Totally Trades conference
aims to broaden girls’ thinking
By Scott Mitchell Johnson
Staff Writer
PRESQUE ISLE — Anything boys can do, girls can do … just as well.
That was the message at last Wednesday’s 11th annual Totally Trades conference, sponsored by Women, Work, and Community.
Staff photos/Scott Mitchell Johnson
SARAH MURPHY, an eighth-grader at Presque Isle Middle School, receives instruction from Douglas Cyr, human resources manager at Irving Woodlands LLC, on how to use a harvester simulator during the Totally Trades conference held April 30 at Northern Maine Community College. Forestry was one of 12 sessions featured during the conference, which is designed to encourage girls to consider careers in fields traditionally dominated by men.
KASSIDY VOISINE, a sophomore at Presque Isle High School, patches a hole in the parking lot at Northern Maine Community College as part of the heavy equipment operation workshop held April 30 during the 11th annual Totally Trades conference. The event is sponsored by Women, Work, and Community. 
“Totally Trades offers hands-on workshop experiences in non-traditional careers for females — careers typically dominated by males — to girls throughout Aroostook County. It is our goal to broaden girls’ thinking and encourage them to try something new,” said Suzanne Senechal-Jandreau, conference planner and regional manager of the central Aroostook office of Women, Work and Community, a statewide organization committed to helping Maine people succeed in their workplace, business, and community.
“In addition, we provide positive female role models throughout the day, and want to support those female students who have chosen a non-traditional career track,” she said.
Held at the NMCC campus, the Totally Trades conference featured sessions ranging from carpentry and cable technician to heavy equipment operation and welding, all providing an opportunity for the students to experience some aspect of the profession through a practical exercise.
Sydnee Waters and Nichole Sharp, both freshmen at Presque Isle High School, were among the 135 students who attended the workshop.
“I went to school in Easton originally before they had the tech program where you could go and actually build stuff, and I never got to experience it, so I never knew how,” said Waters. “When I came to Presque Isle in eighth-grade, we started to build stuff in Tech Ed and that was really fun, but it was more of a guy-dominated job. My friend, Danielle, and I came to the Totally Trades conference last year and I learned that girls can actually do a lot of the jobs that guys can, too.
“I decided to come back this year because it was so much fun last time learning about the different careers,” she said. “This year I’m participating in the emergency medical technician and welding workshops. To be able to work with the mannequins and touch the equipment myself was much better than just hearing about it or seeing it. The hands-on component makes this conference really fun. If I hadn’t ended up coming here, I never would have thought about different careers that are more guy dominated and I wouldn’t have had things opened up to me.”
Sharp also attended last year’s event.
“I wanted to come back because I enjoyed it so much last year,” she said. “I like the fact that they’re trying to get girls to do more ‘guy jobs.’ Most of what was offered last year really interested me, so I wanted to go back and try more stuff. This year I’m in the EMT and sheet metal fabrication workshops.
“I’ve been interested in the medical field for quite a while, so the EMT workshop will help. The Totally Trades conference is making me think about my future,” said Sharp. “I’m learning a lot about what’s out there, and I would encourage other girls to attend. If you want to be different and stand out, don’t be afraid it’s a guy-dominated job. If you want to do something, go do it. Don’t let anybody hold you back.”
Jordyn Ritchie, an eighth-grader at Katahdin Middle-High School, said she was excited to attend this year’s conference.
“I was interested in the idea of exposing girls to different career options that they wouldn’t usually think about going into such as criminal justice and auto repair,” she said. “I want to be an actress, but if that doesn’t work, I want to be a doctor. While the workshops I’ve participated in won’t necessarily lead me to my chosen field, it was nice to be exposed to different careers and to realize that women can do those jobs, too.”
Ritchie said the stereotype of “men’s work” and “women’s work” still exists in today’s society.
“Though we don’t really talk about, we can tell it’s there. Some of the guys at school are sexist, but I’m going to do what I want regardless of what they say,” she said. “My morning workshop was auto repair/technician, and I changed a tire for the first time. I’m sure there are some guys at my school who haven’t done that, and that’s a skill that I can carry with me regardless of what I do for a living.”
The free conference is for Aroostook County girls in grades 8 through 12.
Funding for the conference is made possible through monies and in-kind services provided by the Maine Department of Transportation, Maine Department of Education/CTE, K-PEL Industrial Services, Northern Maine Development Commission/APP/LEAD, as well as other local sponsors.
NMCC has served as the host site of the event for many years, and is a featured activity during the college’s recognition of April as Community College Month.
“NMCC has been very pleased to partner with this important project for more than 10 years,” said Lori Smith, student support specialist at NMCC. “Technical skills and programs have always been the core of the college, long before our mission evolved into providing transfer programs leading to four-year degrees along with traditional career training. The Totally Trades event mirrors our work to demonstrate that the educational and career options we offer are for all students, regardless of gender.”
Senechal-Jandreau said the students truly enjoy the hands-on component of the day.
“Whenever the girls have a chance to try something out and actually use their hands and make something then it’s a very experiential learning opportunity for them,” she said, “and I think that’s what keeps them coming back.
“We want to give young women a hands-on workshop experience to spark their interest and raise awareness about some potentially high opportunity and high wage career fields that they may not have previously considered,” said Senechal-Jandreau.
Among the more popular workshops include carpentry, where the girls can build their own toolbox, heavy equipment operation and welding.
