St. Marys DCVI student Carson Van Fleet wins Skills Ontario qualifier, will compete provincially

Carson Van Fleet (left), a St. Marys District Collegiate and Vocational Institute (DCVI) student and Logan Karges of Goderich District Collegiate Institute (GDCI) were part of the Skills Ontario Qualifying Competition at Fanshawe College.

By Emily Stewart

St. Marys will be represented at the Skills Ontario provincial competition for secondary students this May.

Carson Van Fleet, a St. Marys District Collegiate and Vocational Institute (DCVI) student in Grade 12 placed first overall in the Skills Ontario welding competition qualifying round at Fanshawe College on April 5. Van Fleet earned the top prize for creating a windmill with open-roof plates and open corners. He will be heading to the Skills Ontario provincial competition at the Toronto Congress Centre on May 6.

“It was a really good experience and I’m really happy with the way my project turned out,” said Van Fleet.

He also participated in the competition when he was in Grade 11 last year. Van Fleet said the previous experience helped him during this year’s competition.

“I was going into the competition knowing what I was looking for and how to prepare for it, whereas before I was just preparing for what I thought it could be, so it definitely helped this year knowing what I went through last year,” he said.

Van Fleet said he will get ready for the provincial round by working on his strengths and improving techniques he’d like to boost. He said the Skills Ontario competitions are important for students.

“It gets kids’ names out there and it shows the working world that there are kids out there who are willing to work and are working hard, and I think it’s a really great opportunity for kids in high school to potentially get opportunities with companies that might not necessarily just hire someone based on a name,” Van Fleet said.

The Avon Maitland District School Board (AMDSB) will also see Luke Jackson of Stratford District Secondary School (SDSS), along with Dylan McNeil and Braydon Curran from Goderich District Collegiate Institute (GDCI), compete in Skills Ontario’s provincial competition for secondary school students. AMDSB will also send 40 elementary school students to the May 5 Skills Ontario competition to compete in a variety of categories such as construction, LEGO robotics, character animation, technology and VEX IQ robotics.