Five TAFE students and their teachers have been selected as the winners of the inaugural Industry Educational Trade Scholarship – partnered by ARBS, AMCA and AREMA.
The scholarship aims to increase opportunities for students studying commercial refrigeration and air conditioning and provide professional development for teachers.
The winners – from NSW and Queensland – will commence the first week of a two-week residential course at the Refrigeration and Climate Control Centre of Excellence (RCCC) in Melbourne on June 27. They will return for a second week of study from September 9.
The RCCC is a partnership between AMCA and Box Hill Institute. It will ensure that recipients of the scholarship are exposed to the latest technological advances for HVAC&R.
The winners (all third year apprentices) are:
Hayden Burgess
Ultimo TAFE Sydney NSW
Employer – Gordon Brothers
Teacher – Russell Farnham
Daniel Johnson
TAFE QLD SkillsTech
Employer – Brisbane Refrigeration
Teacher – Paul Marshall
Christopher Savovski
Ultimo TAFE Sydney NSW
Employer – M.R. Services
Teacher – Russell Farnham
Jesse Judge
Ultimo TAFE Sydney NSW
Employer – Atlas Mechanical Services
Teacher – Grant Swanson
Lachlan Faint
Ultimo TAFE Sydney NSW
Employer – M.R. Services
Teacher – Grant Swanson
The scholarship embodies eight key units of competency from the Master Refrigeration program developed by AMCA. Box Hill will enrol all students and award a Statement of Attainment for each unit completed. AMCA will provide a Master of Refrigeration certificate for those students who complete all eight units.
“The judges were very impressed with the quality of entries we received,” said Mark Padwick, President of AREMA. “Through their applications, the students all showed a positive attitude, keenness to learn and demonstrated real aptitude to successfully complete their trade training.”
According to Sumit Oberoi, Executive Director of AMCA, being awarded this unique scholarship was a great outcome for the five apprentices and their accompanying teachers.
“The teachers have been instrumental in the development of these apprentices over the past three years,” he said. “We look forward to tracking the progress of these future ambassadors, who will be leaders in our industry. As an industry we must ensure we continue to address ways to upskill apprentices, and further professionally and personally develop our important trade teachers.”
The development of the Industry Educational Trade Scholarship followed a review of industry skill requirements by AREMA and AMCA, where both organisations identified ways to upskill and prepare new and current trainees in commercial refrigeration and the air conditioning industry. The program is supported by ARBS, which supports industry through its bi-annual trade exhibition and sponsorships.
The scholarship aims to:
- improve the quality of knowledge of trades people in the refrigeration and air conditioning industry
- promote quality outcomes in the vocational education and training system
- increase the awareness of employers and the community of the benefits of participating in further education, and
- support the ARBS stakeholder industry by increasing the level of education in the industry.
