Washington State, California, Colorado and Alaska DOTs, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Union Pacific Railroad, Tri-Met, Weyerhaeuser, Georgia Pacific and Portland General Electric to name a few. They have worked with many of our clients for over 40 years.
OTI thanks the staff of Hamilton Construction for their support of our programming as a business membership program participant!
If you want to learn more about our business membership program, please send an email to dennise@tradeswomen.net for details on how you can be involved.
Special Event
Our executive director, Connie Ashbrook, and a few former board members are coordinating a special fundraising event for Oregon Tradeswomen, Inc.
November 14, 2015
Details: A special screening of the new short film Sista in the Brotherhood portraying the challenges and successes of an African American woman carpenter apprentice. This film was created by former OTI staffers Dawn Jones Redstone and Roberta Hunte.
**Invite Only**
If you would like to make a donation, please click here – thank you!