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Empowering women in trades

NIC’s Parker Technical Education Center in Rathdrum.

North Idaho College is hosting an event focused on introducing women to a variety of career and technical education (CTE) programs offered at NIC.

The inaugural CTE Women at Work event will be held from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 16 at the NIC Parker Technical Education Center in Rathdrum.

The event is free and open to the public.

CTE Women at Work features guest speakers from various local industries sharing the experience of being a woman working in a male-dominated field. Participants can also receive a tour of the NIC Parker Technical Education Center, see the labs where classes are held, and meet and talk with program instructors. There will be child-friendly activities, free food and drinks, and additional beverages available for purchase. 

“By going into the trades, you can then enter the workforce relatively quickly and make good pay,” NIC Center for New Directions employee Louisa Rogers said. “As opposed to going into a traditional four-year degree and then going to graduate school, you can do a training program and potentially earn higher pay.”

According to the Idaho Department of Labor, women account for 54% of Idaho’s total labor force growth over the past five years. Rogers said that NIC’s CTE programs can provide valuable skills that students can take quickly into in-demand career fields. 

“A lot of people want to start making money quickly instead of going to years and years of school,” Rogers said. “We really want to help support women looking into a career in a CTE field.”

For more information, contact parker_events@nic.edu or call (208) 929-4040.